The Dotted-Line Principle: Inside Tupac Shakur’s Secret Writing Hack
Here’s the secret to Tupac Shakur’s writing process:
It’s called The Dotted-Line Principle, and it’s all about delaying edits or revisions during the creative process.
Step 1: Early Edits are The Enemy
When inspiration struck, Tupac would get to the studio as soon as possible and begin recording his ideas.
What is facinating is that he would rap for 5,10, and even 15 minutes at a time without stopping. He didn’t care about making mistakes, saying gibberish, or even making sense of the words and sounds he was producing.
He just wanted to get every single idea out that he could before stopping to edit.
Step 2: Put the Pieces Together
The next day, he would come back to the song and edit it down to its most solid form. Removing everything that was unessential.
Many of these projects would become some of the biggest songs in history.
Why is this important? A lot of us try to edit as we go and it stops the flow of new creative ideas.
Instead, get all of your ideas out and come back to edit later.