Probably anyone who has ever attempted to write more than a sentence has experienced this:
You have these images in your head, accompanied by the exact perfect words to describe the scene. But the moment you pick up a pen or flip open your laptop, half of the words have suddenly disappeared, leaving you with incomplete thoughts, weak prose, and none of the magic you experienced in your brain just a few short minutes ago. And you know there was so much more, but you can't recover any of your former brilliance. It's gone.
And this is probably why most of us have never completed a novel.
My friend Cristina asked me the other day if I think I will ever be able to let my book be Finished. Which is a valid question, because: a) I like working on it a lot, and b) It's never going to be perfect, which is disappointing, because I would like for it to be perfect.
However, I do think there will come a time when I can let it go, say farewell, I'm done. Partly because I have lots of other things I want to work on. And also because, as much as I love my characters, to the point that they are almost real to me--The other day I actually thought to myself, "Hmm...I wonder how Jaime's holding up these days"-- sometimes I'm just a little bit sick of all their DRAMA. (They can't help it, of course, drama kind of comes with the territory of being in a novel.)
Every day it's something new that surfaces. I'm just trying to do some writing here, turning those half thoughts into proper sentences, never mind brilliance. And then all of a sudden I realize, Oh, he was always trying to earn his father's love and respect. Of course.
And I'm like, I don't need this right now. I have writing to do.
It's a long process.
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1 comment:
I also do that, where it flows in the mind but is forgotten at the keyboard. I notice I write much better if I'm writing by hand than typing as well, which is sadly inefficient.
Enjoy reading about your process. Keep kickin' it!
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