But wrote 1,237 words in Google Docs this morning, but my editor needs it at 800 by tomorrow noon… What’s your best move for tightening without losing voice — what do you cut first, and any pitfalls to avoid? I keep telling myself you’ve got this.
Duplicate the Google Doc, then cut every sentence that doesn’t drive one clear thesis; I do a quick Ctrl+F purge for ‘that/just/’ keep only each paragraph’s topic sentence, and rebuild to 800 with one vivid detail per section. For a last pass before tomorrow noon, run it through https://www.hemingwayapp.com to flag flab — useful, but don’t let it sand off your voice.
, when I need to drop 1,237 to 800 fast, I set a paragraph word budget in Google Docs using ‘Display word count’ on selections and ruthlessly merge or cut until the total hits about 780. Building on @caha620’s keep-the-opener idea, I usually kill the second example and collapse any throat-clearing transitions into one sharp line so the voice stays punchy. If there’s a must-keep anecdote, anchor it after the opener, then trim everything around it rather than softening the verbs.
I’d do a reverse outline: give every paragraph a “one job” label, merge duplicates, and keep only the single strongest sentence that fulfills each job. To free more room, compress multiple examples into one composite and preserve transitions so the voice still flows — like packing a carry-on without leaving your toothbrush. Maybe braid two or three anecdotes into one instead of trimming phrasing; that typically buys 150–200 words.
Quick win: do a 20‑minute delete‑only pass on your 1,237 words — lock a one‑sentence thesis at the top, cut every line that doesn’t directly serve it, and land around 780 before a 10‑minute smoothing pass. , also nuke throat‑clearing (“In this article,” “I want to talk about…”) and chains like “in order to,” which keeps your voice intact without sanding it flat. @OP want to drop your thesis line so we can sanity‑check what absolutely must stay?