The Importance of the Wild and Messy First Draft – Susan Steinberg QUOTES FOR WRITERS
What’s going on between me and the screen or the page, because I hand-write too, it really feels that wild. And that messy. And I need that. I couldn’t do it any other way. What would be the point?
As painful as the material is, as painful as it is to write a sad scene or to write something that comes from experience or to make up something and even sort of scare yourself because you made up something so sad or so that potentially scary. Even with all of the pain that’s in it, writing is fun. Going into that space of the imagination is fun, and I think it would not be fun to follow a formula.
There are places in my life for formula like hair dye, maybe cooking, I don’t know. But in writing, I want to break all of that, or make up the rules because it’s one of the only places we can.
Susan Steinberg
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4 comments on “The Importance of the Wild and Messy First Draft – Susan Steinberg QUOTES FOR WRITERS”
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BRIDGET WHELAN writer 
never formulae for cooking, it should be done by feel and estimate like writing. And messy.
Agreed. Recipes are for guidance not control and I’m doing very well on the messy aspect…
As it should be! if the flour doesn’t escape when baking and fetch up on your person other than the hands, you are missing out on half the fun.
Thank you, that’s encouraging. I’m stuck in the loop of going back over the little I’ve done instead of pushing in.