I have many hobbies. But writing books and baking are the two fun activities that I do most often. And over the years I have realized these two can be quite similar. Especially baking with sourdough starter and writing long and complex books. You need time for them. And one of the actually most important things in writing and baking happens somewhat “off-screen.” During the resting time when I do not touch the dough or the keyboard.
The fermentation process needs time and stillness. You mix the preferment and let it get bubbly and merry. It takes hours. Then you add the other ingredients. The choice and amount is a key factor here. You knead the dough and, again, let it rest in stillness to rise. You shape it and let it rise. And then you bake it. That transforms the dough into something amazing. Depending on your skills and ingredient quality, of course. And kills the fermentation bacteria in the process.
And writing books? It requires a lot of thinking. The actual writing time when I physically type the words is only a fraction of the book creation time. Most of the time, the ideas grow and develop in my brain. I research topics I need in the story. That is the preferment part. Then I discuss them with my writing buddies and I make the first drafts. That is the book “dough.” Then I think again, rewrite the next drafts according to my friends’ suggestions, and think again. That is the shaping. And then the time for the final adjustments and rewrites comes. That is the baking. The book is transformed thanks to a lot of thinking, discussions, research … and some writing.
I have baked a lot of bad loaves and sourdough pastries. Sometimes even inedible, especially when I was just learning. I have written hundreds of bad pages and later erased them. The first version of my first book (the first book of my upcoming trilogy, not Withered Petals) was a truly pitiful mess. The second version was better. And it took maybe ten new versions to reach a state when I dared to send the manuscript to an editor. And the edit shaped the book so well. Withered Petals did not take so much time. And even the editor had much less work.
The conclusion? You must fail a lot and sacrifice hours of work to learn something. But it is worth it.
Glenn's Nest 