Let's Keep Writing Fun

[Ann, Supreme Overlord]

Because it's a lovely Fall day (my favorite time to write) I thought it would be a nice time to reflect on why we write: BECAUSE WE LOVE IT!

So let's take a moment to remember why we love to write.

1) Where's your favorite place to write?
2) What's your favorite season to write in?
3) What makes writing fun for you? (Be it plot development, setting the scene, or even the feel of the pen drifting across the paper - if you're a hand writer like I am)

Here are my answers:

1) I LOVE to write outside, especially on nice cool days where I can be covered in a blanket with a warm cup of tea/coffee/hot toddy next to me.
2) Fall. I love Fall for everything, especially writing. The smell of burning leaves in the air, all the colors, and the coolness of the air that settles in.
3) I'm a hand writer. I prefer to draft with good ol' fashioned pen and paper. It's almost hypnotizing at times. But also I love getting from A to Z. I always know my beginning and my end when I start a new WIP. It's getting there that is the fun part.

Your Turn!

[Pamela]

Here are mine:

1) Where's your favorite place to write? At home - preferably at the kitchen table.
2) What's your favorite season to write in? Autumn. Not too cold or dark, but lighting a fire makes it cosy.
3) What makes writing fun for you? (Be it plot development, setting the scene, or even the feel of the pen drifting across the paper - if you're a hand writer like I am) Being someone else and in someone else's shoes for a while. The escapism, in other words.

[Martin]

1) Where's your favorite place to write? My comfy chair, cat beside me,

2) What's your favorite season to write in? Every day. Every season.

3) What makes writing fun for you? Drink coffee. Make stuff up. People send me money! BIG fun!

[G.G.]

1) Where my computer is. I cannot write anywhere but on it. Can't do pen and paper because the more I write the less I can read myself back. :P

2) I think since I love fall that my mind works a little better during that time. I might actually put down more words. I too love fall for its colors, its smell, its coolness but I also hate it because it announces Thanks Giving, Christmas, and winter.

3) I love when random ideas inserted in the story fall into place and become important. It makes me wonder if my characters knew it and pushed me to add them. However, my favorite part of writing is editing...yeah I know I am strange. I will often stop writing to edit what I wrote. (No wonder I am so slow!)

[Jane]

1. I will write literally anywhere. So long as my iPad has charge. But not in silence. I have to have the world going on around me. I have degenerative arthritis so my once beautiful handwriting now looks as if a spider farted on the page...
2. I kinda like winter, writing in the warm while the world freezes
3. I think the people in my head are what give me the buzz. No I’m not a basket case. At least I don’t think I am. But the characters in my work do animate the writing

[Stephen]

I too can only write on the computer. My handwriting is so bad, I often cannot read it. I do however write notes as ideas come to me.
My favorite time to write,in the evening with no TV and no distractions.I usually have the IPad ,kindle and smartphone on line to check facts,dates ect ,as most of my books are historic novels, or political stuff.

Often I will add true events or incidents from my personal life into a character scene if it is appropriate. An example is interaction between boy/girl on meeting. Usually these incidents are awkward and downright goofy. In putting them into a story my readers can relate to that.
My wife is a great copy-editor, and after some really bad efforts on my part ,I now leave that entirely to her. I enjoy checking my sales on KDP ,especially those from overseas. Above all, I too write because I enjoy it.

[Christina]

1. On the sofa with terrible posture and the laptop balanced precariously on my knees. I can't sit at a desk. It feels too formal.

2. I prefer to write when the temperatures are less than 100°f. I've coined the term summer brain to explain how my creative process melts in high heat.

3. What keeps writing fun is just doing it and not worrying about all the writer business. I recently noted that I don't relate to most writing quotes and platitudes because this is just something I do. If I tried to think about it or fit into some sort of mold, it wouldn't be fun anymore.

[Richard]

1) I tend to do the bulk of my writing in my recliner, with my laptop, a mug of coffee nearby, and it has to be between 4:00 am and 10:00 am on a Saturday morning. It's also helpful if I have a Western on the TV.
2) Honestly, I love writing during all the seasons, but I do agree that there is something special about writing with a fire in the woodburning stove during the winter.
3) I enjoy crafting a story and developing characters. I have a general idea where aplot is heading, but I love surprising myself with ideas that just happen. I also like hearing from readers when they enjoy my work.

[Kathleen]

1. I craft my stories on my laptop at the dining room table where I have a great view of nature from the open door and a huge picture window. I began writing with pad and paper--and the words/ideas flowed--but hated the transcribing.
2. Every season works for me, but I'm more focused in winter by the cozy fireplace.
3. Characterization is fun for me, too. My head is in the scene and I can hear the dialog. I also like checking my sales, but that's a two-edge sword. If they're stagnant, I have to put on my marketing hat. I'm not so confident in that realm.

[Dan]

1) My bed. It's way more comfortable than my desk chair. Honestly, though, I'm ready to write pretty much anywhere at any time. I always have a notebook in my pocket, even when I have a computer handy.
2) Fall-Winter, definitely. I mean, I like writing year round, but I feel like I do my best work in those months. That's when I usually do my heaviest planning/plotting, so I can work off that the rest of the year.
3) Really, it's just the act of telling a story. I love writing stories. It's always appealing to me. I love creating and exploring characters, and I love getting people attached to those characters.

[Grant]

1) My bed, or in my comfy chair, or anywhere i take my IPad
2) Definitely when its cooler, on a summer day when its raining outside works just as well as middle of winter
3) Developing the characters and the journey they take

[Dwayne, Head of Lettuce]

The Overlord wrote: "1) Where's your favorite place to write?"

It varies by my mood, but generally it's a coffee shop on the other side of town called Java Creek Cafe. They have two rooms. The front room is generally filled with people who are chatting with friends. The back room is favored by students and business people. And me. There's a fireplace and bookshelves full of classic novels. I like being in the back corners the best, furthest from the noise.

There are days, too, when I enjoy writing at home or at the public library.

The Overlord wrote: "2) What's your favorite season to write in?"

Summer. I'm generally in my best moods in the summer and have the most energy and my creative juices are flowing best. Writing is good in the winter as it helps to keep the depression down, but it's a struggle to get in the mood sometimes.

The Overlord wrote: "3) What makes writing fun for you?"

Developing dialogue is my favorite part. A close second is kind of like G.G.'s. My stories and novels (especially the novels) often begin as a lot of disjointed, almost unconnected scenes and I love sewing them together, making them into a solid story.

[J.N.]

For me it is:
1) at the PC,
2) no particular season. Any will do. Parsley helps.
3) the plotting.

[Ian]

1) Where's your favorite place to write?
On my deck, in the shade of the parasol, glass of wine nearby.

2) What's your favorite season to write in?
Summer (see #1)

3) What makes writing fun for you?
Bringing alien worlds to life, and being constantly surprised by how far from the original plan my stories take themselves.

[E.A.]

Ann wrote: "Because it's a lovely Fall day (my favorite time to write) I thought it would be a nice time to reflect on why we write: BECAUSE WE LOVE IT!"

1) Where's your favorite place to write? I write on my laptop sitting in my office which overlooks the 14th tee of the golf course I live beside. When I get stuck, I go for a walk which allows my mind to roam freely.

2) What's your favorite season to write in? I write in the fall and winter. In the summer, it's too easy to look out the window and decide to go golfing or play tennis. I also like to write early in the morning before anyone else is up. My mind is sharper in the morning.

3) What makes writing fun for you? I love the creative side which I seem to have suppressed for my whole career. (I was in the computer software field).

[Chris]

1) Where's your favorite place to write? Well, I only ever write in one place (at my coffee table) because my imagination does not extend to real-world environments.

2) What's your favorite season to write in? Not too worried, but I prefer it to be raining, which kind of cancels out winter I suppose.

3) What makes writing fun for you? Attacking tropes and indulging myself in shameless and/or subversive behavior.

[Valkyrie]

1) Where's your favorite place to write?

I'm not incredibly particular. Honestly sometimes I just jot things in the notepad on my phone so that I can remember them later. If I had to choose a place and that was the only place I could write forever, I'd say sitting in my bed with my laptop handy.

2) What's your favorite season to write in?

Probably autumn, though I can't be sure because autumn really is just my favorite time of year in general.

3) What makes writing fun for you?

Finding out how the stories in my head play out in the end. I'm often surprised.

[J C]

Ann wrote: "So let's take a moment to remember why we love to write.

1) Where's your favorite place to write?
2) What's your favorite season to write in?
3) What makes writing fun for you? (Be it plot development, setting the scene, or even the feel of the pen drifting across the paper - if you're a hand writer like I am)"

1) Anywhere I and my tablet can fit, but most often in my study, with the music pounding.

2) Probably autumn or winter. Seeing long sunny days outside when I'm typing makes me feel vaguely guilty :)

3) Finding out what happens is my top favourite part of writing - seeing how my characters act and interact, getting to watch the fight scenes in my head, and, quite literally dreaming about spaceships, gunfights with robots - it's awesome.

[[deleted user]]

Hello there! This kind of questions makes me happy, so I'm glad I get to answer.

1) Where's your favorite place to write?

I usually write in my room, but I enjoyit the most when no one is home and I get to write standing in the living room. Writing while sitting down make me feel somewhat dull.

2) What's your favorite season to write in?

Winter. Sad for me, the cold days have passed and now all I get is summer.

3) What makes writing fun for you?

Finding my own style. I think I don't have it yet, but I like going into the finding, working on it.
Also, I feel like my head is a radio, there is a lot of noise, and when I write, everything is quiet and calm. It's actually a good therapy.
Plus, I love writing by computer. You go so fast!

[B.A.]

1. Where's my favorite place to write?
Anywhere I can set up my laptop or sit and use a paper and pencil. I've written while at a picnic table in a campground, in a tent, while sitting on a fallen tree, in a grocery store where there is a Starbucks, at the train depot while waiting on my ride, in a restaurant on a grocery receipt. It isn't the place, it's when I have more than an hour to work.

2. What is my favorite season to write in?
Winter. There is so much to do in the Spring and Summer, and Fall I had being inside as I love the colors and crisp air. Winter is the time to snuggle up and dream.

3. What makes writing fun?
I love coming up with new ideas and developing these odd characters. When I can make myself laugh or cry, I know I'm on the right track. I also like to edit when I've put the manuscript back and it is like reading someone else's book. It's so much easier to see mistakes in plot, action, characters, etc.

[Roxanne]

1. Favorite place to write--my desk in my office. It's the only place I can write.

2. Favorite season--all of them. The world disappears when I'm writing anyway, so it doesn't matter what's outside.

3. What makes writing fun--seeing what trouble my characters get themselves into, and thinking on how I'm going to get them out of it (or not).

[Angela]

J.C. wrote: "Ann wrote: "So let's take a moment to remember why we love to write.

1) Where's your favorite place to write?
2) What's your favorite season to write in?
3) What makes writing fun for you? (Be it ..."
1. I love to write on my patio overlooking the lake so when I get stuck I can watch the ducks who seem to know what they are about.
2. Since I live in Florida I don't have a season, but cool weather helps me focus better.
3. When my characters cooperate, and the story flows easily.

[C.B., Beach Body Moderator]

1) Where's your favorite place to write?
I tend to write on my gigantic coffee table, sprawled out all over the place, surrounded by other projects I have on the go, like art, buttons, and dinner.

2) What's your favorite season to write in?
I don't really have one. The easiest season to write in is Winter, because I can hide from the snow while inside!

3) What makes writing fun for you?
Making myself giggle. Because if I giggle, I know it will make other people giggle. This also goes for something else, but I will not mention it here, because I am a classy CB.

[Clyde]

1. My favorite place to write is my computer room with the curtains pulled.
2. If I have a favorite season, it's winter. I'm shut into my computer room feeling warm while it snows outside.
3. Writing satire and humor makes me feel good, also when my characters are moving on to be their best.

[J.S.]

1. My favorite place to write is bundled up on a covered balcony when the rain is falling.
2. My favorite season is fall or spring.
3. Writing is fun for me when the story really comes together and brings in all the different emotions.

[Don]

My favorite place to write is in my office at 4:00A.M. That's 2 hours before my work day starts. I think about what I am going to write about as I lie in bed and am ready to write my thoughts down as soon as I get to work.
I love fall because looking out my windows at all the colors and smells brings a positive attitude to my writing.
I love to write about things that happen in my life weather it's about working in the Cemetery, Kayaking, or flying my vintage airplane.

[Melissa]

1. My favorite place to write is my room. It's quiet and my desk is right next to my window so I can look outside from time to time when I need a tiny break.

2. Spring and summer seem to be my best writing season. there's just something about the weather warming up and being able to open my window and get some fresh air that gets the creative juices flowing.

3. Description, using certain words to describe certain things and eliciting certain emotions is what makes writing fun for me. I love how writing is kind of like painting in that we're using words to paint a story in someone's mind, and it's awesome.

[Robert]

Martin wrote: "1) Where's your favorite place to write? My comfy chair, cat beside me,

Same, but mine is a dog. He never used to care, but lately he wedges himself right next to me and under my laptop. I can't imagine he's comfortable, but I guess whatever works for him, right?

In answer to #2, I have to write all year long. Sometime's it's work, sometime's it's fun, but you have to put in the effort regardless of how you're feeling at the time.

#3, I like putting the characters in situations and imagining how they will react to them. If I need them to go somewhere, I try to reverse engineer a way to get them there.

[Phillip]

1. I write at the kitchen table.
2. I write when inspiration hits. It may take a while, but when it does I’m usually good for 9,000 words a day.
3. I like writing stories that I would like to read. I get to dream of earning thousands of fans or seeing it adapted for film. I know in my heart it will happen one day. I once said that success shouldn’t happen until after forty. I think God may be taking me up on this. Three more years to go.

[Amanda]

1) I typically write on the couch, but since I put up my christmas tree I love to write in a chair near the tree. It always make me smile when I look up and see the pretty lights.

2) I’m not sure I have a favorite season to write. I just write all of the time.

3) I just love to create a beautiful story. I love when an idea pops into my head and I start writing and I’m not even sure where the story is going and then bam! I’m at the end and I have a story I’m proud of. I just love getting my ideas out and sharing them and hoping others love it too.