The spouse and I grilled out today.
Again.
Yeah, we grill out a lot, and that's because my husband does things to food on the grill that shouldn't be allowed. They are probably illegal in most countries. Oh, man ... that man can grill up a piece of salmon that you would sell your mother for.
I guess what this blog post is about is just that, grilling. I love to grill, mostly because it consists of me watching the spouse do his magic with the old fire and charcoal machine. Sure, I put some prep work into it; boning chickens and mixing secret marinades* and slicing and dicing the fixings. I plop it all into a baggie with the marinade and stuff it in the fridge until he is ready for it.
But he has to do the hard stuff.
He has to wait.
Tony says the secret to good grilling, no ... make that GREAT grilling is waiting. And if there is one thing Tony Brown knows how to do its nothing. Nothing at all. Just put the food on and let the heat do the rest. You see, I get antsy, wanting to poke and prod the meat (yeah theres a metaphor there) and flip and tuck and check and oh is it done yet?
But Tony?
He just slaps it on and lets it do its own thing while he sits around with a beer and a smile. Both of which he employs very well. A few sips later he raises the lid on the beast, flips a bit, and lets it all mellow for a little longer. Then, viola! It's food. No fuss, no muss, no super duper excitement.
Writing is a lot like great grilling. You prep the work, you ready it, then you should sit back and let it stew. Let it marinate. While it soaks work on something else. Then when you put it on the grill, or rather send it out to editors, you gotta wait till it is done. The editors will put their hot little hands on it when they are good and ready and not before. If you poke at it before its done you might get it back raw, or worse you might get burnt.
So write it, let it soak, trim it up and send it out and be patient.
The end result will be a feast you won't forget!
*the secret to a good marinade is beer and Italian dressing
