Have no mercy on yourself. Cut. Destroy. Revise. Take entire pages out. Bad writing is like a bad relationship. Don't be addicted to it just because you are familiar with its ways. Let go.
However, don't be merciless on your characters. Do not look down upon them. Our job is not to judge them but to understand them and help other people understand them. Empathy is the key word.
Elif Shafak, Rules for Writing, The Daily Telegraph
Quoted in Writers News September 2013 www.writers-online.co.uk
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