Back to the book

You may have noticed that the book was on hold for a couple of weeks.  This was partly because I was busy with other things, but also because I felt there was something unidentifiable wrong with it.  After my foray into surface design techniques, I realized it was quite simple: it didn’t reflect how I actually learn a new craft.

So, after due consideration, my outline looks like this:

Introduction

Starting out

1. What motivates me?
2. Is this the right medium for me?
3. Survey the options – try everything to see what you like, and what can be done with the medium
4. Developing basic skills
5. Mind the Gap
6. Learning vs. performance
7. Go Exploring

Going deeper

1. Objective: Learning to think
2. (Don’t just study technique – study design!)
3. The Learning Cycle – pick project, do project, celebrate, retrospect
4. Troubleshooting
5. Connecting with the community

Synthesizing multiple crafts into a single piece

1. Why broad experience is useful.  (Once you know it CAN be done, you can figure out how to do it.)
2. Developing skills on the fly
3. How to manage risk in a Major Project, esp. when on unfamiliar terrain

It’s still evolving, especially the later chunks, but I’m much more satisfied with it now – it reflects my actual approach to things, rather than how I thought I approached things.  It is also considerably more nuanced and less simplistic than my previous outline.

I will probably spend a good chunk of tomorrow focused on writing.  It’s still raining, which means I won’t be able to do any surface design work (I work outdoors).  Writing, on the other hand, can be done inside, where it’s warm, dry, and comfortable.