Puuuush!!
I think writing a book is like giving birth; it’s painful and it’s messy. (Note: While I’ve never actually given birth myself, I stand by that statement.)
But really, this post is supposed to be how I push through books. I don’t stop for piddly little details like research. That’s why Word has different colors to use.
If I start thinking maybe this scene shouldn’t go where I have it, or maybe it should be cut at all, I push myself through it. I can always take it out later if I’m right.
And I don’t pause to think about little details like craft. I assume that my subconscious knows what it’s doing pretty much, and I let it run like the wind (or like a two year old with too much sugar to continue my child analogy).
If I think this scene is boring, it probably is, but that doesn’t mean I go back and see what was wrong before the scene started - I throw a cougar into the story (have you all seen the preview for the movie Taladaga Nights where the guy is trying to get Will Farrell to drive with a cougar in the car? I think that scene looks worth the price of admission alone).
Then, once I push through the rough draft, the rest is like putting together a giant puzzle. That’s when I research things, move things around a bit if necessary, make sure all the plot threads are tied in a nice little bow at the end.
I always think that part is going to be painful, but you wanna know the truth? It all goes back to my subconscious being pretty smart. I tossed things in there that I didn’t even know why ’til the end. I’ve had entire plot threads that I didn’t even realize when I was writing!
Don’t get me wrong, I think craft is great, and you have to learn craft. But rather than thinking, “I have to do XYZ,” I tend to give my subconscious free reign. I trust that I’m not just using craft, I learned craft.
Works for me.
So there, a writing related post from Emma just because. Now, tell me about your process (if that’s what you can call the above - perhaps I have a lack of process, lol). What are things (especially things that others may think are weird) that work for you?
July 11th, 2006 at 12:50 pm
Hi Emma! I’m not published yet so I still have the luxury of time. :-) And my ‘process’ is still turning, becoming more fine tuned with each day I write. :-) And I like that.
Cole
July 11th, 2006 at 12:56 pm
Well, I have learned to just push through it too. And since I’ve given birth 3 times, I can tell you that writing a book is like giving birth. It can be ugly, messy and painful but so worth it in the end. ;)
I can’t stop and go back and re-edit countless times. If I do that, I’ll never finish. And I feel if I have to do that too much, then maybe this story isn’t worth it…but that’s just me. I have one in particular I’m referring to that I want to just let go - for now. It has potential, but it makes me nuts.
Now with actual deadlines, I just make myself write and I’ll worry about the small stuff later.
July 11th, 2006 at 5:50 pm
LOL. I’ll re-edit a scene until I’m happy with it! But I think it’s that gut feeling - the “I know this scene sucks” feeling that I can’t live with. I think it’s because I have a vision, but sometimes something I’ve written takes me further away from the vision, instead of closer to it. And that makes me crazy.
But, like Cole, I’m not worried about deadlines yet so I have the luxury of editing!
July 11th, 2006 at 6:29 pm
I write like a lemming. Just hurl myself at the end without really noticing what gets in the way. Then I read the trainwreck than is my first draft, cry, and beat it into submission.
And I never bother with craft. The few times I’ve tried to plot out books or use character sheets or carefully worked-out conflicts, the story has sucked, mightily, and been abandoned.
I figure my books are pretty smart. They tell me how they’re going to end. I sure as hell hope my current one will, anyway, because it’s due this week and I’ve no freaking clue…
July 11th, 2006 at 9:30 pm
I’m a stubborn sort. I don’t have actual deadlines, but I hate having something unfinished, so I push. But like Cat, sometimes I end up crying at the mess in the end. But hey, it’s the end. Well, and the beginning of revisions… But that’s revisions for you.
July 12th, 2006 at 12:57 pm
I’m still trying to find what works.