Every
morning one of the first things I do is go outside to scope out my garden. I’m looking
for any potential problems that may need to be taken care of. For example, today
I noticed a funky kind of mold growing on one of my plum trees that I cut off
right away; don’t want that stuff spreading. And I found a snake slithering its
way through my mint. That one I’m leaving for my husband. I’m also looking for
what’s ready to harvest. There’s nothing better than seeing something so
beautiful and alive grow out of what seemed to be nothing more than a dead
seed.
Because
gardening is such a part of who I am, I’ve learned a lot of lessons that way.
And like most things in life, what works in one place usually works in another.
Each
day we should examine our writing. Is it working- is there mold that needs to be
cut off right away before it corrupts the rest of the story? How’s the harvest
coming? Are those plants growing nicely or do they need a little fertilizer by
the way of travel to find inspiration or maybe getting a beta reader? Only you
know. It’s your garden.
This
practice needs to be performed daily. It would suck to come back to it in a
week and find a big old weed growing where you thought you planted a tomato
bush.
I like that you didn't sweat a snake living among your mint plants. That's the right attitude! Unless you're terrified of them, like some of my friends.
ReplyDeleteIn writing, though, I don't know if daily examination works on every project. For short fiction or when I'm trying lots of experiments, then definitely. You can get perspective quickly on a smaller work. But for my novels, I prefer to wait every few days and check how a movement is bearing out. However, I may be more sensitive to my own needs at this point, and able to catch most catastrophic problems in the middle of writing them. Is it different for you?
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteI wish I could garden, I kill everything. We have a plum tree in our yard, though, that is great! I wish I knew more about what to do to take care of it.
ReplyDeleteVery good point about writing. Although sometimes I think you need that time to recognize the weed. ;)
I take it the snake would be an issue you leave for critique partners?
ReplyDeleteSnakes are good. My grampa liked them in his garden. My spider phobia usually keeps me to killing houseplants. I'm very good at it. :) But I enjoyed your analogy. First drafts are like sprouting seeds - you throw a lot down then thin and stake them later.
ReplyDeleteI can handle most garden pests, except for snakes. Those send me flying away.
ReplyDeleteMy writing could also use some serious weeding.
Great thought! My mother has a green thumb like you, but didn't pass it on to me. This was a good parallel! Off to look for my own literary mold ;)
ReplyDeleteLovely analogy! I just handed in the first draft of my Creative Writing Thesis to my supervising professor. I'll get her feedback on Monday...dun dun dun!
ReplyDeleteBrandy's Bustlings