IWACA GUEST FEATURE
IWACA | 11
There is no hard and fast way to know; in fact, you may even find that your analytical mind is working against you. Throwing a dust cloth over the real gems, while also allowing the weaker ideas to run rampant on the page.
So how do we recognise these gems?
Your mind is a powerful thing, but it can also be a trickster. Happy to furnish you with ideas one moment, then more than willing to make you forget the next. Anyone who has even attempted to sit down and write will know this.
A sure way to combat this problem?
Write.
With a trusty notebook at hand, anyone can combat the maniacal mind. There will always be ideas you feel are better than others, and some that you feel are nothing but a fanciful thought. But I would implore you to write them down any way. Every stray thought, observation, and quirky comment overheard on the morning commute (a veritable gold mine of quirkiness). Fill books with nothing but these observations; it will give you an outlet and can be the building blocks for more to come.
In the end, it all comes down to time. Time is the only answer. Time gives you a new prospective and can be the saviour of your writing. With time away from your work, you can gain crucial objectivity. Let yourself forget those ideas, put them to the back of your mind. Instead, let them ferment on the page. You may be surprised with the result. Then when you come to look at them with fresh eyes, the gems will reach out to you, shining amongst their brethren like little stars of creativity.
But here’s where the plot thickens.
What might be a gem for one story may be mundane to another, even cliché, depending on the story. So it is of vital importance you keep your notes. Even a book of thoughts that seems to have no gems at all may well point to a new idea, something you might not have thought of before, something to make your story even better.
By itself, this may do wonders to help you survive the writing process, but here is the scary part. The part that leaves all writers—whether best seller or beginner—running for the safety of the blanket (obviously making sure