When is the perfect time to write?

I searched for this answer longer than I should have.  The simple answer is: There never is a perfect time.  Write anyway.  If you are anything like me, you will immediately go - ah! she doesn’t understand.  I’m not like other people who can just relax and do.  My mind isn’t calm, my thoughts are whirling, I’ve got too much on today, I’ve had a bad day, my feet feel dirty….I get it.  This is exactly what my mind does.  But I’m still going to insist - write anyway.  Now before you decide you’re done with me, I have a couple of things for you to consider.

The first is this - Done is better than perfect.  I love that saying.  It’s helped me in many areas of my life. 

Second, some people like to take a piece of writing and polish and shine it, until it gleams like a diamond.  Those people are called editors.  That is NOT you.  You are a writer.  You become one the moment you put pen to paper or tap away at your keyboard.  Writers have the back breaking job of plodding down into the bowels of the Earth and cracking away at rock and hopefully coming back with a lump of something. Perhaps it's something precious, but maybe not.  This is your job.  Vomit the idea onto the paper.  That’s it.  The cutting, smoothing and polishing will occur later.

Squeeze the idea out however you can.  You don’t have to follow any rules.  If you want to write the end of your story, do it.  If you want to write an exciting piece or even if you want to be a total maverick and write the beginning - do that. 

Third, when you are in the writing mode, you’re not in any state to judge what you’ve written.  It might feel like you’ve written an abomination.  That might be, but just because you feel something doesn’t make it a fact.  You don’t have perspective with this.   I remember being really sick with some awful, leaking mucous virus and writing a sex scene.  I thought - how could I possibly be writing anything even remotely sexy?  I read it months later and high fived my imagination.

An idea is not something that is perfect and beautiful.  Remember, if it’s authentic it’s likely leaking from some grotesque experience.  Tapping into it in the first place can be difficult, so once it starts flowing, just let it go.  You’re doing a wonderful job.

Until next week.

Luv KR Fox.