I realized gardening can be compared to writing when I started my end of summer clean-up this week. Clipping the old stalks, moving plants to a better location, weeding out the weeds all reminded me of the editing I must do on my current book. I have to crop out unnecessary details, adjust the scenes to give a better plot flow and get rid of all those wordy extraneous phrases.
Let’s jump back. The garden/book started with a seed/idea. I needed to do research which can be compared to prepping the soil. Add a little fertilizer, digging up the dirt so the seeds can grow is like doing the necessary research
Then spend the next months getting it to grow.
I do check my garden daily.
And I write daily.
The garden often is doing better than my writing. Leaves get big and green, the flowers bud, and all I need to do is add fertilizer. Whoa. That’s not quite right. I get on my knees and weed to give my flowers room to spread. Certainly like going over my previous day’s work and chopping the junk so the story is clear.
The feeling of success when a flower blooms is like when I finish a scene and it works! My garden is a source of peace for me despite the work involved, another similarity.
What do you do that to break away from the stress of writing?
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16 comments:
As I've mentioned before, my nickname is "Death to Plants," so I can't say gardening as a hobby. But I do plant a little flower bed in the front of my house in the spring and fall, and I weed it every so often, and I actually do find it relaxing. Your garden is lovely! Thanks for sharing the photos.
Beautiful flowers. I envy you the talent/gift to be able to grow them. I'm like Leah. No matter what I do, plants at my house don't stand a chance.
Your flowers are beautiful. I had six tubs of petunias at the boat ramp that needed dead-heading on a daily basis. I didn't find it the least bit relaxing! I hike in the woods with my dog to de-stress. But I honestly don't find writing stressful. It gives me a sense of accomplishment that's difficult to find anywhere else.
Lovely analogy, Barbara. I'm a flower arrangement maven, so I'd give anything to have flowers to cut for my yard like you do. I've been trying to get leggy Astromedia to grow because it's such a long lasting cut flower , but have only been able to grow the short ones here in CA. Your home and flowers are a feast for the eyes.
Thanks for sharing your beautiful pictures. The deer eat my flowers. And now that the deer ticks are so plentiful, I'd rather stay indoors. Calvin got bitten by one early this summer and it had to be dug out by the doctor.
Love the comparison. So true!! Your photos are gorgeous. I have a 'plant killer' thumb, so I couldn't hope to have such a beautiful garden. But I can try to focus on growing my writing! :D thanks for the reminder.
What a fairytale garden you have, and what a great comparison. I'm surrounded by woods so not sure what to think as regards that and writing!
Hi Leah,
Your nickname made me laugh. My daughter-in-law is the 'black thumb'.
Hi Margo,
No plants but your books grow beautifully.
Hi Jannine,
I hate dead-heading plants, but my roses wont keep blooming unless I do. Sigh.
Thanks, Rolynn. I like flowers inside, too. I'm lucky mu husband buys cut flower for me.
Hi Vonnie,
since we have a dog we have to spray for the darn critters fairly often. Thanks for the comment.
Hi Alicia,
Just spreading a little fertilizer. LOL
Hi Andrea,
I enjoy walking in the woods as much as gardening. I'll think about the analogy.
Love your analogy, Barb. So true. Pruning, weeding, giving the plants room to grow. I love my garden. Since I can't kneel anymore (artificial knees), Hubs does most of my planting and weeding. I tell him what to do. LOL I have mostly perennials, so not too much planting anymore.
Living in an RV, I don't have a yard but luckily the back of our area is the forest and creek. I do have a small herb garden by our shed and a few potted plants. It's really a downsizing from the farm but much more manageable. Lovely pics, Barbara.
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