The Monkey and the Jar
What it taught me about copy editing
There’s this old story I heard as a boy.
Most of you know it.
A monkey sees a glass jar filled with groundnuts.
It slides its hand in, grabs a handful — but can’t pull the hand back out.
Why?
Because it won’t drop even one nut.
Just there, struggling. Angry. Stuck.
All because it refused to let go.
Sounds familiar?
Many writers are like that monkey.
You’ve written something you’re proud of.
You’ve read it ten times. You felt it when you typed it.
And now, someone says it needs to go?
You tighten your grip.
You see…
The real power of editing isn’t in what you keep — it’s in what you’re willing to release.
(Read that again.)
When I’m editing a manuscript, I’m not just cutting words to fill up track changes.
I’m listening for what serves the story and what’s just taking up space.
Here’s what I ask myself every time:
🥕 Is this sentence carrying its weight?
🥕 Is this line adding clarity — or noise?
🥕 Are we holding on to words that could be said better… or dropped entirely?
🥕 Can this writer’s voice shine more if we loosen the grip?
Editing isn’t about losing your words.
It’s about freeing your story.
You won’t believe how light and powerful a draft can feel — once you stop clutching every paragraph like it’s the last bus to Oshodi. Haba, try laying off the attachment a bit.
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Have you ever struggled to cut something from your work, even though you knew it wasn’t helping?
Let’s gist in the comments. I’m curious.
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PS: I post every Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday.
Catch you on Monday — pen in hand.
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Image Credit: ChatGPT
I recall a time when I wrote a short story, and shared with one of my mutuals. He criticized it, and told to rewrite the story, changing the plot and the dialogue.
I was pissed. How dare he? I decided I wasn’t going to do any of that. But after a while, I went back to read I’d written: it was too cheesy. I had to rewrite the short story.
Everyone should be open to criticism (albeit in a loving way), especially writers, and aspiring authors. ✨
There have been moments during the editing process that I struggled to let go (especially when it took a long to write in the first place). It sometimes felt like I was just taking a knife to my work and hacking at it. But like you said, as well-written as something is, it may just be a filler. If I don't like seeing long drawn out information in others' writing...why would someone want to see it in mine?
I think when we're able to determine what works and doesn't work in our writing, it shows growth.
Very helpful tips you shared! I never heard of the monkey story...but I get the moral of it.