take out things that dont really need to be in there. things that dont necessarily move the novel along.
But only do that when you've finished. And remember that things might need to be in there to control the pace and to immerse the reader in the world of the book; advancing plot is not the only reason for something to be in there.
Just remember that Strunk & White didn't always follow their own rules and Kurt Vonnegut didn't always follow his own rules. I reckon that in general they were right not to.
It doesn't matter if it's long, you shouldn't really put too many restrictions on the creative part of writing. I've been told that when it comes to editing and revising, you have to change it and take a lot out anyway.
There is nothing wrong with writing a long novel (e.g. 500 pages). Stephen King does it all the time. As long as your story, characters, ideas are interesting, and your writing is good, most people will gladly spend a few days reading through your novel. Publishing is another matter. It is often said that publishers don't like material longer than 80,000 - 100,000 words for first-time writers. Don't know if that's true in real life, or not.
Hi, It should be as long as it needs to be. Case in point, I'm currently working on a sequal to The End, which is a short story of fifteen thousand words or so. I just did a word check on it and its over forty thousand words and there's a ways to go. This may confuse readers a little, as they expect one thing and get another, but in the end it is what it is. I'm not going to worry about it - about my fingers growing shorter by the day maybe, but not the length of a book. Cheers, Greg.
