Deliberate sideways projects let writers sidestep a blocked main work

Evidence

If the problem is a whole novel that won’t work but won’t go away, the modern writer can take on a Project from Porlock. … It’s almost guaranteed to come to nothing, so you won’t need another project from Porlock to save you from having to deliver the first draft; besides, while the film industry lawyers are poring over the small print of the contracts, you may well have solved your initial problem, or just grown old and died. — Hilary Mantel, A Memoir of My Former Self- A Life in…, 42

Categorization

• SEED: Useful technique for writers facing a blocked project—introducing a deliberately doomed diversion.
• corroborated: 2 independent passages support this claim — Hilary Mantel, A Memoir of My Former Self- A Life in…, 42
• XREF: connects to: Writers secretly want interruption to rescue them from their own stalled work — Hilary Mantel, A Memoir of My Former Self- A Life in…, 42; Writers should draw from diverse experiences when crafting books. — Tilar J Mazzeo, How to Write a Bestseller, 367; Novelists must look both inward and outward at once — Hilary Mantel, A Memoir of My Former Self- A Life in…, 1017 (+5 more)

Broader Connections

• Writers secretly want interruption to rescue them from their own stalled work #corroborates (0.78) — Hilary Mantel, A Memoir of My Former Self- A Life in…, 42
• Writers should draw from diverse experiences when crafting books. #corroborates (0.55) — Tilar J Mazzeo, How to Write a Bestseller, 367
• Novelists must look both inward and outward at once #qualifies (0.45) — Hilary Mantel, A Memoir of My Former Self- A Life in…, 1017