Spiraling up
If you’re reading this it’s because you’re a paid subscriber getting the inside scoop on my book writing journey. I appreciate you! Much of what I’m about to share has been made possible because of your support.
A few months ago I announced that I was writing my first book. Since then, I haven’t written a single word in my manuscript. Not because I’m too busy or lazy or unmotivated. I haven’t written because, as it turns out, writing is not the primary work. Writing isn't work at all, really.
If you read my essay, "God’s Mother Tongue", you know that for me, writing is all play. The work is in the preparation. And I realized that I was not prepared to write this book. I have so many thoughts, and notes, and ideas, but none of them are organized. It feels like clutter.
If I’m going to write the book I envision, I need to declutter. I need what David Allen (guru of “Getting Things Done”) calls “a mind like water”. A state of thinking and creating where the mental work is already done and I can focus on the wordplay undistracted. A mind like water is a clutter-free environment.
My intention is not to write a book that is good enough to publish so that I can call myself an author. People do that every day. My expectation is to create a great work of insight that will breathe life into every reader. This book is my pie in the sky, and I intend to eat and leave no crumbs.
But I’ve been living inside Francis Bacon’s quote, “All rising to great place is by a winding stair.” So far, for me, writing this book is like this. A winding stair. An upward spiral. I am a little dizzy, but I am rising.
I’ve been reading a book titled How to Take Smart Notes by Sönke Ahrens. In it, he says, "Writing is not a linear process, but a circular one." Writing is a spiral. And I’m learning that spiraling is okay, as long as I’m spiraling up.
In the midst of this spiral I also think of Abraham Lincoln’s words: "Give me six hours to chop down a tree, and I will spend the first four sharpening the axe." I started writing this book by chopping with a dull axe. I was making progress, but it was insignificant. A thought here, a paragraph there, a metaphor somewhere around the corner. Mining my memory and sifting through a heap of disconnected notes. So I decided to stop and sharpen my axe.
In the beginning, I was gathering information about what to write, but now I’m studying up on how to write. How to get organized. How to not drown in the lazy river of my own ideas. I’m reading the right books and gathering the right tools. If writing is playing in the sand, then right now I’m taking my time to build a proper sandbox.
At first, this felt unproductive. My manuscript’s word count was not increasing. But it didn’t take long for me to realize that this was the real work. Building a structure for my thoughts. Learning how to organize my notes. Gaining the clarity required to climb the winding stair.
A lot of what I'm reading is shifting my paradigms as a writer, but also as a Christian leader and student of the Scriptures. I’m even feeling more clarity in my roles as a mom and a wife. Changing the way I think about writing is changing the way I engage with my everyday life.
Sönke Ahrens also says, "The key to successful writing lies in the preparation." I think this is true for all of life. You might say that the key to successful living lies in the preparation. The preparation is the work you do so you can play in the sand undistracted. And the work is worth it.
Sometimes it will feel like a spiral, but that’s okay as long as you’re spiraling up.