It’s that I shouldn’t think of it as fiction.
Because when I do that, it stops being a group of characters living through a series of events, and it starts being a product. A book I need to polish, perfect and control.
My old perfectionistic tendencies come to the surface, and I start to have the same worries that every author probably has.
Are the characters interesting enough? Good enough, flawed enough, changing enough, staying the same enough?
Is the plot intriguing enough, complex enough, easy enough to follow?
Enough, enough, enough?
Obviously, I haven't actually lost track of the difference between fiction and reality. Or I would need that straitjacket.
But sometimes, it's nice to just let the characters be as real as they want to be. To stop worrying about how their actions and personalities will affect the quality of the book, and just let them unfold as they will.
Perfection, or some delusional semblance of it, can come later. In the editing phase. In the meantime, sometimes it's better to just stop thinking of the book as a book that needs to be perfected or improved, and just treat it as if it's a group of people, creating and experiencing their own reality the way real people do.
In its own funny way, I suppose the result is more realistic that way, is it not?
So, what about you? When you're writing, what methods do you use to avoid falling into perfectionism and control, and let inspiration flow naturally?