Are You Ready for a Big Idea?

Roald Dahl had his BFG (Big Friendly Giant). I have a Big Idea.

Ever had a Big Idea? Twirled it around, mulled it over and over in your head ’til you were dizzy? Ever decide to commit to the Big Idea? You know the Big Idea will at some time or other be criticized by everyone as crazy. But there’s one big thing about a Big Idea – it never becomes a good or bad idea until it’s acted upon. And if you commit to the Big Idea, at some point you will think everyone else was right. Worse, you’ll wonder, was it all just foolishness? I invariably ask that question when debating if any of my Big Ideas are good ideas. Always.

It may be a few weeks after I commit, or it may languish for years, only coming to the surface after many challenges have been faced and numerous battles won. Did I waste my time on this? How could I have missed the Big Problem with the Big Idea? What was I thinking?!

The latest Big Idea I’ve committed (or re-committed) to is writing a book. How many of you have been foolish enough to grab onto that one? Done properly, it’s a big ask. Probably bigger than you might think. You may be thinking ‘Really? It’s just writing – how hard can it be?’

Whether you want to just bang something out or want it to have staying power it’s a good-sized commitment. It’s also going to be another level entirely if you intend to put out the best effort you possibly can. That’s a commitment to brutal self-honesty, to harsh self-criticism, to endless re-writes, to preparing something that may never, in your eyes, be good enough. Because if you haven’t done this before, you don’t know how good you can be. In today’s world most things are given a certain lifeline for development, and no more. Good writing often doesn’t do well with a deadline, no matter if it’s self-imposed or otherwise.

So, what then, is making me do this Big Idea that I know may not be a good idea? Uh, I’m not sure – delusional? Okay, honestly, I’m a dreamer. But I’m also at once pragmatic, optimistic, pessimistic; happily ignorant, grumpily impatient, sometimes arrogant, at times romantic. It might be what could be called a recipe for excitement, disillusionment, joy, anger, disappointment and, if I can see it through, hopefully satisfaction.

One thing is certain: it’s going to be a slog. I’m on my first re-write of a draft I knew wasn’t working into what I wanted. I’m trying to add excitement and drama to non-fiction storytelling. I want to emulate the best true historical narratives, ones that captivate and have underlying lessons cleverly captured in the telling. I have found that objective very hard to create. Re-creating conversations with accuracy is difficult. Depicting attitudes and couching situations to give impact and connection to the story’s flow has been problematic. I have a long way to go.

Will this Big Idea end up being a good idea? If I’m honest I would probably say it’s too early to tell. Then again, I don’t work with the thought of failure in mind. I think about what it will take, about how much further I have to go, about what I need to do to get there. I think about accomplishing the goal. Whatever it is I need to do, I want to think I can do it. Now, publishing with a mainstream publisher, that’s a whole different game. It may be too tall a mountain to realistically consider. Time will tell.

In the meantime, I’ll keep plugging away, but this Big Idea will need help to end up a good idea. I hope to subject some of my more discerning friends to critiquing a final draft. Hopefully, I’ll have a few friends left when it’s over. Wish me luck.