Writing - The Jigsaw Puzzle of Words

On the surface it seems that writing nonfiction wouldn't be that much fun. You get an idea... Research it... Write a draft... Fix it up... Basically spend weeks doing all the things most people avoid whenever possible.

It occurred to me the other day that the part of writing I love is when the picture comes together. It's like building a jigsaw puzzle out of words. There are bits of research on different aspects of the topic and my job is to fit them together so the reader doesn't even suspect the smooth surface they see is made up of a zillion parts.

More thrilling is that the more I write, the better I get at envisioning the topic. The more efficient I am at researching and cataloging my sources. It's not that those functions become routine. It's more that they become part of the background of my days. But the writing part - the fitting it together - that's just as intriguing as ever.

If you're a writer, do you find this to be the case? If not, what's the best part of your job?