Joseph Hare

I have written probably three hundred pieces, including prologues, chapters, and short stories, and then, as soon as I felt the phantom resistance of inadequacy, I turned around and threw them out. To this day, I still look back and wish I’d finished them to see how I’d resolve a novel in my more youthful days. But there is beauty in these ashes. I still go back and read my old stuff and say, “Huh, I can work this into my new novel.”

Within the contents of the book I’m drafting now, I still have bits and pieces from things that I’ve thrown away, things that I wrote previously but never officially used. It’s much like reusing broken glass to create a new, glamorous cup. It’s a way to visualize taking broken fragments from your older stories and molding them into something new and beautiful.

And some of those ideas are even better than the ones I can craft now. Save EVERYTHING you write! There’ll be a gem of creativity in there somewhere, and it may even lead to your next epic journey of imagination.

You can create artistry from broken glass.