On Growing

Writers and gardeners have a lot in common.  If you don't believe, let's consider the facts.

1) Planting the seed.  Gardeners work the ground and get it just perfect then they plant the seeds from which they anticipate either a beautiful flower or tasty treat.  Writers get an idea and the mull it over in the their fertile mind until they are ready to place it to paper.  In other words, they plant the seed.

2) Tending.  Gardeners don't just walk away from the seeds after planting. They spend time, coaxing life to germinate and watch the seedling grow and grow.  As a writer, you've played with the idea in your mind but still, you need to get that first sentence, that grabbing hook just right so go can move forward to create the next paragraph, next chapter.  You watch your writing grow.

3) Fertilize & Water.  Sure the gardener lets Mother Nature do some of the work like watering but sometimes Mom just wants a vacation and it is either too much rain, not enough rain, too much sun, too much shade.  A good gardener will try to help, offering a sprinkling of water, some shade, whatever is necessary to help the plants grow, not to mention the fertilizer.  The writer replicates this also, with endeavors to add the proper words, sentence structure and plot timing.

4) Hoeing & Weeding. Ask any gardener in July and August what one task they despise and over 90% of the time it will be -- weeding, without a doubt.  Gardeners know the weeds have to be pulled to allow the plants the optimum growing conditions.  Writers weed, too.  It is called editing.  I don't believe any writer has written a piece of work that went from typewriter to publisher's ink without some modicum of editing.  A writer has to weed out the words; those superfluous, incorrect, mis-spelled words for the proper ones.

5) Harvest.  This is the moment every gardener lives for; the harvest.  That time when the produce from the labor of love is truly realized.  Yes, when the carrots, tomatoes, corn, gladiolas, roses, etc are brought into the home for eating or pleasure.  A writer reaches this moment when the story is done and the last sheet of paper is placed on that stack.

The analogy could continue with publishing, etc but I believe you can see what I meant by gardeners and writers have a lot in common.

I have planted my seeds (alyssum, tomato, gazania, pansy, green pepper) and am currently watching them sprout in my indoor greenhouse.  Also, I have a couple of stories that have been tromping around in my brain.  I'm about to put words to paper and in about 2 or 3 weeks, I will be planting seeds outdoors (peas & onions) for the new season.

Yes, I'm a gardener and I'm a writer.

Until next I ramble on...