If you've ever sat down to start on a writing project, large or small, and get stuck on the first sentence, then you're not alone. It happens to the best of us and it happens to all of us. Which is one reason why, when I start writing, my main goal is just to get words down on paper and then go back later and tweak them, massage them, turn them from okay into good, and then from good into great.
They say that perfect is the enemy of good, and in writing this can be a stumbling block that a lot of people can't get past. If it's not perfect the first time, or even the tenth time, then why bother?
Why? Because good writing is rarely perfect. Good writing takes guts. It's messy. It's uncomfortable. Good writing can lay you bare. Who wants to be perfect? Not me. I'd rather be real, flaws and all, and let you see me through my writing without aiming for perfection.
That can be hard sometimes. I have to decide how much to share, what is private, what is public, and what falls in between.
I want to lean toward sharing as much as possible. But that can make some people uncomfortable. Either because other people are more private, or they consider some things none of other people's business.
I don't want to censor myself, though, if I don't have to. And frankly, sometimes I just forget to until someone comments and I realize they might have a different expectation or set of rules than I do.
After all, I truly believe the best writing comes from the gut, and that's where all the real emotion is. Good, bad, public, private, messy, shameful, proud, lovely, all of it. And sometimes it takes slipping around in the guts of everything you want to write in order to find the right words.
The night was sultry. But Larry didn't know the night was sultry until he met Owen and Owen's momma. Until then, he just thought the night was hot and wet. It took real life, complications, anger, love, laughter, and great adventure before Larry knew it.
The night was sultry.
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