Friday, January 25, 2013

My Gastronomic Creative Process

1. Begin. (The Foreword)
My ideas are overflowing. I am ambitious and I am full of creative energy. Anyone who asks me to cook for them will get Ramen noodles. Personally, I will be eating sugar. Every bit of sugar I can get my hands on.

2. Act/Write/Photograph with enthusiasm.
I continue to work with enthusiasm. My ideas are a little more narrow and I know what I'm doing. I've slowed down a bit. I'm consuming much coffee, but I have switched to healthier foods and am upset with myself for all the sugar I just ate.

3. Edit with joy.
I am driven. Excited. I know what I have will be great once I spend some time tweaking the details. All meals on this day are small and easy. Sandwiches. Pasta. Nothing that requires me to be away from my work for too long. Still much coffee. Can't sleep. Must keep working.

4. Edit with trepidation.
I am beginning to get concerned. My work isn't what I want it to be. It doesn't sound as good as it did in my imagination. This is when I stop eating. My blood sugar sinks to frightening levels. Trisha is force-feeding me water and fruit.

5. Edit with self-loathing. (The Plot Thickens)
I've decided that I am not a good writer. I will just take my management position back at Walmart and give up on this process. I am likely to begin cooking a giant meal with the excuse of "I just want to use my new kitchen gadget." Really I just want to avoid writing.

6. Denouement. (I just love that word, even if it sounds pretentious.)
I am done. My project is in the hands of a teacher/editor. I am both anxiously anticipating and dreading their response. I return to my normal, healthy meals at this point. Homemade stuff, salads.

7. The Response (The Afterword).
If my editor/teacher loved it: Begin back at step one.
If I got a bad grade, a so-so response, or no response: I'll be in the kitchen for a few days while me and a bag of flour sort out what went wrong. This is when you want to stop by for bread. I'll have an extra loaf waiting for you.

No comments:

Post a Comment