Riding One Wave

Sally Somerton, Island Writer

Wise-woman witterings on perfectionism, creative overwhelm, and working towards finishing what I started...

There’s a quiet confession I’ve been sitting with lately.

My perfectionism, which I thought I had dealt with long ago, has been slipping into my writing.

Not loudly. Not dramatically.

But in those subtle, almost convincing ways…

Tweaking a paragraph again.

Rethinking a character arc.

Pausing a story because “it’s not quite right yet”

And then, almost as if on cue, a new idea arrives.

Fresh. Exciting. Full of possibility.

And suddenly, I’m off again.

A new story. A new direction. A new beginning. And even a new genre!

Meanwhile, the others wait patiently… unfinished.

The uncomfortable truth:

It’s easy to call this a “busy mind” or even a “creative one.”

But if I’m really honest?

It’s not just creativity.

It’s the dance between perfectionism and possibility.

One says:

“This needs to be exceptional.”

The other whispers:

“Ooh… but what if this new idea is even better?”

And between them, nothing quite gets finished.

Because finishing something means letting it be seen.

And being seen means risking that it might not be perfect.

What if nothing has gone wrong?

What if this isn’t a problem to fix…

But a pattern to understand?

Because underneath perfectionism is often something tender:

Care.

Depth.

A desire for meaning.

I don’t want to write just anything.

I want it to matter.

And perhaps you feel that too; in your own work, your own creations, your own life.

The shift that changes everything:

Recently, I’ve been gently trying on a different identity.

Not:

“I must write something brilliant.”

But:

“I am someone who finishes stories.”

It feels quieter.

Less pressured.

More… human.

Because finishing isn’t about brilliance.

It’s about staying with the current.

Staying when it gets messy.

Staying when the middle wobbles.

Staying when doubt creeps in.

Letting the work be alive (not perfect)

Here’s what I’m beginning to understand:

A finished, imperfect piece of writing will always carry more life than a perfect one that never leaves the page.

Because real stories breathe.

They have rough edges.

They wander a little.

They surprise even the person writing them.

And that’s where the magic lives.

A gentle practice I’m holding:

When new ideas arrive (as they always do), I don’t push them away.

I write them down. I thank them.

And then I return…

To the story I’ve already begun.

Not because it’s the best idea.

But because it’s the one I’ve chosen to honour.

🌊 A final thought I'm telling myself:

My mind isn’t chaotic. 🤪

It’s like the ocean; full of currents, movement, possibility.

I don’t need to calm the ocean, I can't..

I just need to choose one wave…

And ride it all the way to shore.

If this resonates with you, whether you’re a writer, a dreamer, or someone standing in the middle of many beginnings, you’re not alone.

Perhaps today isn’t about finding a better idea.

Perhaps it’s simply about staying with the one already calling you forward.

Sally Somerton - Island Writer

©sallysomerton2026