The Creativity Source Code: Drafting

Sun, 08 Feb 2026 16:15:00 +0000

I like a good cheat sheet.

Over the last few years, I have been talking about the benefits of drafting, as often as possible. I’ve sprinkled some tips and thoughts all over this blog, but I never formalised them into a single article about the art of the draft.

Instead of writing some sort of academic whitepaper, I decided to write it as code¹. I did this because code has a way of bringing clarity while removing fluff, keeping the why and the how. Also because it’s fun!

It combines two things I love: exploring the creative process, and writing readable code that solves a problem.

In a moment of humility, I decided to call this The Creativity Source Code. This snippet is about things I do when I draft, to set myself up for “success”. My definition of success here is:

I wrote some stuff.
I don’t feel horrible about it.

That’s it, really. I’ll use this piece of code as my cheat sheet whenever I struggle with a draft! I hope you’ll find it useful too.

// This function sets everything up so you can
// have a playful, enjoyable and "productive"
// draft session. It can apply to most
// creative acts.
func draft() []string {

    // Initialise the actual draft.
    // Assuming we're writing!
    var theDraft []string

    // Some Rules of the Road constants.
    const (
        // No one will see your draft.
        // Go nuts. Drafts are messy!
        draftIsPrivate = true
    )

    // Set up analog tools. Adjust to 
    // your craft!
    // I find stationery tools are useful
    // no matter my medium (music, video...).
    var tools []string
    tools = append(tools, "Fountain Pen")
    tools = append(tools, "Nice Notebook")
    tools = append(tools, "Sticky Notes")
    tools = append(tools, "Notecards")

    // Turn things off to save memory 
    // and avoid context-switch issues.
    shutdownComputer()        // Go analog. There is no backspace key on a notebook!
    phoneAirplaneMode := true // There are no notifications on a notebook!

    // Focus on quantity, not quality. 
    // It's like mining. Keep swinging that
    // pickaxe, some gold ore will show up
    // eventually.
    checkForQuality := false  

    // If these conditions are met,
    // your draft WILL crash.
    if drafting == true && editing == true {
        // drafting + editing in your head
        // = self-censorship.
        // Separate idea generation from
        // decision-making.
        panic("Don't edit while you draft!")
    }

    // Set up a timer to stay focused. Allow
    // yourself to only draft, or do nothing.
    timer := 30          // in minutes - adjust as necessary (I like 30 minutes increments)
    timeSpent := 0       // in minutes
    allowBoredom := true // if you're stuck, do nothing. Stare at the wall. Look around. Ideas will come.

    for timeSpent < timer {
        // You have one job. Just write.
        // It doesn't have to be good.
        // It just has to exist.
        write(theDraft)

        // HACK: Adding this section to deal with doubts.
        if idea == offTopic {
            // If you worry an idea doesn't
            // fit the rest of your draft,
            // write it anyway.
            writeAnyway(theDraft)
        }

        // HACK: Adding more checks (ran into more doubts)
        if idea == badIdea || idea == maybeBadIdea {
            // If you worry your idea is "not
            // good enough", write it anyway.
            writeAnyway(theDraft)
        }

        // HACK: This one kept crashing the draft early
        if idea == hasAlreadyBeenDoneBySomeoneElse {
            // A lot of people stop drafting
            // because they worry "This has 
            // been done before". Your version 
            // doesn't exist yet! Write!
            writeAnyway(theDraft)
        }

        timeSpent += 1
    }

    return theDraft
}

I find this “Creativity Source Code” applies to many crafts. It speaks to me the most when writing, but I’ve also been making music, and videos, and most of this stuff still applies, with a few tweaks. For example with music, I try to keep the computer (and recorder) off, and patch my PRO-800 synthesiser in my speakers, or plug my guitar into an amplifier.

This is in no way supposed to be “the one true way to make a great draft”. In fact, I don’t think there is such a thing as “a great draft”. There’s only what we write, and what we don’t.

Next time you draft, remember to only focus on quantity. Let the Muse focus on quality. Keep running the code. Keep mining, and eventually you will find gold, or coal, or copper, or adamantium!

Does this actually compile? In my head, it does! I call this “Creative Go” - it’s based on Go, a language designed at Google. ↩︎

The Creativity Source Code on Tom Podevin: a blog for stuck creatives

The Creativity Source Code: Drafting