To Live or to Write? Achieving the Art of Perfection

I am behind with my writing: I have been travelling and despite being tired, my head is now brimming with impressions and ideas. However, I notice that I either bounce around meeting people and ideas, but finding no time to put them into writing, or I am moping around at home while having ample time to linger on thought-spirals. How to balance that?

Obviously, I haven’t found the secret. I am either busy looking, talking, and exploring, OR writing. Writing is not meant to be done in a rush. At least, I imagine this solitary soul in front of a typewriter with only birds and a forest for company.

Distraction kills the book

So, either all your life is in your head and you type happily away, or you roam the surface world and get nothing done. That feels like a sad conundrum to me. I most definitely want to have it ALL. As I suspect that might be impossible, I modestly compromise by asking for LOTS.

However, I read author advice the other day, that we should simply have fully active periods, and then after gathering all the evidence and inspiration, we go into hibernation mode and write it all down.

Now, that spring is upon us, I fear that it doesn’t bode well for hibernation or indeed my writing plans.

Focus leads to perfection

Again, it all boils down to one of those fundamental life questions: do you taste everything at the buffet, nibbling away, trying it all, but risking that it all melts into one lump of indiscernible food? Or do you eat one single meal but enjoy every last taste and morsel of it?

My piano teacher continuously encourages me to practice only one or two bars at a time, but then I should aspire to play every note up to perfection. Specialisation and strategic focus are certainly key to success.

It is well known that the true sage is planted under one tree and reflects there until wisdom and true insights are granted by the universe. Avoid distractions and banalities to achieve purity and true value. Take away all clutter to focus on your writing.

But then, my life is messy. Maybe yours, too? Yes, I plan and scheme. But then life happens: the dogs runs over the schedule, clients, kids, family and friends hop all over my diary and into my free writing blocks. Yet, I don’t want to shoo them away. I guess my priorities are currently not aligned towards writing only.

My Choice

So, while understanding the importance of concentration for great writing, I choose for now to live my own life of compromise and balance.

Instead, I will put a bench under that tree and sit there with you, with my friends and my family and chat about life. True art and wisdom might escape me. Maybe I will keep writing small notes here and feel less bad about neglecting my book? At least today, I live my life.