I enter a quilt
contest every year. It's called Ugly Duckling/Beautiful Swan. I buy a brown
paper bag that contains four mystery fabrics, one yard each. Out of those four
yards of fabric (that don't necessarily match), I must create something
beautiful. I have entered this contest for the past seven years, and for the
first few years, I did well. But the last several years my quilts have been
last-minute rush to get it done.
The bad thing is, I
buy the fabric in the late summer and the quilt is not due until the end of May—of
the next year. When I get my fabrics, I tried to envision something, hope for
inspiration, and always promise myself that I will get it sewn and done well
before the beginning of May.
I have yet to do
that.
When I am creating a
quilt design, I have to think a lot about the end product, and what others will
like. The same is true of my writing. I spend a lot of time thinking about
plots, holding onto the ones that seem viable, and tucking away other ideas for
future mulling. When I sew a quilt, it is one stitch at a time. When I write,
it is one word at a time. In the end, both quilting and writing should produce
a beautiful swan.
Sometimes I succeed,
and other times I don't. But because I enjoy both sewing and writing, I will
continue to make something out of nothing.
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