Let’s start by asking ourselves what creative darlings are.
Darling is synonymous with precious, adored, favorite, beloved, loved, cherished, treasured, prized, esteemed, worshipped, idolized, etc. You get the picture. Sometimes people think of creative darlings as things that are too precious. We are so attached to them that we might not be objective. I like to think of them as the unnecessary “fluff” that we use to embellish, and in fact, those darlings can detract from the essence of what you are trying to create. The term “kill your darlings” has been attributed to a 1914 writing lecture, “On Style”:
If you here require a practical rule of me, I will present you with this: ‘Whenever you feel an impulse to perpetrate a piece of exceptionally fine writing, obey it—whole-heartedly—and delete it before sending your manuscript to press. Murder your darlings.
Writer Arthur Quiller-Couch
Creative darlings can be the outcome of overthinking, overworking, and exertion to try to MAKE something incredible. They can also be the outcome of decision fatigue, where we become tired of editing and leave things as they are. We become a little lazy and attached. It’s a scary prospect to decide to “kill” something we have created (curated, collected, or envisioned), but when we become overly attached, we fail to see what’s best for the big picture. It can be liberating to trust and believe that letting go might lead to something better emerging.
Don’t get so blinded by what you’ve invested (time, $, emotions) that you lose sight of the big picture. That’s why we must kill those creative darlings; otherwise, we can get so caught up in our thoughts and ideas that we may not realize when they are failing to pay off for us. Be willing to let go of your grip, trust the creative process, and know that by severely pruning out the “dead wood,” we will see the most vigorous and healthy lush new growth!
Kill your creative darlings early and late in your creative process, kill your darlings when your editing your wardrobe, kill your darlings when you are looking around your home and decluttering.