And while I'm at it, let's talk about how we write, because I'm in the middle of an argument with someone on one of my mailing lists about which way is the best way.
And for the record, I think whichever way works for you is the best way.
I don't recommend writing instruction books, because honestly, I've never really gotten much out of any of them. Once upon a time I checked out every book on writing the library owned, read them all, and did what everyone should do. I picked the pieces of advice that worked for me and went on from there.
And yet, time after time again, I see people try to force beginners to "do it their way". I see people tout various writing books as if these books were the Bible, and swear by every word. I see people insist that their way is best, even though their way might not work for everyone.
Here's my way, and I'm going to try to explain it as well as I can. Parts of it are fairly ephermal, but I think I can figure it out. :)
I see a scene, most of the time. The scene might not be until the middle of the book, or might not be in that particular book at all. But I see it, and I'm intrigued enough to write it down and/or try to figure out what happened beforehand and what happens afterwards.
Sometimes, I start with a sentence. Other times, I've started from an idea I got from a writing exercise. Still others, songs, or tidbits from various research books I've read. Each and every book I've written has a story behind it, and all the stories are different.
I don't outline. At all. I know some people outline extensively, and if it works for you, that's great and I wish you well. But I tried outlining one book before I started writing it, and that book is still on my unfins list, and will probably stay there until I'm desperate enough to want to finish it. Outlining killed that book, because that's not the way I work.
About halfway through the book, though, I will have a general idea of where I think the story will end up. I might write a one page synopsis so I don't get lost. I don't always do this, but it does help if I'm trying to stay on track. Sometimes, earlier in the book, I'll write a one sentence description of what I think it will be about, and post that in a place I can see it so I keep the general theme in mind as I go along.
Most of the time, I just write. Sometimes, I don't even know what happens in the next chapter until I write the last word in the previous one.
And I don't outline. I don't plot out my story beforehand, and sometimes the ending is just as much of a surprise to me as it will be to my readers.
Some people seem to have a problem with this approach. I've been told on more than one occasion that it just doesn't work to write this way, and that I must have to revise extensively to get things "in tune" at the end. I usually shrug and tell people, "What works for you might not work for me, and vice versa," but sometimes the people who don't work my way just can't accept that. They'll insist, time after time again, that their way is the best and I must be stupid to work the way I do.
What's so hard about realizing that I happen to enjoy writing the way I do, and that if it works for me, that's really the only thing that counts? What's so difficult about admitting there are different ways of doing things? If we all did everything exactly the same way, this world would be awfully boring, don't you think?
Here's my advice to anyone looking for a tried-and-true way to write:
What works for me might not work for you. But that doesn't mean you can't try each and every way until you find a way that works for you.
And there's nothing at all wrong with that. Sheesh.
And for the record, I think whichever way works for you is the best way.
I don't recommend writing instruction books, because honestly, I've never really gotten much out of any of them. Once upon a time I checked out every book on writing the library owned, read them all, and did what everyone should do. I picked the pieces of advice that worked for me and went on from there.
And yet, time after time again, I see people try to force beginners to "do it their way". I see people tout various writing books as if these books were the Bible, and swear by every word. I see people insist that their way is best, even though their way might not work for everyone.
Here's my way, and I'm going to try to explain it as well as I can. Parts of it are fairly ephermal, but I think I can figure it out. :)
I see a scene, most of the time. The scene might not be until the middle of the book, or might not be in that particular book at all. But I see it, and I'm intrigued enough to write it down and/or try to figure out what happened beforehand and what happens afterwards.
Sometimes, I start with a sentence. Other times, I've started from an idea I got from a writing exercise. Still others, songs, or tidbits from various research books I've read. Each and every book I've written has a story behind it, and all the stories are different.
I don't outline. At all. I know some people outline extensively, and if it works for you, that's great and I wish you well. But I tried outlining one book before I started writing it, and that book is still on my unfins list, and will probably stay there until I'm desperate enough to want to finish it. Outlining killed that book, because that's not the way I work.
About halfway through the book, though, I will have a general idea of where I think the story will end up. I might write a one page synopsis so I don't get lost. I don't always do this, but it does help if I'm trying to stay on track. Sometimes, earlier in the book, I'll write a one sentence description of what I think it will be about, and post that in a place I can see it so I keep the general theme in mind as I go along.
Most of the time, I just write. Sometimes, I don't even know what happens in the next chapter until I write the last word in the previous one.
And I don't outline. I don't plot out my story beforehand, and sometimes the ending is just as much of a surprise to me as it will be to my readers.
Some people seem to have a problem with this approach. I've been told on more than one occasion that it just doesn't work to write this way, and that I must have to revise extensively to get things "in tune" at the end. I usually shrug and tell people, "What works for you might not work for me, and vice versa," but sometimes the people who don't work my way just can't accept that. They'll insist, time after time again, that their way is the best and I must be stupid to work the way I do.
What's so hard about realizing that I happen to enjoy writing the way I do, and that if it works for me, that's really the only thing that counts? What's so difficult about admitting there are different ways of doing things? If we all did everything exactly the same way, this world would be awfully boring, don't you think?
Here's my advice to anyone looking for a tried-and-true way to write:
What works for me might not work for you. But that doesn't mean you can't try each and every way until you find a way that works for you.
And there's nothing at all wrong with that. Sheesh.
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