“My mother was a potter. All my life I was around that. The first draft, that’s the hard part. That’s going out and digging clay. Revision is where you finally get to chuck that son of a bitch on the wheel and make something.”
David Joy, author of Where All Light Tends to Go
Me too. Getting that first draft out is tough, but I find revision exhilarating.
Totally agree. Almost every time I have to write a scene, I’m anxious. Can I do it?
I’m with you, David. It’s scary!
Wow, what a powerful quote!
I love the creating and I am lazy about the editing. I am inspired!
Every one’s different. You have to read, write, and read until you find your own way. There are no short cuts.
No short cuts–that’s a good reminder
I read David Joy’s interview as well, he’s quite articulate about his process.
Yes, he is, which is why I had to share it.
Digging clay. That’s a good image for rendering imaginings into words. I too find that part tougher than editing.
Audrey,
Exactly!
Powerful message. It reminds me of that old quote about “Just chip away everything that doesn’t look like a horse.” One needs to see that horse in the marble, yes. But then comes the chiseling. By hand…