I have read in a number of places that it is important, as a creative person, to do something creative everyday to further your talent. If your creative art is writing, write every day. If it is painting, paint every day. You get the idea. This is not something I am good at, but like my projects I am a work in progress.
I have a variety of projects in the works and apparently need more. Because what I write are game systems I don't like to have to go back and edit unless I have made an intentional change in the mechanics or I'm just tweaking the writing. However, if I work on a system when I am not inspired to be working on it, the work I churn out is half-rate and often muddles the mechanics, adding unnecessary complications or going off in the wrong direction. As a result, it is important for me to have multiple projects going at a time so that I always have something to work on.
There are some creative fields in which it is okay to work on your primary project even on your off days, to produce less than your best work. There are even cases where this is necessary, such as when your art is your career. However, for those of us with the luxury (or projects with the need) to produce only good work then it is important to have other projects on the side for those days when you just don't feel like being creative. These are the projects which we work on so that our talent is continually in development because it is said that with talent, if you're not advancing it, your losing it.
The side projects you develop for the daily advancement of your craft shouldn't just be a dumping ground though. You want them to be something you care about and are interested in, otherwise to work on them becomes a chore and you begin to resent them. These side projects are a great opportunity to refine our skills, try new techniques and ideas and feed our talent.
What do you think? Do you have side projects you maintain when not working on your primary goal? How do you use them? Do you have plans for them beyond their completion?
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