Softness
asked
Lois McMaster Bujold:
NaNoWriMo is coming up soon! And it sparked my curiosity. Have you ever taken part in NaNo or a similar writing marathon in order to help you crunch through a project? What sorts of techniques have you used to push through with your writing? ^^ -Kalli
Lois McMaster Bujold
Nope, such a thing is not for me. In the old days, impending running-out-of-money was enough to keep me focused, if sometimes frantic. Nowadays the pressures are internal, mainly a work demanding its own completion.
I get stuck regularly, and shoving through is not usually a good idea. It just results in me trying to write Wrong Things, which my backbrain perfectly well knows are wrong or the vision-spigot would not have shut down so firmly.
Although "keeping at it" is required, the process is oblique. Sometimes it means backing off for a bit till the well refills, especially if I have just written out the last spate and have to stop and take stock. Other times it means I need to do some more research of some sort, import the key idea or notion that unlocks the present puzzle. Talking out the plot snag with certain friends also sometimes helps, if not directly, stirring things up, brainstorming, what Pat Wrede calls "plot noodling".
I am a sort of mini-burst writer, with the bursts being, generally, one scene long. The vision of the scene comes up in my head -- one scene being all it can hold at a time -- and I marshal it up for the march by making a quick draft in penciled notes to nail the spine and structure and good bits, choreograph the dialogue, and so on. If I am interrupted after this point, I won't lose it. I sometimes wait a few hours or a day to let anything else slot in or shift. Take the notes to the computer and get it down, lather, rinse, repeat. I generally need to know what just came before the scene under construction (which is easy because I've already written it) and what comes after, so it will be aimed in the right direction and come out in the right place for the transition to the Next Bit.
Ta, L.
I get stuck regularly, and shoving through is not usually a good idea. It just results in me trying to write Wrong Things, which my backbrain perfectly well knows are wrong or the vision-spigot would not have shut down so firmly.
Although "keeping at it" is required, the process is oblique. Sometimes it means backing off for a bit till the well refills, especially if I have just written out the last spate and have to stop and take stock. Other times it means I need to do some more research of some sort, import the key idea or notion that unlocks the present puzzle. Talking out the plot snag with certain friends also sometimes helps, if not directly, stirring things up, brainstorming, what Pat Wrede calls "plot noodling".
I am a sort of mini-burst writer, with the bursts being, generally, one scene long. The vision of the scene comes up in my head -- one scene being all it can hold at a time -- and I marshal it up for the march by making a quick draft in penciled notes to nail the spine and structure and good bits, choreograph the dialogue, and so on. If I am interrupted after this point, I won't lose it. I sometimes wait a few hours or a day to let anything else slot in or shift. Take the notes to the computer and get it down, lather, rinse, repeat. I generally need to know what just came before the scene under construction (which is easy because I've already written it) and what comes after, so it will be aimed in the right direction and come out in the right place for the transition to the Next Bit.
Ta, L.
More Answered Questions
Antipoet
asked
Lois McMaster Bujold:
I just did my annual rerad of Komarr/ACC and wanted to thank you for writing. I've gotten a bunch of friends into your work and there's almost always a Vorkosigan or Pen/Des readthrough happening in my Discord server's liveblog channel. You've enriched all our lives immeasurably; thank you again. Here is a question mark to satisfy Goodreads?
Ben Newton
asked
Lois McMaster Bujold:
Your descriptions of Miles' bones breaking are very visceral. Have you suffered many broken bones?
About Goodreads Q&A
Ask and answer questions about books!
You can pose questions to the Goodreads community with Reader Q&A, or ask your favorite author a question with Ask the Author.
See Featured Authors Answering Questions
Learn more
Oct 17, 2017 09:54AM