The Five-Year Song

While trolling through Twitter one day I ran across a post by an Australian songwriter. The songwriter called himself SpaceMarch and he had 252,000 Twitter followers (nice).  I didn’t know what I might have in common with someone who writes lyrics, but I began to read his posts.

The Brainstorm… and then Nothing

I particularly enjoyed the post titled, “The Five Year Song.” When I read it I knew he and I actually did have something in common: We could both get a clear brainstorm for a song or a story, then emotionally write down the opening pages and a few notes, including character highlights—all at a lightning pace—only to find it actually takes us years to complete the project. Just as quick as the brainstorm came, it left. That particular song took him five long years to finish.

This has happened to me many times. Not with songs, but stories. I have a file drawer of stories, both long and short, that I started with great enthusiasm, quickly writing a few exquisite activities with memorable characters, and yet I’ve never been able to complete them. Some I allow to languish in a file cabinet or computer directory, virtually forgotten. Others I annually pull out of their dark corners, peruse, smile or nod, maybe edit or add a few lines, then unceremoniously return to their places in obscurity, all the while praying for the day I’ll receive the requisite inspirational jolt to finish at least one or two.

If SpaceMarch can take five years to finish a song, then it stands to reason it will take me much longer to complete a semi-retired novella.

Plotters, Pantsers, and Gardeners

In 2011, during an interview for The Guardian, George R.R. Martin discussed his belief that there are two types of fiction writers.

“I think there are two types of writers,” he said, “the architects and the gardeners. The architects plan everything ahead of time; they have a complete blueprint before they nail the first board.” For an example he noted that J.K. Rowling spent three years outlining the main plots for all seven ‘Harry Potter’ books before she began writing the first one, The Sorcerer’s Stone.

Martin knows he doesn’t fall into the architect category. He admits having tried outlining a book and then writing from the outline, but he just couldn’t make it work. For one thing, he found it boring to write from an outline. It sounded like he’d rather not finish the project than work that way. He’s downright proud to be a ‘gardener’.

“The gardeners dig a hole, drop in a seed, and water it,” he said. He claims that gardeners might know what type of seed they just planted, maybe even the genre, but until the plant actually sprouts and grows limbs, they aren’t sure what it’ll look like. All of this uncertainty is fine with him. He remains interested in the story and the characters, plus he doesn’t get bored, even when his novel grows to 1,500 pages.

The Importance of Enthusiasm

I don’t know if songwriters outline their songs before putting pen to paper, but I sympathize with SpaceMarch for having lost his enthusiasm after he started what became his ‘five year song’. Enthusiasm for a story or its characters is vital for writers, especially pantsers and gardeners who don’t have an outline to fall back on when it fades.

Happy writing, and may you be able to finish your songs, poems and, stories with speed!