“It had long since come to my attention that people of accomplishment rarely sat back and let things happen to them. They went out and happened to things.”
― Leonardo da Vinci
If da Vinci’s quote isn’t a call to action, I don’t know what is!
Sometimes, just sometimes, we need to step out of our comfort zone and just go for it. I know how difficult it is or can be to take the first step, the proverbial leap of faith. We need to venture beyond our area of expertise, break away from our level of comfort and try breaking the rules.
I know I’ve mentioned repeatedly here that you shouldn’t break rules unless you first know what they are and know to have a healthy respect for rules at the get go. I think if you’re serious about writing, you do make an effort to learn the basics, and the rules serve you in good stead, most of the time.
But the day will come when you need to color outside the lines, to leave the box, to work without restriction and to try new things. If you’re not adventurous, just try testing a new theory or two that you don’t usually work with in your writing. If you’re known as a humorist try writing a scary story. If your are known for the serious literary work, try a horror novel on for size.
Not only will stepping off the path offer a new view of an otherwise jaded world, but it might bring a breath of fresh air to your writing style.
Do I have a real life example to support my encouragement of stepping off the path? You know that I do.
Stephen King, my all time favorite author has written many successful novels. He has written fantasy, serials stories, as well as his horror novels. But the best thing he has ever written in my humble opinion is “The Eye of the Dragon”, a fairytale.
His unique voice shines in the novella written for his daughter, who does not read horror.
So, if you look at it from the point of view of the other guy, it’s a whole different story.