KISS! You know what I’m talking about!

You know the phrase, Keep It Simple Stupid. Most of this time it plays out to be true. That is not to say it can’t be very complicated. In fact, the most simple end results are made from the most complicated projects to work on. Confused yet? Me too. At least I used to be.

When working on a new project, it usually starts out with a few really cool ideas. Then feature-creep makes it more complex. At some point you start working out the logistics of putting everything together so that it actually works. Typically, this first prototype, or manuscript draft, meets the goals of the original idea but it is very rough. The flow may be off. Plot twists may not work. Characters talk out of character in order to move the story in the correct direction.

This is true in programming as well. Heck, it happens in most creative activities. Your once simple idea has become difficult to communicate and you’re working really hard to force all the pieces together into an effective package. It’s a struggle, but you finally get it to work. So, you know the next step, correct? Scrap it!

Yep, you heard me. Now that you know what you needed to know before you started, it’s time to toss it away and start fresh. There’s only a few challenges. First of all, it’s your baby! You put a lot of time and effort into it. You want to see it published! You want to get it out there so others can praise your work. That said, scrap it anyway.

I’ve worked as writer, industrial engineer, manufacturing engineer, and programmer (okay, amateur programmer), and I’m telling you the best programs and projects are the ones are developed and then redesigned once all the logistics have been ironed out. Don’t believe me? Check out how Pixar makes all their movies. They develop the entire storyline through the creative process. Once they have it figured out, they rewrite it from the beginning with their newfound knowledge.

In doing this, the flow becomes better, the plot is more naturally integrated, and characters stay in character. In the end, people will say things such as, “It’s such a simple story, product, or movie.” This should be a badge of honor to you, because if you made a complicated series of events feel simple to the end user (in this case, your reader), then you’ve done an amazing job.