Oof. I meant I finished a draft of “A Sword for Wellington” at the start of February, not January. Just goes to show that it doesn’t matter how many times one proof reads …
I hoard them like a dragon 😆. I'm constantly getting shiny new ideas all the time. It's how I came to be writing three series at once 😂. I keep a writing journal and brainstorming files to record my shiny new ideas and satisfy the urge to work on them by at least purging my mind of all thoughts regarding the new story through word vomiting every last teensy tiny idea for it into my journal/notes file to keep and store for later. This way I won't lose them and can temporarily satisfy a persistent story enough to let myself refocus on the ones I'm already writing. I will have to write them eventually, but if I can record the whole idea and let myself get the brainstorming out of my system I can often delay them for a better day.
Ooh say more about your writing journal. How do you find what you need to find? Do you keep an index? So you’d do what I did for part of the notes I shared above — keep poking at it until you had a plot and then, as it’s written down, can make room for the next shiny idea?
Nope, no index so it's a bit of a chaotic mess, but I do use a lot of different styles of bullet points, dashes, etc. for quickly jotting everything down and if I'm switching back-and-forth between stories in my journal notes I will usually preface which story it's for to avoid confusion. I'll also leave myself preface notes of 'story idea,' 'scene snippet,' 'name ideas' etc. so that does help weed through them faster when looking back through for the one I'm wanting. On the computer though, each idea I record there is in its own self-contained file.
Not necessarily a full plot (hardcore pantser here), but a massive list of bullet points regarding the story concept and possible directions I could take it plus a list of any questions regarding elements I'm clueless on and need will need to solve once I do get to writing it. Basically, I'll record absolutely everything I've thought about as a possible direction for the story and any questions to help guide the rest. Last time, I also made notes about how a story might tie in with the world of one of my series and made detailed notes for the cover art (I literally could see in my head exactly the cover and even illustration style for it). I just empty out everything that's swimming in my head about the idea so I can come back to it later. Nothing is fleshed out or set in stone, but more than enough is recorded so nothing is lost and I'll have a good starting point when I get around to actually working on it and sorting out all the questions as I start writing it. Most of my actual plotting occurs while I'm writing, but brainstorming possibilities and questions gives me a lot to work with and have running in the background of my mind as I write and see where the story itself really wants to go. But, yeah, I'll keep at until I've emptied all ideas and questions from my head for the story until it's no longer screaming at me and I can get back to writing until the next new idea raises its head.
This is a great idea! I will try it with the next plot bunny. I used to be a plotter and it still shows up in the overall arc of things but characters tend to have their own, and worse, better ideas than me. My plots tend to be too linear.
Thanks! It's what's worked well for me so far so I hope it proves helpful for you too.
I've never been a plotter. I've tried and my brain just isn't wired that way, but I've found that once I get even the vaguest seed of an idea and just start writing that I can start molding the plot as I go by letting the story itself guide me to what it needs. Have you read about what Ellen Brock calls the four writing types? If not, here's an article about what I'm referring to: https://michaelthomet.com/2024/08/15/ellen-brocks-writer-types/ , but I'd fall under what the article calls an intuitive pantser.
Oh yes, characters definitely have their own ideas! My plots are anything but linear. They're more like a tangled knot of threads that unravels into a complicated web.
That's pretty normal I think, most aren't solidly one or another of any of them, but often somewhere in the middle between a few. I don't usually go in for 'types' where people are fit into neat little boxes like that, but this one was unusually accurate for me with only a few differences. I found it helpful though because it's helped me better understand my approach for when things start to slow down or get stuck.
Yeah, resisting altogether has never worked well for me. It nags and nags until I get it out. If I don’t want to commit fully to it yet, I’ll write out enough to get it started (and quash the hungry muses for a bit) and come back to it later, adding notes to it whenever a new facet reveals itself.
I have written down a shiny new idea also and left it, only to come back and ask myself “what was this idea again?” I don’t know if the notes are too cryptic or the idea left the building.
This is a fascinating article, with so many great observations about the writing process. I would say denying the idea is there never works. You have to at least outline it, or get a brief synopsis down, or even a few scenes, or it's just going to drive you crazy. You can always set it aside for later at that point, and go back to other things, and then dip into it as other parts begin to form. Sometimes, having multiple things on the go can be very helpful. If you get jammed on a main project and need to wait for the right words to come, you have something else to explore, which is very valuable, and can often be a great way to get things flowing again... 😎
That's true. Sometimes walking away from things for a while and letting them rest can be good, too. Having that break and space from a project can definitely help you see it with new eyes, and it can help recharge the creative batteries as well... 😎
I've had this problem in the past. Right now, my main problem is just focusing on writing since editing and writing non-fiction blog posts can mean too many interruptions.
Oof. I meant I finished a draft of “A Sword for Wellington” at the start of February, not January. Just goes to show that it doesn’t matter how many times one proof reads …
I hoard them like a dragon 😆. I'm constantly getting shiny new ideas all the time. It's how I came to be writing three series at once 😂. I keep a writing journal and brainstorming files to record my shiny new ideas and satisfy the urge to work on them by at least purging my mind of all thoughts regarding the new story through word vomiting every last teensy tiny idea for it into my journal/notes file to keep and store for later. This way I won't lose them and can temporarily satisfy a persistent story enough to let myself refocus on the ones I'm already writing. I will have to write them eventually, but if I can record the whole idea and let myself get the brainstorming out of my system I can often delay them for a better day.
Ooh say more about your writing journal. How do you find what you need to find? Do you keep an index? So you’d do what I did for part of the notes I shared above — keep poking at it until you had a plot and then, as it’s written down, can make room for the next shiny idea?
Nope, no index so it's a bit of a chaotic mess, but I do use a lot of different styles of bullet points, dashes, etc. for quickly jotting everything down and if I'm switching back-and-forth between stories in my journal notes I will usually preface which story it's for to avoid confusion. I'll also leave myself preface notes of 'story idea,' 'scene snippet,' 'name ideas' etc. so that does help weed through them faster when looking back through for the one I'm wanting. On the computer though, each idea I record there is in its own self-contained file.
Not necessarily a full plot (hardcore pantser here), but a massive list of bullet points regarding the story concept and possible directions I could take it plus a list of any questions regarding elements I'm clueless on and need will need to solve once I do get to writing it. Basically, I'll record absolutely everything I've thought about as a possible direction for the story and any questions to help guide the rest. Last time, I also made notes about how a story might tie in with the world of one of my series and made detailed notes for the cover art (I literally could see in my head exactly the cover and even illustration style for it). I just empty out everything that's swimming in my head about the idea so I can come back to it later. Nothing is fleshed out or set in stone, but more than enough is recorded so nothing is lost and I'll have a good starting point when I get around to actually working on it and sorting out all the questions as I start writing it. Most of my actual plotting occurs while I'm writing, but brainstorming possibilities and questions gives me a lot to work with and have running in the background of my mind as I write and see where the story itself really wants to go. But, yeah, I'll keep at until I've emptied all ideas and questions from my head for the story until it's no longer screaming at me and I can get back to writing until the next new idea raises its head.
This is a great idea! I will try it with the next plot bunny. I used to be a plotter and it still shows up in the overall arc of things but characters tend to have their own, and worse, better ideas than me. My plots tend to be too linear.
Thanks! It's what's worked well for me so far so I hope it proves helpful for you too.
I've never been a plotter. I've tried and my brain just isn't wired that way, but I've found that once I get even the vaguest seed of an idea and just start writing that I can start molding the plot as I go by letting the story itself guide me to what it needs. Have you read about what Ellen Brock calls the four writing types? If not, here's an article about what I'm referring to: https://michaelthomet.com/2024/08/15/ellen-brocks-writer-types/ , but I'd fall under what the article calls an intuitive pantser.
Oh yes, characters definitely have their own ideas! My plots are anything but linear. They're more like a tangled knot of threads that unravels into a complicated web.
I’ll check out that link but knowing me, I’ll probably identify with all four!
That's pretty normal I think, most aren't solidly one or another of any of them, but often somewhere in the middle between a few. I don't usually go in for 'types' where people are fit into neat little boxes like that, but this one was unusually accurate for me with only a few differences. I found it helpful though because it's helped me better understand my approach for when things start to slow down or get stuck.
Yeah, resisting altogether has never worked well for me. It nags and nags until I get it out. If I don’t want to commit fully to it yet, I’ll write out enough to get it started (and quash the hungry muses for a bit) and come back to it later, adding notes to it whenever a new facet reveals itself.
I have written down a shiny new idea also and left it, only to come back and ask myself “what was this idea again?” I don’t know if the notes are too cryptic or the idea left the building.
I’ve definitely been there. I’ve trained myself to be stupidly clear with my notes sometimes, just in case, lol.
This is a fascinating article, with so many great observations about the writing process. I would say denying the idea is there never works. You have to at least outline it, or get a brief synopsis down, or even a few scenes, or it's just going to drive you crazy. You can always set it aside for later at that point, and go back to other things, and then dip into it as other parts begin to form. Sometimes, having multiple things on the go can be very helpful. If you get jammed on a main project and need to wait for the right words to come, you have something else to explore, which is very valuable, and can often be a great way to get things flowing again... 😎
Yes and but also … sometimes I need to provide the space for the words to get unstuck. Switching to a different project isn’t always helpful.
That's true. Sometimes walking away from things for a while and letting them rest can be good, too. Having that break and space from a project can definitely help you see it with new eyes, and it can help recharge the creative batteries as well... 😎
I've had this problem in the past. Right now, my main problem is just focusing on writing since editing and writing non-fiction blog posts can mean too many interruptions.
Yeah, I have to get my end of month post written and schedule some chapters of my serial, so I hear that!