To Mix Some Metaphors

It can take me a long time to get something written down, even when I'm excited about the idea and already have thoughts on how I'll handle the topic.

I've found that when I wait like this, though, almost as if I'm letting the idea steep in my brain, so that the flavors can unfurl and mix so that they don't feel forced or incongruous, the scene manages to play itself out, leading naturally to the next event I want to introduce. The other details trickle in slowly, infusing their little quirks into the spaces that are left, until the idea seems heavy and full, ready to be spilled out onto paper.

Once the idea begins to percolate (ha!), that's when I sit down at the computer and type the scene out madly. Naturally, I may add or rewrite parts later, but after the steeping process, the idea has generally found its own solid footing, whatever meaning it brings to the story, and the other necessary details have fallen into place. At that point, I often feel as though the scene could never have happened any other way.

R.D.