“If you gaze long enough at an abyss, the abyss will gaze back at you.”
Fredrich Nietzsche
Any writer can tell you about the blank page. The fear of it. How it seems so overwhelming. The desire to fill it yet, somehow, they lack the capability.
The word abyss in the Nietzsche quote used above could be substituted for blank page and be equally true. If you gaze long enough at a blank page, the blank page will gaze back at you. And once it does, who knows what nasty things you will encounter!
After all, a writer’s modus operandi is to create something from nothing. And if we’re paralyzed by fear of the nothing, it stifles our chances at creativity. And when a writer’s creativity is stifled, it feels like the world has come crashing down.
So maybe it’s time to reimagine our relationship with the blank page. To rethink how we treat it and, most importantly, how it treats us.
The blank page should not be seen as an enemy. It should not be seen as a terrifying guardian to our dreams. It should be seen as an opportunity. The blank page is our ally. It’s the thing that takes our best ideas. It helps us form our stories. But at its most basic level, it offers potential. It gives possibilities.
Every great work ever written started with the blank page.
So next time you sit in front of a blank page, do not treat it like the abyss. Treat it as your friend. And maybe, just maybe, it will return the favour.
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