Sometimes, I have an idea for something to create – an essay, a blog series, a program, a tool – that I realise I am not ready to make yet.
I felt this way when I wanted to write about technical writing. I knew I had something to say, but I wasn’t sure what yet. I feel this way with many of my essays: I have an idea, but I’m not sure how I want to tell the story.
In these times, I often sketch out an idea and take notes. I think, and explore. I try and, some time along the way, notice that perhaps I need more time. I know there is something to be made, but not yet how to make it.
This week, I added a new feature to my website search engine: direct answers. You can type in “what is a blog post” and the system will try to find an answer to the question. It works by searching for various syntatic patterns, like “{x} is {y}.” I have wanted to build something like this for two years. Last time I tried, I didn’t quite see the results I wanted.
When I last tried to build this feature, I didn’t know as much about the data structures that I now know would be useful, like sets. I knew what I wanted to make, but not how to make it. So I went on to learn something else. Two years later, I have a more robust implementation, and am starting to know why last time it was much harder.
Some of the essays of which I am most proud have consciously been ideas sitting in the back of my mind for a week or a month or a year. Some of the programs I am most proud of come after learning about something in my spare time for months, then applying skills I have learned to a problem I find interesting.
Some ideas I can sketch out in an afternoon and get on paper, like this blog post. Except the realisations behind this blog post took time. They came after reflecting on my most recent creative outputs, discussions with friends, the joy and reflection that comes from solving a problem you couldn’t solve in the past, and more.
When I don’t know how to make what I want to make, I find that taking time to do something else helps, while continuing to learn about the things that excite me. Ideas take time to garden and grow.
