I love working on first drafts of things.

I love revising them too—seeing the finished product that began as little more than a random thought in my head during the long drive to work.

But I love first drafts the most.

They’re so full of potential. Everything I write is perfect. There are no parameters to follow, no rules to abide.  Just pure imagination.

My favorite car ever was a Jeep Wrangler.  I’ve had two and I loved them both.  It’s not like I live in the woods.  Most of my driving is straight highway, but knowing that I had the ability to grab the wheel and veer off into the unknown made me feel like anything was possible.

First drafts are the same way.

When I embark on a first draft, I give myself permission to do anything and everything, no matter how crazy it may seem.  I drop characters into the story randomly to see what will happen. I blow shit up. I maim and kill and let characters fall in love.

I let myself fall in love with writing all over again.

At the end of the day, love of writing is more important than money, more important than validation, more important than publication.

If you don’t love what you’re doing, you’re doing the wrong thing.