johnmdemarco posted on July 05, 2010 19:28
My family and I just returned from a three-day weekend in Savannah, which is about eight hours from the Nashville area. I was at the wheel the whole time; and while it wasn’t necessarily always quiet in the car, there were a few long stretches where my brain was free to create and process as I logged mile after mile.
And I discovered the benefit of “highway editing.”
This does not involve removing or adding rest areas or exit roads, or even destroying some of the smutty billboards that often dot I-75 through Georgia. Rather, if you have written a manuscript, it is an opportunity to mentally peruse each chapter and its key sections. It’s a time to give characters more depth, complexity and character flaws. Amid the monotony of mile marker after mile marker, one can see the book holistically and determine what is working and what needs to change.
People often go on road trips to “find themselves.” Some even go to find a story. The road symbolizes many of humanity’s pursuits and struggles, and can also serve as the start or end of a key season.
I enjoyed learning this past weekend that the road is also a great place to “sort out” a body of work. Too often I’ve misused my driving time on long trips by just focusing on “getting somewhere,” but this time I was somewhere vital for every moment—and not just when I was frolicking with family and soaking up the Southern sun.