Inspiration is Perishable

Never wanting to fall victim to the intimidation of a blank page, I keep a list of writing ideas. Actually, I keep several lists.

There’s one in a hardcover A5 notebook, where I sometimes compose first drafts longhand. There’s another in a small pocket notebook, which I keep close at hand to capture fleeting thoughts. A third lives in my Obsidian vault of digital notes.

There’s one thing all these lists have in common: they’re where writing ideas go to die. The vast majority sit there, on the list, forever; few turn into actual written material.

I’ve learned that while it is possible to capture an idea in a note, it’s much harder to capture the inspiration that goes with it.

As Nivi said, inspiration is perishable. When you have inspiration, act on it right then and there. —The Almanack of Naval Ravikant

I am at my best as a writer when I’m channeling an emotion directly onto the page, not fleshing out a prompt like it’s a school assignment.

Making time for spontaneous writing sessions in the midst of a daily life where writing is but a hobby can be a challenge, no doubt. So what to do when I have only a few moments?

Perhaps it’s simply a matter of practicing the craft. I suspect that with time and experience I can get better at reigniting the emotion that was behind the original spark of idea.

There may also be an opportunity for technological help here. Perhaps a voice memo recording transcribed into text could be an adequate first draft and a more efficient means of capturing fleeting inspiration.

For now my main lesson is that I should do all I can to write immediately when inspiration strikes. Even hastily-scrawled paragraphs are far superior to a few words on the general concept.

Editing a poorly-written draft is easier than trying to recapture lost inspiration.