Well begun is half done. The secret of getting ahead is getting started. Just do it.
The world is brimming with advice and slogans along these lines. It’s expressed a million different ways but the basic idea is the same: don’t wait.
And that’s good advice. Sometimes. But I think it overlooks a Big Problem. What if starting before thinking and planning leads to more work and/or a worse outcome?
What if, for example, you start writing a historical novel without researching where it “fits” in the book market? What if that novel takes literally years to write and edit? What if – nearing publication – you suspect you’ve done a good job, but maybe you should’ve written something entirely different? Maybe high fantasy, investigative journalism, or a travel guide about scenic walks in Sicily?
The poor fool in this example is, of course, me. The final edit of my novel, The Wolf of Wistman’s Wood, is currently on page 117 out of 209 (glacial progress since April, when I was on page 35). My rash promise to publish this year is looking shaky – but the dream isn’t dead yet.
Still, whether it comes out in 2025 or 2043, I’m committed. The work is mostly done, so it needs to be published. But what about the next one, and the one after that (assuming I get that far before my 100th birthday)?
Should I study book-buying trends – or ignore the market and focus on writing a heartbreaking work of staggering genius? Either way, much depends on the tiny proportion of time spent choosing what to write.
The same is true for other projects. Should Dice Company have been a D&D podcast, or something else? Should we have offered life hacks, movie reviews, or made yet another Sherlock Holmes reboot? I’d have made an excellent Mrs Hudson.
In truth, only hindsight provides the definitive answer. Dice Company? 100%. It’s a weekly dose of fun with my friends, and everything else is a bonus. There’s Someone in Reception? Yes – not because it made any money (it didn’t) but because it’s a love letter to an industry I was lucky to work in. My current novel? Too early to tell.
So, what am I saying? You’re probably expecting something like “on the one hand… on the other hand”. But in a stunning twist, I’ve come to an iron-clad conclusion: always prevaricate.*
Comfort Fiction
While I’m now on the record as a fan of prevarication – at least when it comes to planning massive projects – I also like getting things done. Any creative work is better than none.
Who better to help me make this point than a famously prolific writer: Stephen King.
In the novella Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption (better known as the movie the Shawshank Redemption), the character Ellis “Red” Redding reflects on the indomitable spirit of his friend Andy Dufresne:
“In spite of the problems he was having, he was going on with his life. There are thousands who don’t or won’t or can’t, and plenty of them aren’t in prison.”
Dicing with Death
I’m writing this shortly before Dice Company wins or loses in two categories at the Independent Podcast Awards. So please delete the following as appropriate: we’re delighted to win these prestigious awards, which are expertly judged // awards are a preposterous ego trip for everyone involved, and the judges wouldn’t know art if it fell on top of them.
In other news, my debut as Game Master (discussed last month) is now emerging into the real world, like an asymmetrical but nevertheless determined butterfly. Early reviews have been kind, indicating either that: the Kids on Bikes miniseries is quite good; or people are too polite to tell me it’s awful. Either way, I’m grateful.
Thanks for reading.
Alex
* naturally, I’m having second thoughts.
PS – we didn’t win at the awards, so awards are dead to us. Until next year.