How Writers Prime the Pump

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According to Collins English Dictionary the definition of priming the pump is:

1. 

the act or process of introducing fluid into a pump to improve the sealing of the pump parts on starting and to expel air from it

2. US

government expenditure designed to stimulate economic activity in stagnant or depressed areas

3. another term for deficit financing

Collins English Dictionary. Copyright © HarperCollins Publishers

Word Frequency

     

pump priming in American

US

large expenditures by a government, designed to stimulate expenditures by private industry

How did the definition go from the most efficient way to work a pump to an economic stimulus? 

I don't know. However, I do remember the need for adding water to a pump to get it going. So I can understand how the same principle can be applied to the economy.

I believe the same theory can be applied to writing as well. After all, a writer feeds ideas into the mind to stimulate the flow of words. Writers read other authors' books and do research on various topics. Writers visit new places to gather ideas for plots. Writers will sometimes just sit and watch people or listen to them--or both. Writers are always collecting information that might be useful in a story.

So remember to prime the pump and stimulate your mind to get the words flowing. 😀