Writing, Driving, and Beta Testing in the Fog

“Writing is like driving at night in the fog. You can only see as far as your headlights, but you can make the whole trip that way.” -E.L. Doctorow

I came across this quote yesterday in the show notes of a podcast I was listening to. It got me thinking about some of what I’ve been doing this summer especially the past 2 weeks, creating and re-creating workflows and a writing process that works for me all while playing around with the iOS and iPadOS public betas. I’ve been creating Focus Modes, dedicated Home Screens, and new Shortcuts that have further helped me automate these workflows and processes. Throughout, I’ve only been able to, “see as far as” the “foggy (buggy) nature” these public beta operating systems have allowed me to.

On any trip there are going to be things to watch out for; bumps, twists, and turns in the road that ones “headlights” may not illuminate until they are mere feet away from them. I realize that my post yesterday is the equivalent of the kind of self-talk a driver may engage in, “driving at night in the fog.” The important thing to realize is, like Doctorow, that I, “...can make the whole trip” if I am willing to stay focused; reminding myself that it is in fact the trip that is providing me with the content to create these posts not the destination.