This morning, I watched a story on TV about a book on creativity written by Ed Catmul. He is a co-founder of Pixar Animation Studios. I'm not promoting his book, especially since I haven't read it myself. The title is rather self explanatory, though: Creativity, Inc. Overcoming The Unseen Forces That Stand in The Way of True Inspiration. However, his interview was very interesting.
His insights struck a chord with me. He said that every project they worked on was awful on the first attempt. That was expected and they learned to work from their mistakes. Frozen wasn't perfect the first time it was on the drawing board.
Never be afraid to mess up.
Always be open to change and ideas that seem out-of-the-box. Ideas come from some strange places. As a writers, we are always looking for the fresh, new idea that will make our book stand out.
Have you ever pictured an ax sticking out of the head of the cranky sales person who just told you, "Oh honey, that dress will never, fit you." That happened to my aunt who had just lost thirty-five pounds and was looking forward to some new clothes. Now there's a motive for a mystery novel!
We all probably have a manuscript hidden away, under the bed that seemed to be the greatest romance novel ever written on the first attempt. Hopefully, you were lucky to have fantastic critique partners who gently told you to put it away and try again. That's why our writing is called a work in progress. Don't be afraid, be adventurous. Even the most absurd ideas can turn out to be good ones. After all, who would have ever thought an animated movie about a princess who freezes anything she touches would be a good idea?
Ah, my first comment went into cyberspace I think. Let me try again to thank you for your post. Writers must conquer fear each day, but it's simple to do: just sit and write. Of course, sometimes simple isn't easy, but keeping the words flowing day by day helps.
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