Thursday 30 June 2011

How do I go about this writing thing?

As ROW80 round 3 is just around the corner I am starting to have a little mini panic. I suddenly realised that when I read all the posts on other people's blogs that people are either real planners before they write, knowing and plotting every detail before they start and other people write and plan as they go. I guess there are lots of people who fall somewhere between the two. What I don't know is what kind of writer I am.

I have been mulling over my goals and I think I am going to aim for writing or doing something writing related every day (with some kind of time expectation built in). This will be a challenge for me and will hopefully make me much more productive. What I don't know is if I should just start writing and see how I go or if I should do lots of planning beforehand?

Do people just feel their way and the way they write starts to emerge? Shall I try a mixture of the two and see what sits best with me?

HELP!

2 comments:

  1. I remember sitting down after years of having what I hope are REALLY COOL stories stuck in my head and attempting to write them. And then being like...YIKES...I don't know what on earth I'm doing. Try working into your goals to set aside a teeny bit of time to read some books on writing. You'll find that you know most of the things you need to know to get started but that someone else explains them better lol!

    I am generally a plotter and I think that is because the books I love are always well plotted. But really, I plot generally, then write, then plot again in more detail and re-write - and I think I do that because I'm still learning a great deal about the actual craft as I go.

    My two recent favorite helpers are: Story Engineering by Larry Brooks and Screenwriting Tricks for Authors by Alexandra Sokoloff. I think both are 2.99 on Amazon. I download the kindle app for my computer and have both to reference for reminders when I lost in the deep dark nothingness. Hope this helps!!

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  2. That does help Lauren thank you! I think it is a good plan to read some books on writing (or relevant sections of them).

    Just about to post my ROW 80 goals!

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