I’m going to let you in on a little secret:

Most of the time, good writing is a total accident.

Don’t get me wrong, if you show up and put in the work, no matter what you’re working toward, good things are going to happen. And, yes, as George Saunders suggests, the more we write the sharper our unconscious decision making becomes—but at the end of the day what we’re doing is less scientific and more like putting a hand through and into the void, pulling it back, and examining a fistful of mystery.

You know the feeling: an entire storyline dawning on you when you least expect it, scrambling to find a pen or your phone. Or when a searing one-liner appears from out of the blue. If we knew what we were going to write every time we sat down to do so, wouldn’t we just, you know, do it? Or wouldn’t we have written it by now? The fact is, we might have a pretty good idea or even a few lines in mind, but each time we sit down to write we are still uncovering the mystery for ourselves. That’s the beauty of it. It’s communion. Not just reaching into the void to take; it’s as much about placing something of ourselves inside someone or something else, sharing the phenomenon.

Still, it’s no accident turning up solid gold through revision. It’s no surprise when a second draft is crisper than the first. There’s no doubt that hard work pays off. But (there’s always a big, hairy But lurking in the void), these beautiful accidents won’t happen if we aren’t putting in the work. So, are you?