How Low Can You Go?

I'm off to vacation in the heartland this week, so I thought I'd leave you with a fun exercise. It’s never an easy feat to reduce a novel’s word count. I’ve learned the best way to do it is through lots of practice. It helps me hone in on exactly what's most important in a scene.

Try your hand at this example from The Hunger Games. Read the original paragraph and see if you can cut it down to 100 words.

Then 75.

And finally 50.

Original Word Count: 181

Sixty seconds. That’s how long we’re required to stand on our metal circles before the sound of a gong releases us. Step off before the minute is up, and land mines blow your leg off. Sixty seconds to take in the ring of tributes all equi-distant from the Cornucopia, a giant golden horn shaped like a cone with a curved tail, the mouth of which is at least twenty feet high, spilling over with the things that will give us life here in the arena. Food, containers of water, weapons, medicine, garments, fire starters. Strewn around the Cornucopia are other supplies, their value decreasing the farther they are from the horn. For instance, only a few steps from my feet lies a three-foot square of plastic. Certainly it could be of some use in a downpour. But there in the mouth, I can see a tent pack that would protect from almost any sort of weather. If I had the guts to go in and fight for it against the other twenty-three tributes. Which I have been instructed not to do.

From The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins


Check out how I attempted it below.

100 words

Sixty seconds until the gong releases us from our metal circles. Step off sooner, and mines blow your leg off. Sixty seconds to take in the ring of equi-distant tributes around the giant golden Cornucopia, which spills over with the supplies. Food, water, weapons, medicine, garments, fire starters, their value decreasing the farther they are from the horn. Only a few steps away lies a square of plastic that could help in a downpour. In the mouth, I see a tent. If I had the guts to fight for it. Which I have been instructed not to.

 75 words

Sixty seconds until the gong releases us from metal circles. Step off sooner, mines blow. Sixty seconds to eye the ring of tributes around the giant supply Cornucopia. Food, water, weapons, medicine, garments, fire starters. Their value decreases the farther they are from the horn. A few steps away, a plastic square could help in a downpour, and in the Cornucopia’s mouth, a tent. If I fight for it. Which I’m not supposed to.

50 words

Sixty seconds until the gong releases us. Step off the circles sooner, mines blow. Sixty seconds to eye the other tributes ringing the supply Cornucopia. Food, water, weapons, decreasing in value farther from the horn. I see a tent. If I fight for it. Which I’m not supposed to.