Secret of a Writer

I thought about leaving this page blank. Once you, the reader, had scrolled to the bottom of the page, I would've had a statement like, "Art is never finished, only abandoned" or "there are no secrets because the internet explains them all."

There is really only one secret writers know and this secret has a way of haunting even the most confident. And that my friend is, "Any creative piece exists in a state of uncertainty and is never finished."



Now, the reader has this fantastical scenario all built up within themselves. They imagine a writer passionate to create exactly what our mind's eye tells us to put on the page as it magically conjures up a masterful piece of work and we breathe life into the most mundane. However, for the person that created their piece, it never really feels finished.

"Writing is work--there's no secret. - Sinclair Lewis

It's always a challenge to keep oneself from tinkering, as a writer changes and has edited. We could easily do this until we keel over from exhaustion. Hollywood does this all the time, an alternate ending for a movie, just in case they change their mind or the audience changes it for them. I've even known songwriters to have a song that hits the top of the charts, although, when they listen all they can hear is the mistakes they didn't catch before. All creative individuals suffer from this secret.


So where does it end?
There are times when we simply have to walk away. A writer can tweak anything for as long as humanly possible, but when do you feel finished? If you are a perfectionist, when is it considered perfect? And if a writer has honed their craft for more than a decade or two, how does that person not want to go back and call a do-over on some of their first works they ever created?

We have to get past this obsession. Aim for completion rather than perfection. Release it when you're ready and know it's as complete as it can possibly be. Even after release, try and stay away from it unless there are major issues to rectify.

As a writer, hold on to your sanity and take it all in with a grain of salt, because in the end, the worst enemy to creativity is self-doubt.





You have a thought, let's hear it. Leave a comment.


SK Thomas is a writer, author, book reviewer and the curious creative complex brain behind this blog.

Keep in touch with the blogger/author:
Website: http://www.skthomasauthor.com
Twitter: @skthomasauthor
Member of Goodreads, LinkedIn & Google+