What shall I write about?

Dang, I can’t decide. I’m a self-professed polymath. If that’s not on the tip of your vocabulary, it’s someone interested in many things. The most famous was perhaps Leonardo Da Vinci. Somehow, I haven’t risen to the level of that master, yet.

Here’s the rub. I have this list of a hundred possible writing projects. Some are fiction, some are nonfiction. There are some children’s books, screenplays and stage play ideas in the mix.

The practical side of me says stick with non-fiction. After all, I’ve had over 15 non-fiction books published. Of course, they are all over the spectrum -- from a children’s book about weather to an American History book to a book on statistical data analysis.

The fun side of me says – write a novel, write a screenplay, write something creative. I’ve had a little success in this area having co-written a screenplay that was recently made into a movie.

Someone save me from myself. I’m smart enough to see that really successful people tend to be those that focus on one genre. Publishers like this person. Editors like this person. Agents like this person. They are predictable. They are reliable. If this author has had one or two good books in an area then he should be expected to continue to produce in that area. Its expected. No one expects Danielle Steele to write a how-to book on plumbing or Stephen Hawking to write a romance novel.

So here I linger. I have no answers. If I could have a conversation with Da Vinci, maybe I could figure out he did it – mixing art with science and doing both better than anyone else in the world. Hmm… maybe that’s an idea about a book to write. “Dinner with Da Vinci.” But I diverge.

Writing is a spiritual discipline. I read some author describe the creative process like this: there are streams of ideas floating around in the ether (that’s everything surrounding you.) If we open ourselves up to it (to God’s direction if you are a believer) then we can tap into a mysterious and wonderful creative process that will take us on a journey that we could never predict on our own.

Here am I. Lead me.