Space: The First Frontier

The blank white screen sits in front of me like some taunting beast of the netherworld. It challenges anyone to take a chance and face it. Sometimes a soul is brave enough to stare it down, but, most often, the would-be challenger finds other things to keep his or her attention. The world outside the window suddenly looks a lot more interesting. The bookshelf really needs to be reorganized. Was that one of the kids calling me? Boy, I sure am hungry. Oh, I forgot to pay that bill. I wonder who is on Facebook. I know, I'll try my journal instead. Where did I put it? Now where is my pen? No, not this one, I want the other one.

Okay, focus. Just write an opening line. "Bob sat silently, looking at a blank computer screen". Bob? Why Bob? Why not Charles or Maggie or Sue? Silently: I should steer away from empty adjectives. Does that sentence really need a comma?

 

Creative mind-space is difficult to find. We all have an inner editor. Maybe yours was born by domineering parents or over zealous teachers. Maybe it was created out of necessity during college. Maybe, like me, you cannot put a finger on where it started, but it seems to have always been with you; questioning your every creative move.

A good editor can make all the difference in a creative work. He/She can make sure that the ideas are communicated professionally, succinctly, and completely. But an editor needs to come into the process AFTER creation, not during.

This has taken me some time to believe. I used to think that I could finish a piece in one sitting. In fact, I often did. Those one-take pieces suffered on two fronts. First, they never reached their potential because of constant editing. Secondly, they were judged complete before they had time to breath.

I have become a proponent of the quick thought. Write it before you can read it. Read it later. If I can keep my hands typing or writing faster than my editor can read, things usually come out better. Sure, there is often a lot of fixing up after the fact, but the raw materials for a good piece are on paper. Once they are on paper, my editor can toy with them all as long as he likes.

In-process editing is what holds most people back from writing. They do not want to put something on the page until its right; maybe even perfect. But, how many artist have you watched paint? A painter doesn't start by painting a tree. He or she lays in some color, then shaped the tree out of the background. It takes a long time before the painting looks anything like a tree. We need to approach writing the same way.

Don't write a tree, lay in some background. Where is the tree, who put it there, what has it seen? Most importantly, start writing. Keep writing until something amazing finds its way onto the page, then, keep writing until you have to take a break from physical pain. Only then should you even look at what you have written.  

I guarantee that your creative mind-space will open up once you put your inner-editor in his/her proper place