A couple of years ago, when Abbie started piano lessons, her teacher said something that I had never heard of before. She liked to let her students "simmer their pieces" and let time work it's magic on it. Students would continue to practice their work, even after one would say that a student had passed it off.I have been using this philosophy with my writing. Now, I am no means a pro, nor do I even deem my work close to scrutinization yet, but I do enjoy seeing where time takes me and the story that is itching to get out.
One of the very first scenes I wrote in my story has been completed and sits in a file on my computer, and hasn't been looked at for some time. It is neither the beginning or the end of the story, so there is still much work to be done to get to this point and to find culmination of my idea. Some of the scenes are outlined, and others are still in the yet to be discovered phase. Back to the first scene though. I still think about it. I still picture it in my mind as I think of the overall arc of my story. It is still simmering.
What does it mean to simmer something? Well, to cook something slowly, letting the flavors burst from the various ingredients to meld together into something wholly spectacular by itself. If ever you have had crock pot soup, you know exactly what I mean. A favorite of mine is homemade chicken soup. I throw whatever veggies I have on hand into the pot, chicken, and stock. Delicious! The flavors become one and a new creation is born.
I opened up the file of my first scene and realized that I had been simmering for quite a while. New ideas have opened up and new directions are forged. I can't wait to see what simmering for quite a while will do!
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2 Lovely Scribbles to Me:
Great analogy, to let our writing simmer.
My current life is so constantly busy, that I tend towards that, too, in my writing. There's just no way on earth I can sit & write for hours on end (uninterrupted) unless it's late and night and then I'm sacrificing much-needed sleep. I do that once in awhile, but mostly it's a hodge podge or simmering affair.
PS: I love your new blog color & header. Pink is so pretty!
That's a great post. We're a fast-paced society, so we often don't let things "simmer" and life is very much lived off the cuff. I have oodles of writings that I thought were brilliant years ago that make me cringe. Nothing wrong with simmering there, LOL. But it doesn't hurt to peek and tweak. Best wishes!!
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