I had my Rivendell moment this morning. I once read that J.R.R. Tolkein had no idea where The Fellowship of the Ring was going until he got the characters to Rivendell. That’s when he finally had the insight to pull it all together and lay out the rest of the masterpiece of The Lord of the Rings. You can tell by reading the book too that he was wandering until the fellowship left.
This is a common issue with us “pantsers,” or writers who don’t outline and just write our stories “by the seat of our pants.” We start with a basic notion of plot and a few core characters, and build it as we write. This may seem unorganized, but actually it works because it pushes your subconscious to pull it all together and find a direction. Then, one day after we’ve laid the foundation of the story, we’ll have a moment when it all comes together in a moment of clarity where we can suddenly see why we’ve done what we have so far, and where it’s leading. I call that flash of inspiration “the Rivendell moment,” and I had mine for Singularity during my morning meditation today.
Make no mistake, creativity is work that requires equal parts research, planning, and inspiration. I not only saw the story unfold, but had insights to character motivations, plot point, themes, and even the possibility that this could be the first book of a series. It’s exciting to finally have that moment of clarity, but it can become overwhelming. The trick now is to put it all in order, write the manuscript, and then decide if the series potential is there. All things in proper order. Let the vision fuel the writing, and the rest will follow.
The struggle now is having the patience to let it flow through the writing process. There’s an urge to write in a mad rush when the whole story is ratting in your brain, waiting to get out. And, of course, reality rarely offers these opportunities. The responsibilities of daily life don’t stop because there’s a book coming out of you. So it coexists with your life as you type away at every opportunity until you finally reach the magic moment of writing that final word and saving a full rough draft. That’s why we celebrate finishing those rough drafts: they’re finally reality. Our brains are free once again. And so we celebrate the accomplishment, until we go back to do those first rewrites and realize what a blazing mess that brain dump was, and have to pull it together into a coherent story.
That’s for another day. Today, I rejoice and celebrate my Rivendell moment. I think that’s what really brings joy to life: the small, personal things that make everyday life shine.
That's all today. Take care and stay cool. Have a Happy Friday tomorrow and a wonderful weekend.
Bye!
This is a common issue with us “pantsers,” or writers who don’t outline and just write our stories “by the seat of our pants.” We start with a basic notion of plot and a few core characters, and build it as we write. This may seem unorganized, but actually it works because it pushes your subconscious to pull it all together and find a direction. Then, one day after we’ve laid the foundation of the story, we’ll have a moment when it all comes together in a moment of clarity where we can suddenly see why we’ve done what we have so far, and where it’s leading. I call that flash of inspiration “the Rivendell moment,” and I had mine for Singularity during my morning meditation today.
Make no mistake, creativity is work that requires equal parts research, planning, and inspiration. I not only saw the story unfold, but had insights to character motivations, plot point, themes, and even the possibility that this could be the first book of a series. It’s exciting to finally have that moment of clarity, but it can become overwhelming. The trick now is to put it all in order, write the manuscript, and then decide if the series potential is there. All things in proper order. Let the vision fuel the writing, and the rest will follow.
The struggle now is having the patience to let it flow through the writing process. There’s an urge to write in a mad rush when the whole story is ratting in your brain, waiting to get out. And, of course, reality rarely offers these opportunities. The responsibilities of daily life don’t stop because there’s a book coming out of you. So it coexists with your life as you type away at every opportunity until you finally reach the magic moment of writing that final word and saving a full rough draft. That’s why we celebrate finishing those rough drafts: they’re finally reality. Our brains are free once again. And so we celebrate the accomplishment, until we go back to do those first rewrites and realize what a blazing mess that brain dump was, and have to pull it together into a coherent story.
That’s for another day. Today, I rejoice and celebrate my Rivendell moment. I think that’s what really brings joy to life: the small, personal things that make everyday life shine.
That's all today. Take care and stay cool. Have a Happy Friday tomorrow and a wonderful weekend.
Bye!
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