Creativity Doesn't Necessarily Follow An Outline
I think most writers and authors can sympathize with the title of this latest posting on my blog. Recently I carefully calculated just how much of a word count I'd need to complete my second novel.
I say 'carefully calculated', which is correct, but I allowed a lot of wiggle room. I'm still well within the ballpark, but I was surprised by how some sections that I had planned for took more (and in some cases less) content than I had imagined.
It reminded me of a big ball of yarn. You hold on to one end of the yarn and toss the ball onto the floor. It starts to unwind, but then you realize that it's rolling a lot farther than you thought it would--or conversely, sometimes it doesn't roll nearly as far as you'd hoped.
That's a lot like what I've experienced with book two in the Michael Neill series. Even though I've followed a written and mental outline for the progression of the story, more often than not the creative process expresses itself and dashes my plan. And that's not a bad thing; it's just the nature of creativity. You think you can keep it in a nice little box, but it gets away from you. It's the embodiment of that old bumper sticker: "I tried to contain myself, but I escaped!"
Which brings me to the point of this posting. Creativity is a living thing. Don't be discouraged when it punches a hole in your carefully crafted outline. Novels can hold surprises for not only the reader, but the author as well!
Keep reading!
Steve
I say 'carefully calculated', which is correct, but I allowed a lot of wiggle room. I'm still well within the ballpark, but I was surprised by how some sections that I had planned for took more (and in some cases less) content than I had imagined.
It reminded me of a big ball of yarn. You hold on to one end of the yarn and toss the ball onto the floor. It starts to unwind, but then you realize that it's rolling a lot farther than you thought it would--or conversely, sometimes it doesn't roll nearly as far as you'd hoped.
That's a lot like what I've experienced with book two in the Michael Neill series. Even though I've followed a written and mental outline for the progression of the story, more often than not the creative process expresses itself and dashes my plan. And that's not a bad thing; it's just the nature of creativity. You think you can keep it in a nice little box, but it gets away from you. It's the embodiment of that old bumper sticker: "I tried to contain myself, but I escaped!"
Which brings me to the point of this posting. Creativity is a living thing. Don't be discouraged when it punches a hole in your carefully crafted outline. Novels can hold surprises for not only the reader, but the author as well!
Keep reading!
Steve
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