Can't Bank The Blank

Quote by Jodi Picoult

“You can always edit a bad page. You can’t edit a blank page.”

I liked the quote by Jodi Picoult, novelist. You cannot edit a blank page. No argument there.

You also cannot submit and sell a blank page to an editor which means you cannot have the pleasure of publication and, perhaps, some money to put in the bank. You can't bank the blank!

I think we'd all agree that a page filled with poor writing is better than one with nothing on it. Poor writing can be revised and edited. You can't do something to nothing. 

We've probably all started writing a story or a personal essay, made our way through half a page and thought This is pure drivel! What's your next step? I'd continue writing until I finished the first draft of the short essay or chapter of a novel. Read it if you want to, but put it away for a few days before you look at it again. 

During that time, it's possible your subconscious will be working and come up with new ideas or ways to fix what went wrong. Note that I said 'possible.' No guarantees. When you do your first edit, don't read through with a negative attitude. Decide to look first at what parts are good, the ones worth saving and enlarging upon. That will boost your mood enough so that you can go through a second time and eliminate the not-so-hot areas. 

How do you feel when looking at a blank page (or screen)? Does it overwhelm you? Or do you feel a sense of excitement because it's all yours to do with whatever you choose? Some writers stare at a blank page for a long time before they begin to write those initial words. Why? Maybe it's a bit of fear or a lack of confidence. Remember this--that page is yours and yours alone. You can do anything. It's the first draft. You can change it any number of times. Some writers edit once or twice while others edit multiple times. Some of them continue to edit instead of calling it a final draft because it gives them a good excuse to not submit their work. Mr. Fear and Madam Confidence enter the picture in that case. 

As for me, I like the challenge of a blank page. Five days a week, I open this blog to a form that has nothing on it. It's a pleasure for me to put words together that might be of some help to other writers. 

How about you? What feelings do you have when facing a blank page?  Is it different when you have a deadline than when you don't?