Congrats on successfully resisting the pull to "release something, anything" and finishing the book! And thanks for these beautiful and quotable words:
"...I’m slowly learning to trust silence; to see that silence is not disappearance, darkness not a failure—but both as natural aspects of _winter_. A fallow season. ... Seeds are stirring in the dark all winter long. The trick is not to dig them up now and present them as content, but to let them lie, for as long as they need to lie, far from the light."
Indeed. That quote will be useful as moral support whenever the temptation arises to "dig them up now and present them as content," since as you know, that temptation is pretty much everywhere. Already re-read it several times today, in fact... haha.
Thanks, Danica. I always appreciate your thoughtful comments. The temptation to "dig up" whatever's there for content is strong. It is really and truly everywhere! And takes some deliberate practice to resist the urge.
It's an apt metaphor, I think, because if a writer "digs up" the seeds before their time (presents them as content), the growth process gets truncated. "Sprouts" can be nourishing, but sprouts aren't the same thing as mature works bearing fruit.
congratulations!! i love the writing phase. it’s exhilarating
Thank you! Same, I'm a little sad that the writing for this book is (basically) over. The editing phase is not so fun...
yes! it would be so nice to stay in that bubble
Congrats on successfully resisting the pull to "release something, anything" and finishing the book! And thanks for these beautiful and quotable words:
"...I’m slowly learning to trust silence; to see that silence is not disappearance, darkness not a failure—but both as natural aspects of _winter_. A fallow season. ... Seeds are stirring in the dark all winter long. The trick is not to dig them up now and present them as content, but to let them lie, for as long as they need to lie, far from the light."
Indeed. That quote will be useful as moral support whenever the temptation arises to "dig them up now and present them as content," since as you know, that temptation is pretty much everywhere. Already re-read it several times today, in fact... haha.
Thanks, Danica. I always appreciate your thoughtful comments. The temptation to "dig up" whatever's there for content is strong. It is really and truly everywhere! And takes some deliberate practice to resist the urge.
It's an apt metaphor, I think, because if a writer "digs up" the seeds before their time (presents them as content), the growth process gets truncated. "Sprouts" can be nourishing, but sprouts aren't the same thing as mature works bearing fruit.