Struggling Writers discussion
Race to NaNoWriMo: 2019
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No, we're not alone. How we write is a personal process. No one can tell you how you *have* to do it. Whatever works for you is how you're supposed to write.
Renee wrote: "No, we're not alone. How we write is a personal process. No one can tell you how you *have* to do it. Whatever works for you is how you're supposed to write."
I agree. I've been working on the first draft of a novel and reading so many different opinions of how I should do it. The more I read, the more confused I get. I wonder if the great writers like Mark Twain, John Steinbeck, Hemingway took great pains to structure their stories or if they just had a story to tell and they told it.
Renee wrote: "After. Most of it is already basically edited. I'm one of those, lol. I go back over and over and over. By the time I get to the end there should only be a couple of editing passes to go. If I can keep myself from it. I'll go back because I remember there's one word that I think could be improved, omitted, whatever. /facepalm "
lolz, don't worry. i do the same thing :D i think as frentic obsessed writers, we push ourselves to be awesome and hopefully rise to the top and show we have the knack for this business. since we can't crap out perfection the first time around, we do the best we can to make it seem like that way.
Linda wrote: "I agree. I've been working on the first draft of a novel and reading so many different opinions of how I should do it. The more I read, the more confused I get. I wonder if the great writers like Mark Twain, John Steinbeck, Hemingway took great pains to structure their stories or if they just had a story to tell and they told it."I don't know about Twain, Steinbeck and Hemingway, but when reading Amy Tan's "The Opposite of Fate" and her descriptions of how she writes, and some interviews with Anne Rice I found myself saying, "YES, THAT'S HOW IT IS FOR ME!"
And feeling tremendously relieved after having heard all the "you must write it all first, then edit" bushwa.
No, I MUST write the story the way the STORY wants to be written. The story makes the rules, not me, and especially not someone who has nothing to do with the story.
The story dictates.
Renee wrote: "No, we're not alone. How we write is a personal process. No one can tell you how you *have* to do it. Whatever works for you is how you're supposed to write."
We all have our various processes. Mine wouldn't suit you and yours probably wouldn't suit me. But we make it work and that's what counts. \
I tried reading king's On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft because i heard how awesome it was and it was my first ebook purchase. omg was i ever bored to tears. i didn't care. i had to get cliff's notes just to see beyond page 25 (where I DNF). and all i got were 7 measly points. Seriously??
So how he goes about his writing would not work for me. but that's just me.
I even tried Lester Dent's style of crapping out books. It was too fast paced and seemed like it was a setup for failure. It worked for him (and you know how that worked out) but there's no way in nifelheim i could ever pump out books that fast, like every 28 days or something. I am not RL Stine. I'm lucky if I put out 4 novels a year.
Don't copy other people's formulas! Find what works for you and stick with it!
I just finished the first draft of my second novel and came in somewhere around 63k. I generally will edit as I go, but the last half of the novel I kind of sped through... So, I still have a lot of work to do.
K.P. wrote: "Renee wrote: "No, we're not alone. How we write is a personal process. No one can tell you how you *have* to do it. Whatever works for you is how you're supposed to write."
We all have our vario..."
Saw this quote from Harper Lee today and found it in the interview she gave on the 50th birthday of To Kill a Mockingbird.
"Characters make their own plot. The dimensions of the characters determine the action of the novel."
Here's the whole interview: http://www.thebluegrassspecial.com/ar...
That's a perfect description, Linda. Amy Tan has described something quite similar in "The Opposite of Faith."
If the characters are as real as they should be — when you're a character-driven writer — they will do what they are going to do and if you try to force them to do something it comes across as . . . forced.
Hello all! Sorry I have not been around as much, it sounds like you guys are getting some good help from each other. It's nice to know that you aren't all alone in this, right?
If I ca..."
Boy it was good to read this. So glad I am not the only one who does it. I keep reading things that say to just write and not pay attention to spelling, punctuation, etc until you're done. I tried it and it drove me crazy!