{"id":1655,"date":"2022-04-06T08:46:34","date_gmt":"2022-04-06T12:46:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/gailcarsonlevine.com\/blog\/?p=1655"},"modified":"2022-04-06T08:46:34","modified_gmt":"2022-04-06T12:46:34","slug":"process","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gailcarsonlevine.com\/blog\/2022\/04\/06\/process\/","title":{"rendered":"Process"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

On April 6, 2021, StoryBlossom wrote, The process for writing second and third drafts is so confusing. Most of what I\u2019ve read says something like: wait some time, read it, and then wing it.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Do you have any suggestions for planning techniques and how to be consistent with planning so you get it done in a timely manner so you can get to the actual writing? What can I do during the first draft that will make writing future drafts easier without stifling my creativity by overplanning? In other words, can you expand upon, \u201cToo much [writing] is better than too little, because it\u2019s easier to cut than add when we revise?\u201d I\u2019m thinking this might mean writing every single scene idea whether it fits or not, but that would probably mean adding more during the revision process as I try to fit everything together cohesively.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

That\u2019s the problem I had when I started editing one of my WIPs. I didn\u2019t plan my first draft at all. That didn\u2019t even occur to me. I planned my second draft using the snowflake method, but the story ended a complete mish-mash mess. The plot was in my head and not executed properly. I tried again with my third draft, going up to 60ish pages, but then I got sick of the story because I\u2019ve been working on it for six years. There was still so much to more to write to complete the plot.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I took a break from writing because I didn\u2019t know what I wanted to write. I also think I was focusing too much on keeping up with my writing goal (which was ridiculously high) because I wanted to finish within three months. How long can it realistically take for a beginner to write a book? Finally, I ran my ideas through a randomizer and tried writing that one.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I tried writing non-chronologically, where I just randomly wrote scenes in no particular order, but that felt even messier and I gave up on that. I\u2019ve moved on to yet another story, which I already had a half first draft written. I read the draft, which was based on the same universe from the first WIP I mentioned and had to scrap most of my ideas. I invented a whole new universe and started writing a new draft. But my perfectionism and need for speed is getting in the way. I don\u2019t know why I have such trouble planning\u2013 I am a planner in most other respects. I don\u2019t know why I want to write quickly\u2013 I hate rushing in all other respects.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Several of you responded:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Katie W.: What occurs to me is that you might want to write quickly because that seems like the sort of thing a \u201creal writer\u201d would do. Three months is almost ridiculously fast to write a book. If you really work at it, you can get a first draft in, but you won\u2019t have time for editing. (And yes, I know NaNoWriMo people are probably laughing at this.) I did it once, 60,000 words in a semester, but I didn\u2019t finish the actual story and I never wanted to look at the thing again in my entire life.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I think really the issue here is that you haven\u2019t figured out your special kind of planning, and as a die-hard, there\u2019s-no-point-in-even-trying-to-plan-this-because-it\u2019ll-go-off-the-rails-anyway pantster, I can\u2019t help you with that. Reading your comment, my thought was \u201cOh, yeah. Just start over with whatever idea you have now and see where it takes you. It\u2019s supposed to be messy, so you can clean it up.\u201d My advice would be to read every writing book you can get your hands on and see if something clicks.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Christie V Powell: I agree with Katie W., in that it sounds like you need to figure out your own process and what works best for you. I can tell you mine and give you resources. It works for me, and it\u2019s fast\u2013I can publish at least a book a year, start to finish, with my method. But you\u2019ll want to adapt and eventually make your own.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I started to write down my whole process here, but I don\u2019t want to take up a ton of space, and I\u2019m probably repeating myself from other comments I\u2019ve made. I copied it all down to my own blog post instead, so you can check that out if you\u2019d like: <\/em>https:\/\/atypicallyordinary.blogspot.com\/2021\/04\/my-writing-process.html<\/em><\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Melissa Mead: FWIW, it took me 14 years to finish my first book. So you don\u2019t need to push yourself TOO hard.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

FantasyFan101: My advice for you is just write. Zip. Nada. No more. Just kidding. Often, I find that when I write, I like to just let the ideas flow until my mind is like, whoa, slow down, change this, it\u2019s way better that way. For instance, my current WIP has an MC who still isn\u2019t quite as polished as I\u2019d like, but looking back, her personality and even description fits better into the story. My friend and I also were able to add more details to the world and backstory as the story built up. Now we have not just words on paper, but the seeds of a world. My point is, most of the time your world and story aren\u2019t going to be perfect right away. You\u2019ll get ideas and inspiration the farther along you get. It can help to get to know your world better later in the story. You don\u2019t want to infodump right at the beginning of the story. Things have to start worse before they get better. You have plenty of time. Just relax. Jot down a few ideas. Talk about it with a friend or family member. Have them read it. They might have some eye-opening insight that changes your whole perspective. Readers can have that kind of influence. I wish you luck, from one writer to another.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

These are great and helpful. I particularly love Katie W.\u2019s suggestion about reading lots of books on writing. I did that. Books like Bird by Bird<\/em> by Anne LaMott, Becoming a Writer<\/em> by Dorothea Brande, Spider, Spin Me a Web<\/em> by Lawrence Block, Writing Down the Bones<\/em> by Natalie Goldberg, Writing on Both Sides of the Brain<\/em> by Henriette Anne Klauser, all of which I gobbled up when I was starting out, still stand proud on my shelves. (High school and up.) Every one of these authors is humble about writing and also recognizes that telling a story isn\u2019t as straightforward as following a recipe\u2014because there is no recipe (I wish there was!). Our subconscious always gets involved, creates detours, and wants us to go in unexpected directions. This, I think, is what StoryBlossom is contending with. Has anyone mentioned on this blog that writing is hard?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What helps me is the knowledge that I\u2019ve finished stories a bunch of times, and because of that, I\u2019m relatively, almost entirely confident, that I\u2019ll do it again. I think Christie V Powell has that confidence too and for the same reason. If you follow the link to her blog and read about her method, you\u2019ll see that she welcomes her subconscious in during the daydreaming phase. After that, her tried-and-true method guides her.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But her way won\u2019t work for all of us and probably won\u2019t work entirely or exactly for any of us. It\u2019s like life; even identical twins have paths that diverge, a lot or a little. I looked at the snowflake method, which looks good, but I could follow it only after<\/em> I finished a book. While I\u2019m writing, I don\u2019t know my characters well enough or see the course they\u2019re going to follow. I find those out during the writing, by showing the details. How will Janey respond to a flat tire? How will Meredith answer a king who asks what she has in her purse? What does she have? Still, I do have an idea of the problem of the book and the ending\u2014or I can\u2019t write it. But some people can.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Knowing the end does keep my first draft from wandering, so that can be a strategy for some writers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Perfectionism is useful only in the final revision, when plot, setting, and characters are settled. Then we go in and mop up, looking for awkward phrasing, word repetition, typos\u2014like that. Still, we won\u2019t achieve perfection, because, in my opinion, perfection is unattainable. A novel is a long document that has at least one thing wrong with it. As good as we can make it is good enough. Besides, people have different ideas about what we\u2019ve written. A reader may find fault with something that we know is right. Once, a reader wrote to me in considerable distress over the ending of The Two Princesses of Bamarre<\/em>. She said I had to create a new version that fixed it or write a sequel that fixed it. But the ending was what it should be as far as I was concerned. She said she was losing sleep over it, which was unfortunate for her. It was nice for me, though, that she felt so strongly about my book!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

StoryBlossom quotes me about length, but I couldn\u2019t find the spot on the blog, and I wanted to because I\u2019d like to know the context. I\u2019m pretty sure I meant that adding is hard if we get to the end of a story and feel that it isn\u2019t long enough. I doubt I meant that we should pile on scenes. Probably, I was thinking about including enough detail to put the reader inside the action and in the heart and mind of my MC.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Decades ago, I invited some relatives for dinner. No one told me I had to; I wanted to. But then I entirely lost my cool in worry about what might go wrong, from burning the food to no one having anything to say to the toilet stopping up. A wise friend advised me to tape signs in cheerful felt markers in lots of places in our then apartment: For fun!<\/em> The reminders worked. I sang while I cooked and straightened. I don\u2019t think anything burned or any toilets backed up. For sure, people found things to talk about. I wasn\u2019t drummed out of the family. All of that would have been true if I\u2019d continued to fret, but how nice not to! For anyone who\u2019s worried about their writing, I recommend placing exactly these signs anywhere you\u2019re likely to look. Remember how I end each blog post.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I googled randomizer<\/em>, and I wouldn\u2019t use it to help me with my plot. That way lies chaos, in my opinion. But I would use it for a poem. In fact, I can\u2019t wait to try it. Thank you, StoryBlossom!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here are three prompts:<\/p>\n\n\n\n