Why Quantity Leads to Quality

The Flash Fiction Month 2022 is about to start!

Reading time: 6 min

Photo by Possessed Photography on Unsplash

Intro

When I was younger, I wanted to be a cursed artist. Free to the point of being desperate, but incorruptible, unwilling to accept any compromises, acting only under the blessed influence of my Muse. The Pottery Class Parable was the first anecdote to put this toxic stereotype under perspective.

The more I dived into writing, the more I understood the concept that “Quantity leads to quality,” but I needed to find my own “pottery class” to fully appreciate how improvement and practice are closely linked, even in subjective pursuits, like art.

The Parable of the Pottery Class

Photo by Alexandre Valdivia on Unsplash

The Parable of the Pottery Class, originally mentioned in David Bayles and Ted Orland’s book, Art & Fear, tells the story of a brave pottery teacher who decides to split their class in two for thirty days. One half, at the end of the month, would be evaluated solely on the quantity of work they produced, and specifically on the total weight, giving an A for 50 pounds, B for 40 and so on.

Students in the second group, on the contrary, only had to produce one pot in thirty days, and they would be judged on the quality of their sole piece of art.

Surprise surprise, all the best pots came from the quantity group, none from the quality.

*Apparently the real story involves a photography class, but the message doesn’t change.

My Personal Pottery Class

At the beginning of July 2021, I was experiencing the worst writer’s block of my life when I decided to take a break from the novel I was writing and join a marvellous initiative.

A small community of very committed people, the hydra, every summer organises a Flash Fiction Month. 31 days, 31 stories, tons of prompts, challenges and prizes and a great community of supportive writers to read and comment on your work. Hosted on Deviant Art, #FFM2021 has been one of the most amazing writing-related activities I have ever taken part in, and I’ve even won!

Picture to prove it!

Just like the Pottery Class students, at the end of July I had written some of my favourite short stories; at least 3 or 4 significantly better than anything I could have written in a month as a unique project.

But why is that?

What are the root causes that link higher production to higher quality?

You Need a Body of Work

“An imperfect existing product is always better than a perfect, imaginary one.”

Writing something, regardless of how badly, is always better than writing nothing. One page full of historical incorrect facts is much better than a blank page and a head full of research.

Artists produce art, that’s what they do, and the very act of crafting is what gives it value.

The Value of Practice

I’m an engineer by trade, and yet, out of university, I was absolutely clueless. I had to spend my entire first year in the workforce to learn the job.

Studying on books, running simulations and solving mock problems is nothing like being out in the field. That’s why doing a writing course, though fun and valuable, is useless if you don’t end up writing something.

“A single finished story will make you improve much more than ten first pages.”

That’s why you should practice by doing what you intend to do in the end, especially if a degree of improvisation is required.

For example, if you want to become a good novelist, you should write novels. Short stories, outlines and character descriptions won’t make you a better novelist on their own.

The Value of Not Overthinking

“Perfect is the enemy of good”

A quantity-oriented goal is also good to let go of perfectionism. It sparks creativity, as it forces you to follow routes you wouldn’t have if you stopped and considered where they could lead.

In my experience, the planning phase can carry on forever, and Mr Parkinson is on my side, but if you know you’ve got 24 hours to come up with a fully formed story between 55 and 1000 words, your only choice is to write the first thing that pops to mind.

This is like powerlifting for your creative muscles. Believe it or not, I turned out a much better writer after those 31 days.

Also, planning has its limits.

The human brain is not good with predictions; it’s built to observe and react. While developing a story, you might write yourself into a corner, and that’s great! Finding ways out of that corner can make things interesting, while a carefully designed plan can often result to be boring.

The Value of Constraints

The Flash Fiction Month is a gold mine of creativity specifically because it limits the writer’s freedom. Not only does it impose a constraint on time and quantity (31 stories, 24h per story), it also imposes a limit on word count (55 to 1000) and on content.

When squeezed into all those walls of different shapes, the writer has to find a way to work around them, and that’s where the good stuff comes from.

For an example of what I mean, my story Panic Attack shows an alternative way to use sensorial constraints.

I know some of you might frown at this section, I can almost hear you. “I want to write to feel free, why would I trap myself into all those limitations?”

Because limitations are good. Let me prove it.

What is the opposite of limitations? The blank page.

Photo by Markus Winkler on Unsplash

For many writers, especially at the beginning, the blank page can be terrifying. It could be anything; how are you supposed to choose? What story will be better than every other possible one? Choosing among infinite possibilities is a daunting task.

But if you know that the story needs to have a blue umbrella, and a dog called Poldo, and they need to have the same owner, now you’ve got something to work with. Even if you end up with a green straw, a cat called Sparkles and no owner, you started your journey somewhere, and that’s what matters.

Flash Fiction Month 2022

The Flash Fiction Month 2022 starts tomorrow, here you can find all the details. I would have loved to participate again, but I need to work on my new novel because… I got 2 requests for the full manuscript and I am a bit behind!

I’ll do my own version on this website in September, if nothing else happens, so make sure to check it out.

In the meanwhile, have a look at my 2021 journey, if you wish.

Alla Prossima.