In the last two years I have completed my NaNoWriMo word goal really quickly (13 and 15 days respectively). Yeah, I've become one of those insane people that finishes early. *shrug* What can I say? I draft quick.
However, I must admit, I don't like to think of my NaNo novels as drafts. They're not drafts. They can't be called drafts. They're more like extremely long free-writes.
Let me explain.
When I NaNo, I don't expect anything to be truly publishable. Seriously. It's all drivel. I knowingly re-use metaphors until they're so frequent, it's cliche. I write scenes that clearly have nothing to do with the end goal of the story. I don't worry about anything like plot, and thus, my villains have been known to switch sides.
What I'm trying to say is that it's bad. Super bad.
And this is the point where everyone likes to step in and ask why I don't just spend more time on it then? After all, NaNoWriMo stands for National Novel Writing Month, and if I'm writing crap in 15 days, why not write something classier in 30 days?
Because that's not what I get out of NaNo.
You might think that it's a waste of words and waste of time, but this "extended free-write" of mine is part of the process I've come to embrace. To have that freedom to explore the world of my story, before it's important to nail down plot and character motivations and all of that hard stuff . . . well, that's important to me. The quality doesn't matter, but the act of writing these ideas out does.
Now, maybe I don't end up with anything publishable during NaNo, but when it comes time for the re-write, I understand the story and characters a whole lot more than I would've without my requisite NaNo crap draft. And hey, if my extended free-write can be written super badly in 15 days versus moderately badly in 30, well, I'm cool with that. :)
So how do you guys draft? Is your first draft something that you're proud to call a draft, or do you collect a mess of words and ideas like I do? Have you ever taken a NaNo draft and perfected it? Or, if you're working on a NaNo novel right now, are you spending the time to make sure everything meshes? Tell me in the comments.
Showing posts with label drafting. Show all posts
Showing posts with label drafting. Show all posts
Wednesday, November 23, 2011
Friday, November 18, 2011
What I wrote for NaNo
Despite getting my 50,000 for NaNoWriMo and supposedly getting rid of all the stress that goes with that, I'm somehow still ridiculously un-organized. So I figured I'd tell you a little about the "story" I wrote in 15 days:
My NaNo was a YA fantasy about swords and magical bloodlines and wil-o-wisp ghosts. It's a story about finding out that it's okay to suck at life because everyone's good at something, even if they haven't found it yet. There's a ruling family that's been made cruel with power, and a lot of people (including members of this family) have suffered for it. Also, a wyrm makes an appearance.
The main character is Gareth and despite being an orphan trained for the military, he wasn't very good with swords or fighting or anything until he found a "God Sword" with his childhood friend Laramie. Unfortunately, he's the only one who can even touch the God Sword without getting burned, so it goes to his head a little. Also doesn't help that the sword makes him awesome.
Laramie is the badass girl who (to my shame) hasn't gotten as much character development as she deserves. She likes fighting with swords, is a bit quick to pity people, and is a little freaked out by Rey.
Rey is a prince and a secondary character, though I'm pretty sure that he would prefer to be the main character, if not share the role with Gareth. *rolls eyes* Luckily they have a mysterious bond which will likely make this possible in the real First Draft. He's got baggage and prefers to fight with distance weapons like spears and throwing knives.
The last of our group is Hiram, who is Rey's older brother by two years. Hiram is a golden retriever. He's the kind of person who's cheerful and nice to be around, but manages to subtly insult people without realizing it. However, Hiram is also rather protective, so if someone else is going about insulting his friends/bros, he becomes all-out defensive.
And that's about it since there's, uhh, not much of a plot yet. *shrug* But now that you know more about my NaNo than the WIP I've been working on for the last year (uhh, oops?) . . . tell me, what are you currently writing? Is it something that you can describe better than my mess of a story? Or are you still discovering it as you draft? Tell me in the comments!
My NaNo was a YA fantasy about swords and magical bloodlines and wil-o-wisp ghosts. It's a story about finding out that it's okay to suck at life because everyone's good at something, even if they haven't found it yet. There's a ruling family that's been made cruel with power, and a lot of people (including members of this family) have suffered for it. Also, a wyrm makes an appearance.
The main character is Gareth and despite being an orphan trained for the military, he wasn't very good with swords or fighting or anything until he found a "God Sword" with his childhood friend Laramie. Unfortunately, he's the only one who can even touch the God Sword without getting burned, so it goes to his head a little. Also doesn't help that the sword makes him awesome.
Laramie is the badass girl who (to my shame) hasn't gotten as much character development as she deserves. She likes fighting with swords, is a bit quick to pity people, and is a little freaked out by Rey.
Rey is a prince and a secondary character, though I'm pretty sure that he would prefer to be the main character, if not share the role with Gareth. *rolls eyes* Luckily they have a mysterious bond which will likely make this possible in the real First Draft. He's got baggage and prefers to fight with distance weapons like spears and throwing knives.
The last of our group is Hiram, who is Rey's older brother by two years. Hiram is a golden retriever. He's the kind of person who's cheerful and nice to be around, but manages to subtly insult people without realizing it. However, Hiram is also rather protective, so if someone else is going about insulting his friends/bros, he becomes all-out defensive.
And that's about it since there's, uhh, not much of a plot yet. *shrug* But now that you know more about my NaNo than the WIP I've been working on for the last year (uhh, oops?) . . . tell me, what are you currently writing? Is it something that you can describe better than my mess of a story? Or are you still discovering it as you draft? Tell me in the comments!
Friday, November 4, 2011
When should you give up on a story?
I started NaNoWriMo this year with a story about selkies. It was going to be a paranormal something or other with family drama and, of course, lots of the ocean. I had two pretty sweet opening lines . . . and then I didn't know what I wanted to do. I didn't have any passion for the idea as a whole. I wrote 428 words and decided that I hated my story.
So I decided to write something different.
A lot of people will tell you to push through those kinds of blocks. They'll tell you to ignore the shiny new idea, and 99% of the time, that is the advice you should follow. Today I'm going to tell you about that elusive 1%.
When you're writing, you should always be writing something you love. I'm not talking about the quality of the writing or turning off your inner editor, I'm talking about the idea itself. Because if you love your idea and the potential behind it, you can write some horrible stuff and still be happy. If not, well, you'll struggle for every word and you'll bleed for every new plot point.
If your writing is a nightmare, try evaluating your story. Is it the kind of story that you have passion for? If so, is it an idea that maybe needs to marinate for a while? And are you forcing yourself to write something that you don't love? These questions are important, especially when it comes to your writerly morale.
Have any of you ever dropped a novel idea that just wasn't working? I, uhh, kind of has a history of it. Anyway, if you're participating in NaNo, what are you writing and why do you love that idea? Tell me in the comments!
So I decided to write something different.
A lot of people will tell you to push through those kinds of blocks. They'll tell you to ignore the shiny new idea, and 99% of the time, that is the advice you should follow. Today I'm going to tell you about that elusive 1%.
When you're writing, you should always be writing something you love. I'm not talking about the quality of the writing or turning off your inner editor, I'm talking about the idea itself. Because if you love your idea and the potential behind it, you can write some horrible stuff and still be happy. If not, well, you'll struggle for every word and you'll bleed for every new plot point.
If your writing is a nightmare, try evaluating your story. Is it the kind of story that you have passion for? If so, is it an idea that maybe needs to marinate for a while? And are you forcing yourself to write something that you don't love? These questions are important, especially when it comes to your writerly morale.
Have any of you ever dropped a novel idea that just wasn't working? I, uhh, kind of has a history of it. Anyway, if you're participating in NaNo, what are you writing and why do you love that idea? Tell me in the comments!
Wednesday, October 19, 2011
Dear Writing Blog-o-Sphere
Dear Writing Blog-o-Sphere,
I think we have a problem.
It's not the kind of problem that's immediately apparent. I mean, 99% of your posts are positive and inspiring and interesting. It's the kind of problem that lurks beneath the words of those fantastic posts. See, the thing is, you have unrealistic expectations.
But it's not your fault. Not really.
The problem lies in speed and time. Naturally, if someone's writing days are going well, they're going to celebrate that success on the internet. They'll tell us all about how they drafted the book in a month and then edited it in two weeks. They'll talk about their deadlines and how they wrote two books last year and how driven they are.
On the other hand, drafting and editing nightmares are never discussed. For good reason, of course. On the off chance an agent visits their blog, well, no one wants to make a bad impression with all that whining.
But where does that put the writer who has been struggling with drafting or editing? Maybe they've been working on their book for years now . . . and with the state of the blog-o-sphere, there's a good chance that they feel alone in that.
It's not true of course. There really are people who work 40+ hours and can only write 2000 words a week. There are people who have needed to completely re-write their books, so the newest draft is only a shadow of the last one. There are people who've spent countless hours writing "useless" content and they're book are still not done.
Finishing is important. I can't deny that. And I'm definitely not dissing on the struggles that have been mentioned on the internet. But do we have to stress on success so much? Can't we somehow embrace the idea that it's okay to work on a book for more than a year? That writing is hard? That's okay to write 5+ books and still be struggling to get an agent or a book deal? That speed isn't everything?
I feel like I might be blowing this out of proportion . . . but I've seen people discouraged because they think they're wasting time and because they can't write something beautiful in six months. And that shouldn't be acceptable.
Thanks for hearing me out,
Sarah
I think we have a problem.
It's not the kind of problem that's immediately apparent. I mean, 99% of your posts are positive and inspiring and interesting. It's the kind of problem that lurks beneath the words of those fantastic posts. See, the thing is, you have unrealistic expectations.
But it's not your fault. Not really.
The problem lies in speed and time. Naturally, if someone's writing days are going well, they're going to celebrate that success on the internet. They'll tell us all about how they drafted the book in a month and then edited it in two weeks. They'll talk about their deadlines and how they wrote two books last year and how driven they are.
On the other hand, drafting and editing nightmares are never discussed. For good reason, of course. On the off chance an agent visits their blog, well, no one wants to make a bad impression with all that whining.
But where does that put the writer who has been struggling with drafting or editing? Maybe they've been working on their book for years now . . . and with the state of the blog-o-sphere, there's a good chance that they feel alone in that.
It's not true of course. There really are people who work 40+ hours and can only write 2000 words a week. There are people who have needed to completely re-write their books, so the newest draft is only a shadow of the last one. There are people who've spent countless hours writing "useless" content and they're book are still not done.
Finishing is important. I can't deny that. And I'm definitely not dissing on the struggles that have been mentioned on the internet. But do we have to stress on success so much? Can't we somehow embrace the idea that it's okay to work on a book for more than a year? That writing is hard? That's okay to write 5+ books and still be struggling to get an agent or a book deal? That speed isn't everything?
I feel like I might be blowing this out of proportion . . . but I've seen people discouraged because they think they're wasting time and because they can't write something beautiful in six months. And that shouldn't be acceptable.
Thanks for hearing me out,
Sarah
Wednesday, October 5, 2011
Confessions of a plantser/pantter
I live somewhere between the realms of pantsers and plotters. For the curious and uninformed, some quick definitions:
As you can see, pantsers and plotters make up two ends of the writing spectrum, so it's easy to see how one might fall in the middle. However, most writers seem to identify with one over the other. And for a long time, I thought I was a plotter.
See, I love making outlines and hoarding information about my stories. It pleases my neurotic side to make timelines and such. You guys should see my research folder in Scrivener . . . it's insane.
However, I'm not very good about creating an outline with much depth. My plot points are just that. Points. Meager, pitiful points. Sure, they make an arc, but there's absolutely NO substance. Also, I have yet to outline an ending. Ever.
And this is where my pantsing side comes in. Oh, my characters need to get from A to B? Well, hmm. Not sure how that's going to happen. And they need to start hating each other by C because the first character needs to betray the second one? Yeah. Don't know about that either. And the ending? Oh, well, "dramatic climax" doesn't help at all, so I'll just completely pants the last 17,000 words.
It's a bit ridiculous. How did I ever call myself a plotter when I spend most of my drafting time trying to figure out how to make the pieces of my outline fit together? Yet, I can't call myself a panster either, because I always know where the story is headed.
So, does think make me a planster? A pantter? Eugh. Maybe I should just go wallow in the corner.
However, before that, I'm curious where you guys fall on the scale. Pantser, plotter, or somewhere in between? Tell me in the comments!
- Pantsers: Writers who draft without planning anything out. Or rather, "by the seats of their pants." Hence the name.
- Plotters: Writers who meticulously outline their story before drafting. This may involve creating a super intensive story bible.
As you can see, pantsers and plotters make up two ends of the writing spectrum, so it's easy to see how one might fall in the middle. However, most writers seem to identify with one over the other. And for a long time, I thought I was a plotter.
See, I love making outlines and hoarding information about my stories. It pleases my neurotic side to make timelines and such. You guys should see my research folder in Scrivener . . . it's insane.
However, I'm not very good about creating an outline with much depth. My plot points are just that. Points. Meager, pitiful points. Sure, they make an arc, but there's absolutely NO substance. Also, I have yet to outline an ending. Ever.
And this is where my pantsing side comes in. Oh, my characters need to get from A to B? Well, hmm. Not sure how that's going to happen. And they need to start hating each other by C because the first character needs to betray the second one? Yeah. Don't know about that either. And the ending? Oh, well, "dramatic climax" doesn't help at all, so I'll just completely pants the last 17,000 words.
It's a bit ridiculous. How did I ever call myself a plotter when I spend most of my drafting time trying to figure out how to make the pieces of my outline fit together? Yet, I can't call myself a panster either, because I always know where the story is headed.
So, does think make me a planster? A pantter? Eugh. Maybe I should just go wallow in the corner.
However, before that, I'm curious where you guys fall on the scale. Pantser, plotter, or somewhere in between? Tell me in the comments!
Wednesday, April 13, 2011
Lessons from my drafting process
So a while ago I finished the rough draft of my manuscript. It was pretty sweet. Then someone asked me about my drafting process. This was both awesome and horrifying because suddenly it seemed like the world had deemed me qualified to answer such a question. I definitely don't feel qualified!
And when I considered the answer, I realized that my drafting process is kind of a mess.
I munch on junk food of all sorts. I waste time researching random crap on the internet (ie: flowers) when I should be focusing on my work. I spend an embarrassing amount of time staring at my Twitter feed and urging it to update. I'm a lazy plotter, so when my outline is sparse I bemoan my woes and whine at Boyfriend until he tells me to stop being a drama queen. I avoid reading blog posts because I'm supposed to be writing, but then I don't write, and then I don't get anything productive done.
Unfortunately, most of these things aren't very helpful. Not to you, not to me, not to anyone. However, after some immense consideration, I managed to weed out what I think are the most important bits of my drafting process.
And when I considered the answer, I realized that my drafting process is kind of a mess.
I munch on junk food of all sorts. I waste time researching random crap on the internet (ie: flowers) when I should be focusing on my work. I spend an embarrassing amount of time staring at my Twitter feed and urging it to update. I'm a lazy plotter, so when my outline is sparse I bemoan my woes and whine at Boyfriend until he tells me to stop being a drama queen. I avoid reading blog posts because I'm supposed to be writing, but then I don't write, and then I don't get anything productive done.
Unfortunately, most of these things aren't very helpful. Not to you, not to me, not to anyone. However, after some immense consideration, I managed to weed out what I think are the most important bits of my drafting process.
- I wrote (almost) everyday
This is helpful in two ways. The obvious is the fact that you're always getting something done on your WIP be it 10 words or 10,000 words. The not-so-obvious is that writing everyday makes it so you're thinking about your story all the time. Not only does this make it easier and faster to get in the zone, but your writing sessions become more productive. Also, for my first several months of drafting I wrote at the same time everyday, which helps cement the routine. - I sucked it up
It's very easy to whine about writing. I am particularly whiny about writing. Those of you who follow me on Twitter understand this firsthand, considering that I make exasperated comments with each chapter I write. Writing breaks are important sometimes, but the other 90% of your time should be spent writing. You don't want to? You'd rather work on something else? Suck it up. - I set myself a scary goal
I also told you guys about it to round myself up a nice big dose of accountability. If you have a goal--a realistic one--you start producing more and quicker. Especially if there are prizes at the end. Because prizes rock. Just look at NaNoWriMo, it's the ultimate goal-setting challenge for writers and thousands of people finish every year.
There are my three tips. They're pretty basic, but I think they're pretty important. What do you guys think? What's your drafting process like? Do you have any other important tips? Or are you a big fan of the crappy process parts too? Tell me in the comments.
Monday, March 7, 2011
Completing a manuscript is awesome sauce
As some of you may remember, I challenged myself to finish the first draft of my manuscript by March 7th. I am here to tell you guys that somehow I pulled this off. *throws confetti and binder clips into the air*
Later today I have great ambitions called going to OfficeMax, getting the manuscript printed, and buying special office supplies so I can rip it to shreds in a month. It will be awesome.
For a little background, this is the first novel length manuscript that I have actually finished. I'm astounded and impressed at the same time. And really happy.
The original draft of my WIP was actually written in 2008 during NaNoWriMo, but it was really more like a glorified outline than a draft because it sucked. A lot. So last August I trashed it and started re-writing the entire thing, which is hopefully a thousand times better now. If nothing else, I can safely say that the melodrama and injury count have gone up exponentially.
Anyway, I thought it would be kind of cool to make a Wordle of the entire manuscript for everyone's entertainment. If you've never heard of Wordle, it's a generator makes a cloud based on word frequency in a text (this is, of course, minus common words like "the"). Note the very large names of my characters, the fact that I apparently talk about eyes a lot, and the random flowers interspersed between other words.
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| I kind of wonder why I apparently used "one" so often. Heh, I must have had a wonderful reason. |
Wasn't that exciting? Now I'm going to throw stats at you. They're not that interesting, I guess, but I kind of want to record them for posterity.
Working Title: Kai Story Part 1
Genre: YA (Epic?) Fantasy
Total Word Count: 103,559
Chapters: 23
Average Chapter Length: 4,503
Different Point-of-Views: 3
Months Worked On: 6-ish
Awesome Songs That Helped: You're Gonna Go Far, Kid by The Offspring, Monster by Skillet, Devour by Shinedown, Beautiful Bride by Flyleaf, Nothing and Everything by Red, Rolling in the Deep by Adele, Blinding by Florence + The Machine, and Decode by Paramore.
So, what about you guys? Have you ever finished a novel length manuscript? Or are you puttering away at it right now? Tell me in the comments--let's commiserate together!
Monday, February 28, 2011
I want YOU! Also, a writing goal
ETA (03/04/11): And the third lovely guest blogger has made an appearance. Yay!
ETA (03/03/11): I have two lovely guest bloggers and would love to see a third! Any volunteers?
I've decided to tell you guys my secret goal in the hopes that if/when I fail, you will rain the hate down so hard that I will cower and cry beneath your missiles of disappointment. Umm, yes. A few other people already know, but I figured it was time to lay on some more accountability. Here it is:
Oh, the shudders of horror and dismay are racing down my spine. I may only have two/three chapters and 15,000 words left, but they are a nightmare in the making. Let's just leave it at that.
Why am I setting this goal then? Two reasons: 1) so I get my butt into gear and actually finish, and 2) I will be taking a writing vacation starting March 8th whether I want to or not. I also figured that finishing the WIP, instead of leaving a hanging chapter, was a better choice.
For those who are curious, on March 8th I'm off to the illustrious Butte, MT for a viewing of Avenue Q. Early the next morning I will be driving to Portland, OR with Boyfriend for a several days of exciting, exciting apartment hunting. Woo hoo.
Which brings me to my next point. Would anyone like to be a guest blogger for Squidink? I'm looking for 2-3 guest posts that are amusing, witty, and about writing. The perks? Free promo! You will get a cute bio featuring your picture (if you so desire) and a link to your own blog.
If you're interested, send me a quick email at squidinksarah (ât) gmail (døt) com. But just a heads up, the deadline for any guest posts would be March 6th. I'll update this post with further news if/when the slots are filled.
Anyway, do you guys have any ridiculous goals? Do they make you want to curl up in a ball and cry until your manuscript starts writing itself? Or do you thrive under the threat of deadline? Tell me your thoughts in the comments.
ETA (03/03/11): I have two lovely guest bloggers and would love to see a third! Any volunteers?
I've decided to tell you guys my secret goal in the hopes that if/when I fail, you will rain the hate down so hard that I will cower and cry beneath your missiles of disappointment. Umm, yes. A few other people already know, but I figured it was time to lay on some more accountability. Here it is:
I'm going to finish the rough draft my WIP by March 7th.
Oh, the shudders of horror and dismay are racing down my spine. I may only have two/three chapters and 15,000 words left, but they are a nightmare in the making. Let's just leave it at that.
Why am I setting this goal then? Two reasons: 1) so I get my butt into gear and actually finish, and 2) I will be taking a writing vacation starting March 8th whether I want to or not. I also figured that finishing the WIP, instead of leaving a hanging chapter, was a better choice.
For those who are curious, on March 8th I'm off to the illustrious Butte, MT for a viewing of Avenue Q. Early the next morning I will be driving to Portland, OR with Boyfriend for a several days of exciting, exciting apartment hunting. Woo hoo.
Which brings me to my next point. Would anyone like to be a guest blogger for Squidink? I'm looking for 2-3 guest posts that are amusing, witty, and about writing. The perks? Free promo! You will get a cute bio featuring your picture (if you so desire) and a link to your own blog.
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| And Uncle Sam wants you to do it. Really. |
Anyway, do you guys have any ridiculous goals? Do they make you want to curl up in a ball and cry until your manuscript starts writing itself? Or do you thrive under the threat of deadline? Tell me your thoughts in the comments.
Wednesday, January 5, 2011
Your manuscript is a dragon scarf
Knitting is hard. Just throwing that out there. It's deceiving too.
You see that pattern and it just looks cool and who doesn't want a dragon scarf?! Maybe you don't know how to knit, but according to your sources, this is actually a good pattern to start with. Lots of basic stitches. Screw potholders! You will have a dragon around you neck. This scarf will be EPIC.
The first rows go good, you're in the zone. This seems easier than expected! You're a prodigy--a god of knitting. This doesn't last long. Suddenly you're dropping stitches and you don't know why. For some reason, your brain went away and you purled that entire row when you were supposed to knit halfway through! The potholder is starting to look better. You actually do need potholders. Maybe if you just worked on a potholder for a while . . .
NO. STAY AWAY FROM THE POTHOLDER.
Let's imagine for a minute that the dragon scarf is my manuscript and that the potholder is my shiny new idea.
Writers like to jump around between story ideas. We can't help it. Writing can suck, and unlike a dragon scarf, there's no picture of the finished project to push us forward. We have to stitch words together with the hope that maybe, like the scarf, our story will be EPIC in the end.
But so many people stop halfway through. I'm guilty of it, are you? When things get hard, it's easy to back down. But trust me, you shouldn't. A finished scarf, even with dropped stitches and an inconsistent gauge, is always better than a project stowed away for "later." So plug away, suffer and force yourself to work, because it will always be worth it in the end.
Have you ever knit anything other than words? Are there unfinished manuscripts hiding in notebooks under your bed?
In case you're wondering, here's my dragon scarf so far:
You see that pattern and it just looks cool and who doesn't want a dragon scarf?! Maybe you don't know how to knit, but according to your sources, this is actually a good pattern to start with. Lots of basic stitches. Screw potholders! You will have a dragon around you neck. This scarf will be EPIC.
The first rows go good, you're in the zone. This seems easier than expected! You're a prodigy--a god of knitting. This doesn't last long. Suddenly you're dropping stitches and you don't know why. For some reason, your brain went away and you purled that entire row when you were supposed to knit halfway through! The potholder is starting to look better. You actually do need potholders. Maybe if you just worked on a potholder for a while . . .
NO. STAY AWAY FROM THE POTHOLDER.
Let's imagine for a minute that the dragon scarf is my manuscript and that the potholder is my shiny new idea.
Writers like to jump around between story ideas. We can't help it. Writing can suck, and unlike a dragon scarf, there's no picture of the finished project to push us forward. We have to stitch words together with the hope that maybe, like the scarf, our story will be EPIC in the end.
But so many people stop halfway through. I'm guilty of it, are you? When things get hard, it's easy to back down. But trust me, you shouldn't. A finished scarf, even with dropped stitches and an inconsistent gauge, is always better than a project stowed away for "later." So plug away, suffer and force yourself to work, because it will always be worth it in the end.
Have you ever knit anything other than words? Are there unfinished manuscripts hiding in notebooks under your bed?
In case you're wondering, here's my dragon scarf so far:
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| Can you see it? There's a dragon hiding in there! |
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