Failing to Succeed

One of the great ironies of writing is that you must be willing to risk failing in order to succeed. If you have the mindset that you don't want to write anything at all if you can't write it perfectly, then you likely will not write at all. The goal of perfection is too daunting and will stop most of us dead in our tracks. However, if you're willing to just jump in and write without concern for how it will turn out, having as your primary goal getting the writing done, then you have a good shot at succeeding. There is plenty of time to tear your work apart and take out the bad writing. The first priority is just to get the writing completed. You have to be willing to write badly in order to write well. Set as your goal keeping approximately one third of what you write, knowing that the majority of it will need to be tossed. But there is also a distinct possibility that the third you keep will be really fine writing. You can't get to the fine writing, though, without first plowing through the bad writing. Much chaff must be produced before the kernel of wheat comes to the surface. It's the law of physics at work with writing as much as it is with wheat farming. To the extent that you can accept this ratio of good to bad writing as just part of the process, you can cull from your efforts the very best of what you have to offer as a writer. Don't be afraid to fail. It may be your quickest route to success.