Mud

While dealing with the first draft, writing often feels like rolling in the mud: dirty, messy, chaotic, disjointed fragments that struggle to find their way into a coherent whole. You may have the entire story running in my head, its flight fast you can scarcely breathe, but it would never come out the right way without negotiating with characters. Each of them frantically paces to and fro so as to find their own rhythm in space and time, crying to make their dreams come true. Following their steps and voices can be difficult, because it all happens simultaneously, the entire cosmos that’s being born inside of you and before you a huge mud pool full of ropes, each voice a rope asking you to untangle its truth and let it flow to finally fall into place. So the best thing to do is just diving in this waxing tide, letting go of your need to control and dictate and enjoy the beauty forming out of chaos. Let chaos be, let characters collide with each other, if necessary, but without interfering. Enjoy what comes of this messy, muddy feast, enjoy its extremely powerful  experience – enjoy the insanity it may bring, because it will turn into wisdom, and confidence, and bliss. Explore what the world you are creating can do to grow its own garden without your personal aim and gain standing in the way. Be selfless, and listen. Record their dreams, their fears, their maze-like thoughts and wishes, and let them flourish into full pages.