Week 116.5 – Working it out!

It’s still all a bit unwriterly here so this is just a quick post, to keep me meeting at least one deadline this week!

I’ve been looking at inspirational quotes this week for anyone needing a boost during NaNoWriMo, and found a lot that really appeal to me.

I can define my approach to writing through the ones I like most, in some ways – the principle of writing first and editing later; of making a habit of writing; of working on things until they are right.

My poems are drafted, and revised, and redrafted many times over, and my stories are the same.  This has taught me that some ideas start slowly and grow and bloom like flowers, and that some ideas are formed almost before I pick up a pen to write them down.

The good thing about my experiences of writing is that I now know the most unassuming, quickly-written, basic sentence can become something strong and powerful with time.  I never throw any writing away.

So when you write anything, remember it’s a first draft – it can change, and grow.  Some sentences/lines may be exactly what you want, and some might need smoothing, or tuning, or reorganising – but it’s all valuable, and deserves your time and attention.

Keep earlier drafts, keep notes, keep anything that shows your journey from start to finish.  Keep sections you cut out, or ideas you decided not to include.  It’s great to see how far you’ve come.

Besides, you never know what you might want to use in the future!

Happy writing,

EJ

🙂