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What do you think is the hardest part about writing?
Keeping continuity is hard work, but oh so very important if you don't want to look un-professional.
Oh my gosh, it's so funny you mention that. I just finished writing a mg novel and I am now trying to make sure it the time element works. Plus, I have to check and make sure everything I wrote about each character is consistent. Do you have any suggestions on how best to deal with this?
The time element you can probably research online. If you mentioned a particular product/song/event, or by checking your dictionary- if you have used new words which may not have been around say 10 years ago and your story is set in 2003 you could have a problem.For your characters, I would suggest you print off your story and read it carefully. Do you make notes as to character traits, colour of hair, age that sort or stuff-favourite restaurants, foods etc. I do this for my main characters, but for the bit players that maybe only have a part in one chapter I tend not to.
I am blessed with an amazing memory - almost total recall, I memorise each characters entrance and can normally go directly back to verify my facts to that point in the story.
Lol I am English, I write in English but I think in French and translate back to English, and sometimes the English word for a certain object is difficult to bring to mind.
My French friends are trying to push me into writing in French but so far I am resisting.
That is really neat that you have such an incredible memory. But what I actually meant about time was how much time has passed in the novel. Does that make sense? It's funny that you mention making notes because that is exactly what I am working on now!
Laura wrote: "That is really neat that you have such an incredible memory. But what I actually meant about time was how much time has passed in the novel. Does that make sense? It's funny that you mention making..."Okay, yes that is a difficult one, sorry my inner blonde was working overtime there.
In the House of death I have a time lapse of 7 years from the prologue to the 1st chapter. I try to keep track of the days/weeks/months that pass by using a calendar, and when I start the story as with HOD in April I mark off the start and then take it from there. It helps keep track of the time that has elapsed between each chapter!
As with Cally's Secret, Cally was 5 months pregnant when she did the test, so I worked back from there on an approximate conception date, marking it on the calendar so I didn't get confused!
Yes, I'm trying the calendar method, but I wish I had kept track better while I was writing instead of after I finished. Do you keep track while writing or wait till the end to figure it out?
I think that mapping it out is the hardest part, primarily because I'm just itching to start writing, so I really don't want to sit down and make a map and outline and everything. Its very painful for me haha, but I have to do it.
Like you, Jessica, I try to map things out, but I always end up changing them once I start writing. I think I enjoy writing more when I don't know what is going to happen. What do you do Sarah?
I know that I'll forget crucial information unless I plan it out ahead of time, which is why I map.
Laura wrote: "Yes, I'm trying the calendar method, but I wish I had kept track better while I was writing instead of after I finished. Do you keep track while writing or wait till the end to figure it out?"As I write, it's easier than trying to work it back. You are more likely to make a mistake working backwards than as it happens.
With something as precise as a baby's birth ie 9 months or 40 weeks you have to stay on top of things or your story will not be believable.
Laura wrote: "Like you, Jessica, I try to map things out, but I always end up changing them once I start writing. I think I enjoy writing more when I don't know what is going to happen. What do you do Sarah?"I map out my synopsis usually after the first five chapters, because until that time I have only a vague idea of where my story will lead but I very rarely follow it all the way to the end. I adapt my synopsis to my story as I go, sometimes I have to re-write the whole synopsis, other times, just bits of it.
I let my story have it's head, it's a bit like riding a horse, sometimes you have to pull hard on the reigns and stop, do a double take and sometimes re-write a whole chapter. That's why after every chapter I read back at least 3 chapters before starting the next.
Jessica wrote: "I think that mapping it out is the hardest part, primarily because I'm just itching to start writing, so I really don't want to sit down and make a map and outline and everything. Its very painful ..."I would agree there and actually find that I do better laying two-three major events out and then just writting. As I write I keep track of what happens and I fill in the rest of my timeline from there. Of course, it changes may times but I find planning as I go works best for me.
I think I am going to start keeping a timeline while writing so that I can better keep track of the time changes. Right now, I'm trying to fill it in after the novel has already been written and it's challenging.
Joining the conversation a little late, but I also often reach a point in a manuscript where I just start to wonder why in the world I ever thought this would be a good book or screen play. I realized that often this happened because of my descriptions/ the emotions or surroundings I used. Instead of doing that with the first draft; I have started "mapping it out" in a way. Instead of actually writing, I just write down very basic actions and mostly just conversation that will happen throughout, almost like a basic script. This way I have a lot of pull in any way I want to take the story and I am not put off by my early writing.
Laura wrote: "I think I am going to start keeping a timeline while writing so that I can better keep track of the time changes. Right now, I'm trying to fill it in after the novel has already been written and it..."I did that once and ended up trashing the piece because it got so messed up (well it's not gone, just sitting in my dropbox folder that I stick my tossed pieces into).
S.K.N. wrote: "Joining the conversation a little late, but I also often reach a point in a manuscript where I just start to wonder why in the world I ever thought this would be a good book or screen play. I reali..."It's never too late! And that's sorta what I do from time to time on my timeline. Usually when I have this great idea but haven't reached that secene yet I will write the basic actions so I don't loose the idea.
I keep a note book with me so if I have an idea for a scene, a book, a screen play, short story, or character I can write it down. I usually remember things fairly well but if I get too many ideas or get distracted I will end up forgetting
Ha! That's funny S.K.N, I always experience the exact same thing! I like the idea of writing a basic script, especially since i have a screenwriting background. That's a very helpful tip.
I think it's mostly my romance aspect that puts me off and makes me quit. I have yet to even come close to mastering that and when I try to jump right in and write it I always find that it sounds really stupid and soap operaish. I find it so much easier to just write what it is that these characters did and then add in the emotional aspect later, especially since I usually write each book from one of the character's POV.
I understand completely. I always find it is best to skip certain scenes that seem challenging and then come back to them later. What is it that helps you to finally write the romance scenes?
a lot of hard work. I don't usually read or watch romance but when I do have to eventually come back and write them I will read and watch a lot of romance around that time to give me ideas. The best romantic relationship I've come up with is in the book I have published. It's not exactly romance; more like a teenage guardian angel with an infatuation for his ward. With that one I more focused on how it feels to like someone and know they don't return your feelings.
Do you work on one book at a time or multiple books? What about everyone else reading this? What's your preference? I would like to try working on more than one, but I've never done it yet.
I tried it once and I ended up mixing up the two books so badly that they ended up being combinations of pretty much the same book. I stick to one at a time now. It's part of the reason I write down my ideas. That way I can work on them when I finish the one I'm writing.
Laura wrote: "Do you work on one book at a time or multiple books? What about everyone else reading this? What's your preference? I would like to try working on more than one, but I've never done it yet."I got up to 10,000 words writing 2 books simultaneously, it wasn't that I mixed them up, I just couldn't make my mind which story I wanted to work on. In the end I shelved the first story, the sequel to Cally's Secret actually and continued with the second story The Menorah Murders, which started it's life as Light The Second Candle. I decided it sounded too Mills and Boon, and considering it was a murder/thriller, not good.
For me, it's continuity of writing quality. Sometimes when I look at a completed novel and give it a read-through, I realize that there are some spots where the writing is a bit dull and it seemed like I tried to rush through the scene. I usually remedy that by rewriting those scenes, but still, I'd love to read through my story once without finding a spot or two that made me cringe. But, I suppose that's what rewriting is for!
The hardest part for me is figuring out a good ending point.
Roxanne wrote: "The hardest part for me is figuring out a good ending point."Roxanne wrote: "The hardest part for me is figuring out a good ending point."
That's interesting I wrote a book and when I'd finished the main character was just begging for another book, the same thing happened when I wrote the second book after the third book I still couldn't see her die so I retired her on a world cruise. Now she's gone gracefully and finally.
Roxanne wrote: "The hardest part for me is figuring out a good ending point."Excellent point. I always have a hard time with my endings because I want them to be realistic (such as, the conflict can't be solved in a mere five minute span), interesting, and definitely conclusive. But I also want to leave the reader with a couple of questions, too.
Jessica wrote: "Roxanne wrote: "The hardest part for me is figuring out a good ending point."Excellent point. I always have a hard time with my endings because I want them to be realistic (such as, the conflict ..."
My pet hate is getting to the last four pages of a book, knowing the end is nigh, and knowing the ending is impossible to achieve, and knowing that, once again, I will be disappointed by a hurried ending! The book usually ends up being thrown in the corner in disgust - the piles getting quite high now, maybe I should bring the wheelbarrow in and clear it out?
I hate rushed endings. They irk me into oblivion.
Jessica wrote: "I hate rushed endings. They irk me into oblivion."We are not alone,Jessica...so why do some authors still persist in hurrying their endings. I have read books where on arriving at the end I have gone back and read the last 20 pages again thinking I had missed something important because the ending didn't make sense!
...those moments when you have writers block and you can't come up with anything, but then you get a big burst of inspiration, and you finish that [story/novel/whatever] and then you have writer's block again...
Time. It's hard when you're working and raising kids. I tend to make notes on the sly while I'm at work between customers though. Getting into a rut when you've been trying to make some projects work and then becoming blocked, and the whole process feeling hopeless.
Laura wrote: "I thought this question might help us figure out how to help each other and offer resources or suggestions. For me, the hardest part about writing is having faith that the story will work out. I'..."
the playwright Sam Shepard always gives any play 15 pages before deciding whether to carry on writing it.
I don't plan my books, but I do let them seethe & grind away in my mind for 6 months without starting to write. After 6 months I launch in and I know that even if I hit an obstacle in it, I trust in my material that it can be overcome later so I don't let it grind me down & stop writing. If you prepare deeply enough, whether you're a planner or like me not, the idea will be strong enough to overcome all plot hitches on the way. That you just have to trust in.
What do you mean by finding inspiration?Lokrow wrote: "I often want to write but don't find the inspiration to. Once I found the inspiration it often goes quite flowingly, then the problem is if i intend how to write a long text I often have to stop (s..."
Ah. I follow Joe Lansdale on Facebook. He says that it's a bad idea to wait for inspiration. Instead it's better to turn up at your writing place every day and work at it, rather than waiting for the muse to strike.Lokrow wrote: "I mean: get the ideas I want to write about."
John wrote: "Ah. I follow Joe Lansdale on Facebook. He says that it's a bad idea to wait for inspiration. Instead it's better to turn up at your writing place every day and work at it, rather than waiting for t..."I no longer beat myself up if I go through a spell of not writing. it's such a waste of negative energy. And I find with that monkey off my back, I end up writing most days anyway
Writers block, trying to force myself to write when I am really not in the mood. It is important to do the steps needed so you will be in the mood to write when you want to write.
The 2nd draft is the hardest part. I spend a month and a half planning the novel, making sure the timeline fits, filled plot holes, ensuring that the story seems to flow in the right general direction, and that my need to randomly change up scenes due to an EVEN BETTER IDEA!!! that would basically cause me to re-write the whole story is dealt with.1st draft is about pounding out ideas all willy-nilly and i can do that blindfolded and one hand tied behind my back (though I don't recommend it).
the 2nd draft is about prose and articulating an idea and requires thought and time. Sometimes it flows, for the most part it feels forced. But reading it over at least is enjoyable, so forced or not, at least progress is had.
I'd say, understanding what you have written. Not strictly in terms of the sense, but in the opportunities and nuance that only become apparent through the writing process.
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(last edited Mar 10, 2014 05:44PM)
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I just go with the flow.I don't think of there being any hard part for me.For my book the words are there in my mind.I know what's going to happen next.So I don't really find anything difficult about it.I take a break now and again and the words are still in my mind when I go back to it.
During NaNoWriMo season, I find the hardest part of writing to be trying to hit your word count every single day. You don't really think about it all that much when you're writing normally, but for NaNo, every single word counts. And it's terrifying.
Hi,For me it's the finishing and editing. When I write I write freely and concentrate on the parts that I love. But finishing requires writing the parts of the book that don't grab me so, and editing is an unmitigated never-ending pain.
Cheers, Greg.
Greg wrote: "Hi,For me it's the finishing and editing. When I write I write freely and concentrate on the parts that I love. But finishing requires writing the parts of the book that don't grab me so, and edi..." I agree. I don't think I have ever fully edited a piece because sometimes it seems like the more I edit the worse it turns out. I feel like I am new to this second stage of writing so it is a learning process.
For me it's the "What now?" stage. I'm one of those who lets the story tell itself, and while I have a general idea of where it's going, there is always the "What now?" phase where I've brought the story to a certain point and need to change direction with a new event, character or plot twist. That's when I sit and stare at the screen and ask myself "What now?".
Greg wrote: "Hi,For me it's the finishing and editing. When I write I write freely and concentrate on the parts that I love. But finishing requires writing the parts of the book that don't grab me so, and edi..."
For me this is the best part because it means the book is essentially finished.
I think what's most challenging for me is revising in general. First of all, I always put it off for a really long time––so then I'll go back to the manuscript and I'll feel like the whole thing is just a complete mess. And then I never know where to even start with revisions because there's so much to think about and I get overwhelmed with it. Then I end up giving up and moving on to something else, so I feel like I never truly "finish" anything. And that's not a good habit. :P
For me, the hardest part about writing is having faith that the story will work out. I've written a lot of screenplays and there is always a point where I think to myself, I don't know about this idea. What was I thinking?!