tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33226151.post5902908019576528235..comments2024-01-12T11:26:35.176-05:00Comments on Working Stiffs: HOW DO YOU WRITE?Working Stiffshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03270595837074553752noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33226151.post-83931621628425146162011-03-14T22:59:16.685-04:002011-03-14T22:59:16.685-04:00Gina,
Great post.
Me, I'm one of those outli...Gina,<br /><br />Great post.<br /><br />Me, I'm one of those outline-writers (maybe the very one you mention in the Saturday group?). I find that knowing what's to happen helps me with pacing: Can't spend too much time on X since Y and Z are soon to follow. Does this detailed plotting hurt the spontaneity once I'm writing? I don't find it does; invariably there are enough small deviations and detours to keep things fresh.<br />-- DavidAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33226151.post-1085948257757207112011-03-14T08:51:47.654-04:002011-03-14T08:51:47.654-04:00Very thoughtful post, Gina.
When I write a short...Very thoughtful post, Gina. <br /><br />When I write a short story, I often start with an opening sentence and have no idea what or who will show up next. It's very much the free write method, and I sometimes bang out the whole story in one sitting. I love it.<br /><br />Longer works, I plan and outline. Like Pat, I can fall victim to tinker-itis. That I don't love.Ramonahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00627775403015684868noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33226151.post-35150264666683746222011-03-14T08:05:56.106-04:002011-03-14T08:05:56.106-04:00Enjoyed this post. I tend to write and then go bac...Enjoyed this post. I tend to write and then go back and polish and polish and then sometimes I get stuck with trying to reach perfection. I can tinker for an infinite amount of time, which is not good for progress!PatRemickhttp://www.patremick.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33226151.post-14858320117550508352011-03-14T07:54:48.968-04:002011-03-14T07:54:48.968-04:00I start with a notebook and crayons. I write snip...I start with a notebook and crayons. I write snippets about each character, the stories they would tell if we became friends. Next they tell me the stories they only tell when they are drunk.<br /><br />After that, I plot and draft, rewrite, and rewrite. All in pencil.<br /><br />And I learned something new yesterday at SXSW (twitter hash tag #brvance. I'm going to put all of this backstory detail into my own local wordpress database so I can tag it and come back to as I enter the serious writing phase. <br /><br />Thanks for this post, it's got me thinking.C.L. Phillipshttp://www.clphillips.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33226151.post-78943017809422438462011-03-14T07:21:10.922-04:002011-03-14T07:21:10.922-04:00Excellent post, Gina.
The process of how I write ...Excellent post, Gina.<br /><br />The process of how I write progresses and transforms from book to book. But I do always start with some sort of outline. I use a plotting program on my computer, but I also use sticky notes on my three cupboard doors (one door for each act). I write and revise my way through a first draft and then go back and revise and edit for two or three (or ten) more drafts. Sometimes I have to remind myself the first draft is allowed to suck, just to get myself to move on through the difficult spots. <br /><br />Which seems to be every page of my current wip.Annettehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02755947919433555176noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33226151.post-70080960267858979212011-03-14T07:13:43.427-04:002011-03-14T07:13:43.427-04:00Hi, Gina. Great post!
I always seem to know how ...Hi, Gina. Great post! <br /><br />I always seem to know how the story ends. I think about the characters I see in the final scene and work backwards, fleshing it out as I go. You're right about the characters revealing themselves slowly, like meeting a new friend, and I also get the feeling that the story already exists and I'm just writing it down.<br /><br />Of course, I write a lot down and then the editing begins because that's where "I" come in, trimming the mss to get to the real meat of the storyline.<br /><br />It's a marvelous process and hard to explain to anyone who isn't doing it, too. It's like a sculptor shaping a block of marble, only I'm shaping my imagination!martha Reedhttp://www.marthareed.comnoreply@blogger.com