Einstein said that a definition of insanity was doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result.
Now I don’t want to contradict a man with a hairstyle as wild as that but I do have to take issue with that idea. I think many people would counter that statement by suggesting that by doing the same thing over and over again what you are aiming to do is improve, whether that’s about kicking a football, driving a car, or writing. What do they say: Practice makes perfect.
Neatly side stepping the concept of perfection when it comes to writing, I think there is a lot to be said about the fact that you need to write, and write lots, in order to improve.
That said, at the same time I think there is room in writing for the principle of doing different things in order to learn new skills and push oneself.
I’ve just finished writing an 8,000 word ghost story. Now I’ve written 8,000 word stories before, and I’ve written ghost stories before – and I probably have written an 8,000 word ghost story before, but in this case I knew how long the story needed to be (it was for a competition, so the word count was set) and I knew the subject. Trying to write the actual story was more challenging that I had anticipated; because it was no longer a story on my terms, but rather a piece I had to accept came with limitations. I had the idea for the story before I decided to write it, but I think without the restrictions of the concept and the word count I would have written a very different tale.
Equally, I’ve been invited to submit a short story for a five author collection. (by Hersham Horror:) This is a huge opportunity but again it comes with a pre-determined subject. Now in this case I most definitely wouldn’t have written the story I am going to submit – and I can say that with confidence because I still don’t know what the story is going to be. Instead of waiting for an idea to come and find me, I’m out hunting ideas that fit the criteria.
In both cases what I’m getting at is that by accepting limitations, by undertaking my writing in a different way to my “usual” manner (think of a story, consider the most appropriate format, write the story, find someone who wants to publish it), I can push myself a little further and hopefully learn something and develop my writing in the process.
So maybe Einstein was at least partly right when he suggested there was a benefit to be had from doing things differently.
Next blog post: let’s see if I can name-drop Isaac Newton!
