Get Off Facebook And Get Back To Work!
At its roots, writing is just another industry. We are producing a tangible item which, if it has value, it will sell. It if doesn't, then it will whither on bookstore shelves. Those wanting to cobble together a career within the industry need to commit to their projects with the same devotion and sense of purpose that a lawyer would invest into a case or a doctor would for a patient. Every project, whether a writing a novel or scripting a comic, will help define your legacy. Writers who treat their projects with the casual disregard of a hobby will be equally dismissed by the reading public.
A common mantra among many novelists is "write everyday". I don't ascribe to this as inherently necessary. Only a portion of the creative process actually involves pecking away at a keyboard and it is important to know when it is time to let the story simmer and when it is time to write. Writing too soon can kill a project as easily as waiting too long, so what follows is the breakdown of my own creative process I've used to conceive and finish eight novels, dozens of short stories, and countless other small projects. It can be broken down like this:
1. Idea Generation. I never write anything down during this step, rather it is the forging process in my mind as I attempt to sculpt the tentative story arch, characters, tone, and purpose of the story. Purpose is the most critical element of the Idea Generation step, and this is not the same as the theme. It is why you, on an emotional level, want to write the book. What purpose does it serve you and what are you trying to say. If you do not have a truly compelling reason for writing a book, then when the story inevitably bogs down, you will not be committed enough to fight through the frustration to pull the story back out of the muck.
2. Character Development. I never write this down, but I know that some people do, which is okay. I prefer to fully form my characters before I put anything to paper. The characters provide the emotional weight of any story, and if they are not believable and engaging, then your story will fail no matter how great the concept. For instance, Star Wars IV, V, and VI succeeded but I, II, and III were wretched misfires because of the success/failure of George Lucas to provide a quality ensemble cast. A critic, whose name is lost to me, said that a good test of a poorly written character is whether you can easily describe them without mentioning race, religion, clothes or other surface details. Han Solo = roguish, clever, self-possessed, charming, deceptively noble. Queen Amidala = ???
3. Concept Development. Again, I never write this down, but many do. The concept is the first thing created, in my experience, but the concept will continue to shift and bend throughout the creation process as the needs of the story change. The concept cannot be broken, though, because doing so will betray the trust of the reader. Be true to your purpose, be true to your characters, and be true to your concept. Everything else is negotiable.
4. Outlining. Here is where writers should begin actually writing. I do not do rich outlining, but rather put a word or two down for each chapter as a placeholder that will, if needed, jog my memory later on. If you are doing a series of comics or, like my Wonderboy dime novels, a serialized work, outlines are no less critical because they keep your project from derailing as you go from one issue to the next. Some writers will begin writing without an ending in mind, just taking the project one page at a time. I doubt anything substantial has ever come out of this method and, in my opinion, is best reserved for the private journals of moody teenagers.
5. Rough Draft. Repeat steps 1-4 throughout while writing the rough draft to keep yourself on track, but also giving yourself the flexibility to shift organically with the natural pace of the story. Your novel/comic is a living thing and it has needs that may not match up with what you originally wanted from the book. No scene should ever be so important to you that you cannot cut it for the good of the entire book. If you suspect a scene should be cut, then it almost certainly needs to be cut since, as the writer, you are naturally protective of everything you produce.
6. Break. After the rough draft is done. Give yourself a couple weeks or even a month or two while you work on another project. Maybe something easy and fun to take your mind away from the previous project. When you return, you should have fresher eyes.
7. Editing. The most important step in the process for writers wanting to push their project on the general public. I also enjoy this step immensely since it really is not that hard. Finding typos and reworking entire sections of a book is a time-consuming challenge, but not as spiritually exhausting as birthing the rough draft. Editing doesn't leave me spent and I can, quite literally, do it all day without wearing myself down as much as two hours of rough draft writing. If you can't learn to enjoy this process, then perhaps you should look into another career.
8. More Editing. One mantra I do agree with is a writer never finishes a book, they merely give up. Any creative project will never be perfect because it is a living thing. The flaws will always be there, but you have to decide which flaws you are willing to live with because what you fix in one part of the book could weaken several other parts. In fact, it is the flaws that give your book character, just as the flaws of a person are a big part of what makes them a human.
9. Even More Editing. Like I said, every book will help define your career, so be sure the book is as ready as it can be before the first stranger gets their hands on it. My novels are edited countless times by me and other paid/volunteer readers. Give yourself breaks in-between each pass through the book so you are less likely to miss the same mistake. Also, when you have the final draft, do one more pass while READING IT OUT LOUD. I emphasize this because I thought it was a stupid when my mother first suggested it, and like so many other things she told me, she was irritatingly correct. If you can't comfortably say a line out loud, then it won't read well either. You are so familiar with the book that your eyes can skip over clunky sentences, but your mouth can't.
10. All The Other Crap. Blurbs, cover design, layout, press releases, promotion and all that other stuff is just as important to creating the actual project, but I'm not going to go into that stuff here since it has/will be covered in my other blogs. Needless to say, you are not done when you have submitted your final draft to the publisher/printer and a great book with poor follow-through is doomed.
So, to stay busy as a writer does not mean to write every day, but you should be working on your projects with the same determination as an architect steadily tweaking the plans for months before the foundation is even poured. My process is unique to me, so its okay if your way is a little different so as long as you are always producing in some way.
When generating an idea, I will spend weeks doing little more than staring at walls while my mind churns. It is hard to explain to your spouse how you are working hard when there is no written proof, but you are and if they are really invested in your career, they will at least pretend to believe you.
