I love/hate drafting. Mostly I love it when it’s going well, and hate it when it’s not. It’s unpredictable and uncontrollable and maddening, marvelous things pop out and then other times all the energy just vanishes and I don’t know why. But there’s always (so far) a point where the book picks up so much momentum I almost cannot physically stop myself from blasting it all out. That happened this weekend on CIRCUS2. The only reason I got up from the computer on Sunday was to walk the dog (my husband’s leg is injured – but he helped by making me a veggie burger to eat as I worked). But now the draft is DONE.

And so is my brain. I refer to this as the “Fire Bad, Tree Pretty” phase of writing. Like Buffy, I feel triumphant but also completely drained. So I spent the rest of the day eating nachos and ice cream and painting my nails sparkly blue and watching Project Runway. I took it as a good omen that the final pre-Bryant Park challenge involved designing an outfit inspired by… the CIRCUS! Hah!

I’ve been thinking how Project Runway (the reality show where a bunch of designers compete for a chance to show a collection at NY Fashion Week and to launch their own line) really has a lot of interesting and potentially useful lessons for any kind of creative work. And since my brain has nothing else to fixate on right now, here’s what it came up with:

FIVE THINGS PROJECT RUNWAY TAUGHT ME ABOUT WRITING:

1) Better to strive for greatness, even if you don’t pull it off completely.

There’s one word that is (almost always) the kiss of death during the judging on PR. That word is BORING. People want to see something new, something unexpected, something that dares to be great. And as long as it’s not a complete trainwreck, they generally are going to be forgiving of its faults. On the other hand, you can make the most exquisitely tailored dress in the world, but if it’s boring, no one will remember it. No one will care.

2) But don’t get so wrapped up in your concept that you can’t edit it.

Another thing I notice a lot on PR is designers who have a particular concept for their design, or some element that they LOVE. This is a variation on the “murder your darlings” advice. Maybe it’s a particular fabric, or a beloved technique. Whatever it is, if it is compromising the success of the final result, you have to let it go.

3) Pay attention to feedback.

I love Tim Gunn, the design guru who serves as mentor to the contestants. He’s dapper, he’s funny, and he uses all sorts of lovely words like “flabbergasted” and “Sturm und Drang”. In fact, here, see for yourself:

Anyways, when Tim comes around to give his critiques during each challenge, there are always some contestants who listen to him, and some who don’t. And fairly often, the comments Tim has that get ignored are the ones that come back to bite the contestants during the judging.

4) But don’t let critical comments make you doubt yourself.

On the other hand, there are times when a contestant flips out after Tim’s comments, and loses focus, and then spends hours doing catch up for lost time. Or they get scared and disheartened, and play it safe.

The thing about criticism is that you have to allow it to help you, but not let it break you. Feedback is important. But so is remaining true to your own vision and enthusiastic about your work.

5) Be professional.

Every season on PR there are challenges that require the contestants to work in teams. And it always makes them groan and grumble, because they know (as we the audience know) that it’s going to present a whole new challenge. Almost always, the teams that end up on the bottom are the ones that didn’t work well together, regardless of how talented the team members may be independently.

You can have all the talent in the world, but if you act like an jerk and people hate you, it is going to hurt you. If you are a creative genius you can get away with it for a while, maybe, but fashion and publishing are businesses that require you to work with other people. Which means treating your business partners respectfully and understanding your own responsibilities.

~

What about you guys? Any other Project Runway fans? And if so, what do you think? Have you gotten anything out of it that you can apply to writing?

Tags: circus2, writing