First I want to say "thank you Grinders", for showing your support and helping this blog hit an early milestone of being comfortably into the four figures of total views. It is humbling to have so many people taking time out of their busy day and read what I have to say. I really hope it is helping get you thinking about writing, helping you prepare for NaNo, but most of all I hope it keeps you focused on your writing goals. Your support and comments help me stay focused on mine. Thank you.
Today I am going to make this short, but powerful in how much this tip will help you. This tip is especially helpful for those of you who are wanting to write faster, especially you NaNoWriMo hopefuls. The best part is, this tip can help anyone writing in any form of fiction. Have I built this up enough yet? Good.
I call it building a name list. Yes it is just that simple, but I don't know of many people who do it. I thought it was so simple, so silly, that I didn't do it forever and I kept on banging my head against the same road block. I realized that over the course of a novel or long writing project it would cost me minutes that over the course of 60 or 70 thousand words probably cost me hours. It happens to us all when we stop to name a character.
We all do it, though we do it different ways. I am half OCD and half touchy-feely so when I name a character I want it to sound equal parts: cool, classy, significant, have a deeper meaning, and be something unique. For example, if I see the name Gideon one more time I might freak. It is one thing to name your character John, sure I know a lot of Johns, but I have never met one Gideon in the whole of my life, but I can think of a dozen books the name appears in. When I got to the point of naming a character, even a trivial character, and especially so when I named a main character. I would stop my writing dead cold in the scene and grab my stack of name books, break out Google, and search the dark corners of my mind for just the perfect name.
I hated the whole process. I hated the time it took. And most of all I can think of so many times I would stop the project for the day because the prefect name didn't materialize, which cost me countless hours of writing productivity. I knew I had to stop this black hole of wasting my writing time. And eventually I came up with the easiest solution. Instead of coming up with the character names during the writing of a scene, which for the longest time seemed ultimately logical, I decided to build a character list of first and last names, for both genders, and put them on a piece of paper BEFORE I began the project. And when I came to a scene where I needed to insert a name I would look to my list and find a good combo that seemed to fit and then I just inserted it and made a note on the paper to avoid using it again.
I quickly found that I could breeze through a scene and feel like I could build on that character without all of the baggage that researching a name had caused before. Over time I refined this technique, such as when I write sci-fi I find a list of character names that sound like they belong to another world. And if I am writing a thriller set in recent times I will tailor a different list. I can tell at a glance what kind of themes or patterns I have with my name choices. I can then avoid having too many characters who have the same letter starting their name, or have too many last names that have a similar cadence. This make it far easier for your reader to not get confused as you introduce new characters to your story.
One last thing, you don't have to waste your time getting a naming book or using a baby name website. For example the most recent book I wrote, which was a sci-fi story set 200 years in the future, I knew I needed a list of about 30 characters and I got about 26 of those first and last names from the current rosters of baseball and football teams. To be clear I didn't copy and paste their names, I would simply mix and match names and I came up with names like Miles Axford, Lana Drake, Layne Rayburn, Roland Sale. In fact the only character I didn't get either name from a roster was the main character Tabris Valen.
The challenge this time is to find a set of rosters for a favorite sport, or the names from the credit list at the end of a movie, or the first 20 names you find when you read a newspaper, copy them down, cut and paste the names and create a list of a dozen or so potential characters. Please don't forget to share some of your favorite discoveries in the comments.
I hope this tip helps you avoid the speed bumps that plagued my early writing. This tip can be the difference maker for those of your gearing up for NaNo in a couple of weeks.
Good luck, now get back to the grind.
Wednesday, October 8, 2014
Tuesday, October 7, 2014
Do you need help building a character? Have you ever thought of just asking them?
Good to see you again Grinders. How did your Google Earth project end up? Did you find a surprise in either exercise? What one do you think is better detailed? Share it in the comments.
We have 3.5 weeks until NaNo kicks off. Doesn't seem like enough time does it? I have spent a lot of my time outlining plot and characters, and as I do it I cannot help but think about how I have struggled with my character building in recent years. I really didn't understand it, I did everything I should have, I would answer every question imaginable about my main characters and even sub characters, I would detail their height, weight, zodiac sign, school back ground, phobias, parent's careers, all of the way down to their favorite flavor of ice cream. Yet when I put them to paper I found them just going flat from the first sentence. What was going wrong? I just didn't get it. I had detailed spreadsheets on everyone and it didn't seem to matter.
It took a while, but I stepped back and I took some time to think about what the root cause of my issues. I found that I really enjoyed writing dialogue and found that most of my story telling relied on dialogue between people. And I looked back at the dialogue of my characters and found that I wasn't enjoying reading it or writing it. I needed to make a change. But I couldn't figure out what to change. I realized slowly that there was a lot more to building a character then knowing their accent when they spoke or their education level to decide their word choices. I had to know them in a way only my characters could know. Sounds crazy right?
I decided to just do something different and see how it worked because everything I had done so far just wasn't working. I pulled out a piece of paper and imagined myself in the story with my character. I imagined that I was responsible for sitting down an interviewing them. I didn't worry about describing them, I imagined I was just sitting there looking at them, so there would be no need to go into that detail. Instead I spent time asking my character questions like: What was the hardest part about growing up? What do you like most about your best friend? If you could go back and change one thing in your life what would it be? What was your first kiss like? If you could learn anything what would it be?
These may seem like standard questions you would ask when you get to know someone in real life, and they will seem awkward at first when asking a character who is simply in your mind. I felt goofy myself when I did it, but it felt more natural with each question. Soon I got into the flow of the conversation and it felt like I was talking to an old friend. When I finished asking 20 or so questions I went back and read them and I found something very surprising. I found details about my characters that I had never considered. Instead of simply listing their parents careers, I asked what it was like growing up with a doctor or alcoholic or deadbeat or marine as a parent. I learned a lot more than I thought possible.
I find myself doing this exercise with most of my characters, especially my villains because I want to know why they do what they do. It makes for much more believable characters which is our ultimate goal anyway. I also use this technique if I get stuck in a story and I don't know what my character is supposed to be doing. I will put myself in the story again, in the moment that I am stuck, and I will ask the character how they feel, how they think it should turn out, what they are scared of and so forth. Often times I figure out exactly what my character should do next and how it will shape my story.
If all of this seems a little weird, I get it, I do, so here is a wrinkle that may just be the key for you. Instead of interviewing with a gentle back and forth. Try imaging yourself sitting across the table from your character in an interrogation room. And instead of asking soft questions, interrogate the crap out of them, ask them the tough questions, ask your villain why they committed the crime, ask your heroine why she is attracted to the bad boy who has just been arrested. This technique is great for those of you writing suspense, thriller, and mystery stories.
My challenge to you is to take the villain from your current project and interview them, and if that feels a little too touchy-feely. Then shove them into a chair in a small room and get in their face and ask the questions you don't have the answers to, the tough questions, and see how your character reacts. I think you will be surprised how much you learn about your character and what they are all about, deep down, where it counts the most.
Don't forget to share how it turned out in the comments and we will see you again next time.
What are you waiting for? Get back to grinding, November is almost here.
Monday, October 6, 2014
How can Google Earth change your writing process?
Hey Grinders, how did your work on "hooks" turn out? Did you find strong hooks in your story? Or did you find yourself rewriting your opening sentences? Share in the comments how this exercise helped you or what could be done to make it better for the next person?
Now I want to take a couple of minutes and teach you how Google Earth can make a huge positive impact in your writing. I bet you are probably scratching your head unless you have already learned this trick. I call it a trick because I have yet to ever get a whiff of this idea from anywhere I have read advice on writing. So for the time being I am going to pretend it is a new concept. Let's set up the barrier that we call face, which is accurately describing places that we have never been. This is a huge challenge for all writers, especially younger writers who are trying to get themselves published, but soon realize their shallow knowledge pool. So what can you do about it? It's simple. I am going to take a real example and then give you the challenge.
I have been working on a story that takes place in Washington D.C., a place I visited for a weekend when I was about 10. I distinctly remembering going to the Air and Space Museum with my father and grandmother, and I remember having a great time, and maybe vaguely remember some of the details of the place, but there is no doubt the place has changed a lot over the decades. But yet I find myself wanting to include this place in my story. It is easy enough to Google facts about the Museum and the Smithsonian in general. You can see pictures of the insides of the exhibits and take virtual tours. That's all well and good, but for most writers the story doesn't end there. How can one hope to capture all of the things that won't be on a business website or virtual tour. Such as what the scenery is like, what would one of your characters see on their drive from one place to another, for example what would it be like for my two main characters to be driving from Quantico in Virginia to the Smithsonian in D.C., what would they expect to see? and how would that impact their conversation and their perspective of the trip?
Here is where Google Earth comes into play. You can look it up online or download the mobile application and you can type in any address in the USA and quickly find a detailed satellite image, and many times get a street view taken from one of the Google vans so you can get a better idea of what a place looks like. When I looked at the Air and Space Museum I realized quickly that my mental image of the place was not even close. Which of course is exceedingly important because it is a well known place and many of my readers would quickly recognize a mistake if they read it.
But within a couple of minutes of searching, I could see what the structure looked like, what streets it was on which is important of course because the characters would know and would readily refer to the streets by their name. I learned what the area around it would look like, what the parking situation was, if a bus ran by it or if you could simply walk up to the front door, and what you might see along the way. I also quickly learned which highways my characters would take and that most of the drive would be three lane highways with a lot of dense wooded areas along the way.
Here is the challenge for the day. Take a mental image of a place you remember from many years ago, if you are younger it may be a place on a family vacation or what your grandparents neighborhood looked like. If you are older it could be a vacation from a years to a few decades ago, or where you grew up. Take 5-10 minutes and write a page or two about how you would describe the place, and use as much detail as you can. After you finish search the location in Google Maps and look at it from different angles, and don't forget the street view.
After you finish a few minutes of glancing at the area and using the neat feature where you can basically walk the sidewalk virtually. I want you to take the same place and now write a separate page or two of prose that describes what you saw in the pictures. Again use as much detail as possible, and if need be look at the the picture again to recapture the image.
Once you have finished compare the two pieces. What did you include accurately in both pieces? Was it completely different than you thought? What tiny nuances did you include in the second piece that you would never have remember on your own in the first? It is these details in which you can set your story apart and have the confidence of getting the facts right and add depth to your settings.
Let me know how you ended up. I would love to hear from you.
Now go, and grind on.
Now I want to take a couple of minutes and teach you how Google Earth can make a huge positive impact in your writing. I bet you are probably scratching your head unless you have already learned this trick. I call it a trick because I have yet to ever get a whiff of this idea from anywhere I have read advice on writing. So for the time being I am going to pretend it is a new concept. Let's set up the barrier that we call face, which is accurately describing places that we have never been. This is a huge challenge for all writers, especially younger writers who are trying to get themselves published, but soon realize their shallow knowledge pool. So what can you do about it? It's simple. I am going to take a real example and then give you the challenge.
I have been working on a story that takes place in Washington D.C., a place I visited for a weekend when I was about 10. I distinctly remembering going to the Air and Space Museum with my father and grandmother, and I remember having a great time, and maybe vaguely remember some of the details of the place, but there is no doubt the place has changed a lot over the decades. But yet I find myself wanting to include this place in my story. It is easy enough to Google facts about the Museum and the Smithsonian in general. You can see pictures of the insides of the exhibits and take virtual tours. That's all well and good, but for most writers the story doesn't end there. How can one hope to capture all of the things that won't be on a business website or virtual tour. Such as what the scenery is like, what would one of your characters see on their drive from one place to another, for example what would it be like for my two main characters to be driving from Quantico in Virginia to the Smithsonian in D.C., what would they expect to see? and how would that impact their conversation and their perspective of the trip?
Here is where Google Earth comes into play. You can look it up online or download the mobile application and you can type in any address in the USA and quickly find a detailed satellite image, and many times get a street view taken from one of the Google vans so you can get a better idea of what a place looks like. When I looked at the Air and Space Museum I realized quickly that my mental image of the place was not even close. Which of course is exceedingly important because it is a well known place and many of my readers would quickly recognize a mistake if they read it.
But within a couple of minutes of searching, I could see what the structure looked like, what streets it was on which is important of course because the characters would know and would readily refer to the streets by their name. I learned what the area around it would look like, what the parking situation was, if a bus ran by it or if you could simply walk up to the front door, and what you might see along the way. I also quickly learned which highways my characters would take and that most of the drive would be three lane highways with a lot of dense wooded areas along the way.
Here is the challenge for the day. Take a mental image of a place you remember from many years ago, if you are younger it may be a place on a family vacation or what your grandparents neighborhood looked like. If you are older it could be a vacation from a years to a few decades ago, or where you grew up. Take 5-10 minutes and write a page or two about how you would describe the place, and use as much detail as you can. After you finish search the location in Google Maps and look at it from different angles, and don't forget the street view.
After you finish a few minutes of glancing at the area and using the neat feature where you can basically walk the sidewalk virtually. I want you to take the same place and now write a separate page or two of prose that describes what you saw in the pictures. Again use as much detail as possible, and if need be look at the the picture again to recapture the image.
Once you have finished compare the two pieces. What did you include accurately in both pieces? Was it completely different than you thought? What tiny nuances did you include in the second piece that you would never have remember on your own in the first? It is these details in which you can set your story apart and have the confidence of getting the facts right and add depth to your settings.
Let me know how you ended up. I would love to hear from you.
Now go, and grind on.
Saturday, October 4, 2014
Hooks aren't just for fishing, but why are they important to a writer?
Good to see you back fellow Grinders. It is time to talk about story hooks and how to use them to keep the tension up and your readers flipping to the next page. This will be especially important for you as the writer and your potential readers as you begin to write your NaNo project in less than a month from now. Hooks can not only keep the reader going, but a lot of times they can keep the writer going in a project because there is a primal urge to figure out the answer to a question or the resolution to a conflict. Ultimately story hooks are just as much for the writer as they can be for the reader.
So what is a story hook? Everyone has read them, but they can be difficult to pull off as a writer. A hook is when a question is given to the reader and depending on the strength of that question will many times virtually force the reader to read on to figure out the answer. So how do you make a hook and when is it best to drop one for your reader to bite on?
Hooks should be used through out the story, you simply cannot get by having one hook at the beginning of the story and hope that it will be enough to get the reader to finish your book. You have to continue to drop hooks in each chapter and in each scene to keep them turning pages. You will of course have to resolve some of them along the way to give your reader some satisfaction for having read on through your story. I think it best to look at a couple of examples and see what works well and what doesn't. I will let you decide which one is best. I will share a couple of excerpts from current projects. They are both first or second draft efforts with obvious need for polishing but they will serve the purpose. Now lets break them down.
He woke in total darkness. There was no sound outside of his own heavy, labored breathing echoing in the small bathroom. The cold tile clung to the bare skin of his back. He sat there in the cold, dark silence for several minutes.Eventually, he lifted his hand up and grasp the edge of the vanity top. He used the counter to hoist himself from the floor and into a standing position. He didn't bother with the light, instead, he climbed into the shower and turned the cold water knob.The cold water slapped him in the face and he let out a sharp heave as he tried to take a breath in. The water ran down the length of his naked figure and as the water rinsed the night's sweat and bathroom floor from his body, it began to help loosen the fog inside his head. He leaned forward, pressing both hands against the wall, allowing the water to cascade down his muscular back, over his legs and down the drain. (Excerpt from "Letters to my Son" Chapter One)
That morning Alistair broke his habit. He still wore the same clothes, followed the same path as he always did, all except for a turn six blocks sooner than he would have on any other day of the week. He wore the same jacket to fight the same cold damp air, but most importantly he carried the same distressed leather bag, the same kind a doctor would have carried for a house call carrying an oil lamp, but today his bag was different, it was heavier, a lot heavier. He thought it was good that he was making a left six blocks before he was used to turning, he wasn’t sure he could have carried the bag much further. He was tall, trim and fit, fit in that kind of way people get from a hard life, the same people who never really put on weight, because people like Alistair rarely lived long enough to get fat or old. (Excerpt from "Bradbury Burns" Chapter One)
The first paragraph contains not a single solid hook outside of leaving out the name of the only character in the scene, a man who just woke up in a bathroom. I could argue that the potential hook here is why did this man wake up alone in a dark bathroom. But I know that my readers really wouldn't care to find out, why would they? It isn't very interesting. The truth is you can only care so much about a person taking a shower, especially opening up a novel with the scene. I would expect my readers to put this story down with utter disappointment.
The second paragraph contains a few hooks and even resolves some of them along the way. The first sentence is a hook right off the bat. What is Alistair's habit? We all have them and by definition they are often important to our daily existence. You learn with in a couple of lines that his habit is going to the same place each day, but I hold off saying what it is, which there lies the next hook. We are also told he is carrying a bag, the same bag he always carries, but this time it is different because it is heavier, and we often equate heavier packages with being more significant and important, just think about Christmas morning, everyone wants a heavy gift. We aren't told what is in the bag, at least not yet, and it is suggested that Alistair has an interesting life, one where people are often killed, but we aren't told what, which is another hook.
In just one paragraph where are given multiple hooks to pull the reader along in the first chapter because a reader will want answers to the following questions. What's Alistair's habit and why is it significant? What's in the bag and what is usually in it? Where is he going and where does he usually go each day? What does Alistair do for a living and what kind of life is so dangerous? This kind of opening will allow me a lot of room in which to maneuver. I can take the opening scene and do a lot with it. I won't share the entire first chapter but you do find out what is in the bag, but you don't figure out his usual destinations and why it is significant and you don't learn what he does for a living and you don't learn his habit, at least not yet.
Here comes the challenge. Look back at the start of some of your previous or current projects. Can you count the hooks in the opening sentence and first paragraph? How many are there? Are there enough? How soon do your answer them? What could you do differently to add more hooks to tempt the reader into moving forward?
Here is the challenge: In the comments I want to see some of your one line hooks. Something similar to, "That morning Alistair broke his habit." Who will have the best hook? Can you make two in one sentence. Show me what you've got.
Remember to keep grinding those words until next time.
So what is a story hook? Everyone has read them, but they can be difficult to pull off as a writer. A hook is when a question is given to the reader and depending on the strength of that question will many times virtually force the reader to read on to figure out the answer. So how do you make a hook and when is it best to drop one for your reader to bite on?
Hooks should be used through out the story, you simply cannot get by having one hook at the beginning of the story and hope that it will be enough to get the reader to finish your book. You have to continue to drop hooks in each chapter and in each scene to keep them turning pages. You will of course have to resolve some of them along the way to give your reader some satisfaction for having read on through your story. I think it best to look at a couple of examples and see what works well and what doesn't. I will let you decide which one is best. I will share a couple of excerpts from current projects. They are both first or second draft efforts with obvious need for polishing but they will serve the purpose. Now lets break them down.
He woke in total darkness. There was no sound outside of his own heavy, labored breathing echoing in the small bathroom. The cold tile clung to the bare skin of his back. He sat there in the cold, dark silence for several minutes.Eventually, he lifted his hand up and grasp the edge of the vanity top. He used the counter to hoist himself from the floor and into a standing position. He didn't bother with the light, instead, he climbed into the shower and turned the cold water knob.The cold water slapped him in the face and he let out a sharp heave as he tried to take a breath in. The water ran down the length of his naked figure and as the water rinsed the night's sweat and bathroom floor from his body, it began to help loosen the fog inside his head. He leaned forward, pressing both hands against the wall, allowing the water to cascade down his muscular back, over his legs and down the drain. (Excerpt from "Letters to my Son" Chapter One)
That morning Alistair broke his habit. He still wore the same clothes, followed the same path as he always did, all except for a turn six blocks sooner than he would have on any other day of the week. He wore the same jacket to fight the same cold damp air, but most importantly he carried the same distressed leather bag, the same kind a doctor would have carried for a house call carrying an oil lamp, but today his bag was different, it was heavier, a lot heavier. He thought it was good that he was making a left six blocks before he was used to turning, he wasn’t sure he could have carried the bag much further. He was tall, trim and fit, fit in that kind of way people get from a hard life, the same people who never really put on weight, because people like Alistair rarely lived long enough to get fat or old. (Excerpt from "Bradbury Burns" Chapter One)
The first paragraph contains not a single solid hook outside of leaving out the name of the only character in the scene, a man who just woke up in a bathroom. I could argue that the potential hook here is why did this man wake up alone in a dark bathroom. But I know that my readers really wouldn't care to find out, why would they? It isn't very interesting. The truth is you can only care so much about a person taking a shower, especially opening up a novel with the scene. I would expect my readers to put this story down with utter disappointment.
The second paragraph contains a few hooks and even resolves some of them along the way. The first sentence is a hook right off the bat. What is Alistair's habit? We all have them and by definition they are often important to our daily existence. You learn with in a couple of lines that his habit is going to the same place each day, but I hold off saying what it is, which there lies the next hook. We are also told he is carrying a bag, the same bag he always carries, but this time it is different because it is heavier, and we often equate heavier packages with being more significant and important, just think about Christmas morning, everyone wants a heavy gift. We aren't told what is in the bag, at least not yet, and it is suggested that Alistair has an interesting life, one where people are often killed, but we aren't told what, which is another hook.
In just one paragraph where are given multiple hooks to pull the reader along in the first chapter because a reader will want answers to the following questions. What's Alistair's habit and why is it significant? What's in the bag and what is usually in it? Where is he going and where does he usually go each day? What does Alistair do for a living and what kind of life is so dangerous? This kind of opening will allow me a lot of room in which to maneuver. I can take the opening scene and do a lot with it. I won't share the entire first chapter but you do find out what is in the bag, but you don't figure out his usual destinations and why it is significant and you don't learn what he does for a living and you don't learn his habit, at least not yet.
Here comes the challenge. Look back at the start of some of your previous or current projects. Can you count the hooks in the opening sentence and first paragraph? How many are there? Are there enough? How soon do your answer them? What could you do differently to add more hooks to tempt the reader into moving forward?
Here is the challenge: In the comments I want to see some of your one line hooks. Something similar to, "That morning Alistair broke his habit." Who will have the best hook? Can you make two in one sentence. Show me what you've got.
Remember to keep grinding those words until next time.
Why is pacing important?
Welcome back Grinders! Flow is a great topic to discuss and I want to start the discussion by thanking Ray who posted the question about personal pacing on a project on Google+. I love to hear from fans of the blog, and Grinders if you have a question post it in the comments and I will answer it in a future post. Now onto the meat about pacing.
Ray's question has to do with speed of writing during a project. He suggested that he will have one pace at the beginning of the project and as he works into the novel he will speed up and end up writing more quantity as he gets deeper. This is a great thing Ray because from experience in talking to writers it can often be the opposite for people and that leads to people abandoning their project because their flow just fizzles out.This can happen to anyone at anytime so what can you do to keep the momentum in a project?
First I will agree with Ray in saying that most times when I hit a good rhythm which I tend to refer to as workflow or simply flow, my speed will pick up and I write for longer and more fruitful sessions. Sounds great sure, but how do you get to that point if you have a hard time when everything seems to fall apart in the middle?
Granted everyone will have to find their own solution but I think it will help everyone if I share my own approach to keeping it going when it gets hard. One of the things that has helped me the most to keep going at a furious flow in the middle of any project is to do two things: First, and this is rather counter to most logic, but I recommend don't putting in chapters or anything else into the text if you don't have to. That means avoid adding chapter numbers or names or even adding Part One or Book One to section off the first draft. There are a couple of reasons for this:
First it keeps you from putting up a self imposed wall inside the book which often forces the writer to introduce conflict, have the conflict and then add some form of resolution inside that scene or chapter. Sometimes you cannot worry about following the conventions of writing by ensuring that a problem is introduced, a conflict to solve it ensues and then you wrap it up whether that is a happy ending or cliffhanger. I have found that imposing these structures in my story will encourage me to hit a wall when I finish a critical chapter. This can be compared to reading any book, when you come to the end of a chapter you have a natural desire to stop and mark your spot. While some authors do such a great job of ending chapters with a cliffhanger or with a question which drives the reader to continue reading no matter how long they have been reading, those teasers are usually built in to the end of a project. It is difficult to have those built in during the first draft, at least not consistently.
Second I find when I go back to revise that it is a great deal easier to keep my flow up because there are few natural pauses to the story until I add them in. For example I find a lot of times where I think a chapter or part may end, it doesn't because I have written something spontaneous in the middle of it that builds a much better spot to end a chapter and maintain a high level of tension for the reader to continue to read on.
The second thing I do to keep my flow speed up is to try my best to end a writing session during a scene or moment that isn't resolved, sometimes I even end mid sentence. This idea isn't new by any means but if you haven't explored it yet, please do, it can really help you pick up the story the next time you sit down to write because you will get back into the flow to resolve what you started from the previous session. This is very similar to ending a chapter for the reader with a cliffhanger that will force them to read on. If you can do this for yourself as the writer of the story you will be surprised how easy it is to get started with another strong flow of words.
Here is the challenge, (you thought I wasn't going to include one didn't you?) over the next couple of writing sessions you work through try to avoid adding in chapters as well as finishing a writing session leaving something unresolved. I have no doubt that this will feel awkward the first few times, and you will struggle to allow yourself to write this way, but I guarantee when you begin the next session it will be easier than it was before and you will find a surprise when you look back at your tracked writing sessions, you will see a faster flow of words and more productivity which will only benefit you in getting the words out. Don't forget to let me know how it goes in the comments.
Until next time Grinders, keep at those projects and grind them out.
Ray's question has to do with speed of writing during a project. He suggested that he will have one pace at the beginning of the project and as he works into the novel he will speed up and end up writing more quantity as he gets deeper. This is a great thing Ray because from experience in talking to writers it can often be the opposite for people and that leads to people abandoning their project because their flow just fizzles out.This can happen to anyone at anytime so what can you do to keep the momentum in a project?
First I will agree with Ray in saying that most times when I hit a good rhythm which I tend to refer to as workflow or simply flow, my speed will pick up and I write for longer and more fruitful sessions. Sounds great sure, but how do you get to that point if you have a hard time when everything seems to fall apart in the middle?
Granted everyone will have to find their own solution but I think it will help everyone if I share my own approach to keeping it going when it gets hard. One of the things that has helped me the most to keep going at a furious flow in the middle of any project is to do two things: First, and this is rather counter to most logic, but I recommend don't putting in chapters or anything else into the text if you don't have to. That means avoid adding chapter numbers or names or even adding Part One or Book One to section off the first draft. There are a couple of reasons for this:
First it keeps you from putting up a self imposed wall inside the book which often forces the writer to introduce conflict, have the conflict and then add some form of resolution inside that scene or chapter. Sometimes you cannot worry about following the conventions of writing by ensuring that a problem is introduced, a conflict to solve it ensues and then you wrap it up whether that is a happy ending or cliffhanger. I have found that imposing these structures in my story will encourage me to hit a wall when I finish a critical chapter. This can be compared to reading any book, when you come to the end of a chapter you have a natural desire to stop and mark your spot. While some authors do such a great job of ending chapters with a cliffhanger or with a question which drives the reader to continue reading no matter how long they have been reading, those teasers are usually built in to the end of a project. It is difficult to have those built in during the first draft, at least not consistently.
Second I find when I go back to revise that it is a great deal easier to keep my flow up because there are few natural pauses to the story until I add them in. For example I find a lot of times where I think a chapter or part may end, it doesn't because I have written something spontaneous in the middle of it that builds a much better spot to end a chapter and maintain a high level of tension for the reader to continue to read on.
The second thing I do to keep my flow speed up is to try my best to end a writing session during a scene or moment that isn't resolved, sometimes I even end mid sentence. This idea isn't new by any means but if you haven't explored it yet, please do, it can really help you pick up the story the next time you sit down to write because you will get back into the flow to resolve what you started from the previous session. This is very similar to ending a chapter for the reader with a cliffhanger that will force them to read on. If you can do this for yourself as the writer of the story you will be surprised how easy it is to get started with another strong flow of words.
Here is the challenge, (you thought I wasn't going to include one didn't you?) over the next couple of writing sessions you work through try to avoid adding in chapters as well as finishing a writing session leaving something unresolved. I have no doubt that this will feel awkward the first few times, and you will struggle to allow yourself to write this way, but I guarantee when you begin the next session it will be easier than it was before and you will find a surprise when you look back at your tracked writing sessions, you will see a faster flow of words and more productivity which will only benefit you in getting the words out. Don't forget to let me know how it goes in the comments.
Until next time Grinders, keep at those projects and grind them out.
Wednesday, October 1, 2014
How can you learn to write faster?
Hey Grinders, how did you do on your writing goal? Did you crush it? Maybe you need to raise the bar a little higher. Did you struggle and even miss some days? Don't crush yourself over it, lower your goal a bit and try again. There is no secret recipe or magic spell that gets you there, you have to write one word at a time, and do it today, tomorrow, and the day after and so on. I know that sounds logical, even stupid simple, but I am still learning how to get motivated, put my butt in the chair and write. Sometimes you have to celebrate the little wins, such as today, for me, I have written 335 days straight without missing a day.
My first challenge is to tell you that you need to celebrate and reward yourself. If you haven't written anything in a while, that's fine, but instead of feeling guilty about lost time, celebrate your first 7 days of writing straight, and if you miss a day, celebrate your 7th day anyway. It doesn't have to be a big treat, in fact it works better when it's something small like getting your favorite drink or eating a piece of chocolate or listening to your favorite music or tuning into your favorite show. Just do it and enjoy it because you worked hard to earn it. And then raise your goal a little and plan what you will do to reward yourself when you get there.
Done celebrating? Okay good. It's time to learn how to write faster, yes the holy grail of writing. I am going to give you two simple steps to start with just to show how simplicity can help you up your word count in a hurry. All you will need is your preferred writing tool (computer, pen and paper, typewriter etc.), a timer (cell phone, watch, baking time etc.) and a note taking tool (sticky note, scrap paper, wordpad on the pc etc.).
Now take your note taking method and set your timer for 5 minutes. I want you to think of a scene in your story, it can be one from your up coming NaNo project or anything else you are working on and I want you to write down as much as possible in the five minutes detailing everything you know about that scene. It can be everything from the names of characters in the scene, what happens, what you aren't sure about, describe the setting or detail a character and so forth. And write or type with a fury for that 5 minutes and stop. Now write.
When you are finished take those notes and read them over. You don't have to change or edit anything, just glance over everything you wrote and then put it away. Now take your preferred writing instruments and grab that timer again. Set the timer for 20 minutes, of course you can go longer, but set it for at least 20 and set the timer off to the side or turn it upside down so you cannot be tempted easily to glance at it. Now we're ready to push ourselves.
Now write, scribble, or type as fast as you can. The trick is not to slow up, but to try and push yourself to your absolute limit. Don't worry about spelling, grammar (yes even commas) or if it makes sense. Just write as fast as you can and don't stop moving your hands until the timer stops. And when the timer rings or buzzes, stop it and stop writing. Count your words and find your pace and then write it down.
How did you compare to your previous pace? Was it the same? Faster? How much faster? Tell me about it in the comments, be proud to share your fury of words. Let the community know what you were able to do today and save it, because you will need it later to see how much you improved after your 7th day celebration.
And never forget, keep grinding out your words.
My first challenge is to tell you that you need to celebrate and reward yourself. If you haven't written anything in a while, that's fine, but instead of feeling guilty about lost time, celebrate your first 7 days of writing straight, and if you miss a day, celebrate your 7th day anyway. It doesn't have to be a big treat, in fact it works better when it's something small like getting your favorite drink or eating a piece of chocolate or listening to your favorite music or tuning into your favorite show. Just do it and enjoy it because you worked hard to earn it. And then raise your goal a little and plan what you will do to reward yourself when you get there.
Done celebrating? Okay good. It's time to learn how to write faster, yes the holy grail of writing. I am going to give you two simple steps to start with just to show how simplicity can help you up your word count in a hurry. All you will need is your preferred writing tool (computer, pen and paper, typewriter etc.), a timer (cell phone, watch, baking time etc.) and a note taking tool (sticky note, scrap paper, wordpad on the pc etc.).
Now take your note taking method and set your timer for 5 minutes. I want you to think of a scene in your story, it can be one from your up coming NaNo project or anything else you are working on and I want you to write down as much as possible in the five minutes detailing everything you know about that scene. It can be everything from the names of characters in the scene, what happens, what you aren't sure about, describe the setting or detail a character and so forth. And write or type with a fury for that 5 minutes and stop. Now write.
When you are finished take those notes and read them over. You don't have to change or edit anything, just glance over everything you wrote and then put it away. Now take your preferred writing instruments and grab that timer again. Set the timer for 20 minutes, of course you can go longer, but set it for at least 20 and set the timer off to the side or turn it upside down so you cannot be tempted easily to glance at it. Now we're ready to push ourselves.
Now write, scribble, or type as fast as you can. The trick is not to slow up, but to try and push yourself to your absolute limit. Don't worry about spelling, grammar (yes even commas) or if it makes sense. Just write as fast as you can and don't stop moving your hands until the timer stops. And when the timer rings or buzzes, stop it and stop writing. Count your words and find your pace and then write it down.
How did you compare to your previous pace? Was it the same? Faster? How much faster? Tell me about it in the comments, be proud to share your fury of words. Let the community know what you were able to do today and save it, because you will need it later to see how much you improved after your 7th day celebration.
And never forget, keep grinding out your words.
How can you learn to lift 50,000 words?
Greetings fellow Grinders, did you find your writing pace? Do you have it broken down to an hourly average? Post it up, I want to hear about it. You need to know that finding your rate is going to play a huge role in several posts while we prepare for NaNo and will pay you big dividends the more you write. Learning your writing pace is a great exercise that will tie into our next topic, learning to lift 50,000 words. Wow, lifting 50K words, it sure sounds hard, and I will help you lift it so lets go.
You are probably wondering why I keep saying "lift" instead of "write" your 50K, well it isn't a typo, there is a reason for it so you'd better read on. It all boils down to one of the leading causes of people falling short of their 50K during NaNo, they all try to lift all 50K at once instead of working up to it. It is no different than someone who has finally decides to get in shape, which is a goal much like writing a novel because it will take maximum commitment, and yet they try and do 50 or 100 pushups or run 5 or 10 miles the first day of their new resolution. I bet you probably chuckled or rolled your eyes when you read that an imagined someone doing that their first time working out in well maybe forever. They are going to fail most of the time right?
Of course they are and not just because if it were that easy everyone would be doing it. The reason we fail when we try to go for broke on our new goal is because we need to build a habit, to work toward obtaining discipline and willpower to do something when all you want to do is anything else, even the dishes or those 100 pushups.
Writing is a lot like working out. I say that because all too often I hear of someone who writes casually, or worse hasn't written in a long time, who finally says, "I am going to write that novel" and then try and do it all in a day or two, what do you think happens next? Do they make it?
I bet you sighed, rolled your eyes and maybe even laughed again. Good. Understanding your limitations is the first key to building a habit. So how do you build a writing habit? How can you write your 50K words in just 30 days? The answer is simple, NaNo doesn't start on November 1st, NaNo begins right now -- today.
Here is my challenge to you. If you have a writing habit now, great, push yourself further, but for the vast majority of you who aren't satisfied with your habit, today is the first day of the rest of your writing life. Set a daily goal and hit it today before you go to bed. If you haven't written anything in a while, it doesn't matter how long, start with 100 words and if you feel adventurous aim for 300. And in a week or so bump it up 20% and try to hit 4-500 words. A week later try and hit 750 and the week after target 1,000 and when NaNo rolls up in 4 1/2 weeks you will be really close to 1,667.
It will be hard at first, and you will probably miss a day, it happens. Don't kick your ass about it, don't let the guilt break your progress, kick the feeling that you can't do it square in the balls and laugh. Because writing 50K words is hard to do, but the truth is you can't write 50K any faster than you can write 1K because you still have to write it one word at a time.
It doesn't matter if its one mile ran or one push up done, you have to start small and work your way up to writing to the pace you want. The key is to start now and condition yourself, learn your flow, time your pace, measure your progress. Because when November starts you will have the knowledge, experience and ultimately the confidence you need to tackle all 50K and then some.
So Grinders, what is your word goal today? This week? By the end of the month? Where would you like to finally end up someday with your daily writing goal? Tell me all about it in the comments or shoot me an email. And if you don't want to share it, that's fine, I respect it, but respect yourself and take that goal and write it down on paper, the back of your hand, in a phone or smear food on a wall, but write it down and stick to it.
Until next time, keep grinding out your words.
You are probably wondering why I keep saying "lift" instead of "write" your 50K, well it isn't a typo, there is a reason for it so you'd better read on. It all boils down to one of the leading causes of people falling short of their 50K during NaNo, they all try to lift all 50K at once instead of working up to it. It is no different than someone who has finally decides to get in shape, which is a goal much like writing a novel because it will take maximum commitment, and yet they try and do 50 or 100 pushups or run 5 or 10 miles the first day of their new resolution. I bet you probably chuckled or rolled your eyes when you read that an imagined someone doing that their first time working out in well maybe forever. They are going to fail most of the time right?
Of course they are and not just because if it were that easy everyone would be doing it. The reason we fail when we try to go for broke on our new goal is because we need to build a habit, to work toward obtaining discipline and willpower to do something when all you want to do is anything else, even the dishes or those 100 pushups.
Writing is a lot like working out. I say that because all too often I hear of someone who writes casually, or worse hasn't written in a long time, who finally says, "I am going to write that novel" and then try and do it all in a day or two, what do you think happens next? Do they make it?
I bet you sighed, rolled your eyes and maybe even laughed again. Good. Understanding your limitations is the first key to building a habit. So how do you build a writing habit? How can you write your 50K words in just 30 days? The answer is simple, NaNo doesn't start on November 1st, NaNo begins right now -- today.
Here is my challenge to you. If you have a writing habit now, great, push yourself further, but for the vast majority of you who aren't satisfied with your habit, today is the first day of the rest of your writing life. Set a daily goal and hit it today before you go to bed. If you haven't written anything in a while, it doesn't matter how long, start with 100 words and if you feel adventurous aim for 300. And in a week or so bump it up 20% and try to hit 4-500 words. A week later try and hit 750 and the week after target 1,000 and when NaNo rolls up in 4 1/2 weeks you will be really close to 1,667.
It will be hard at first, and you will probably miss a day, it happens. Don't kick your ass about it, don't let the guilt break your progress, kick the feeling that you can't do it square in the balls and laugh. Because writing 50K words is hard to do, but the truth is you can't write 50K any faster than you can write 1K because you still have to write it one word at a time.
It doesn't matter if its one mile ran or one push up done, you have to start small and work your way up to writing to the pace you want. The key is to start now and condition yourself, learn your flow, time your pace, measure your progress. Because when November starts you will have the knowledge, experience and ultimately the confidence you need to tackle all 50K and then some.
So Grinders, what is your word goal today? This week? By the end of the month? Where would you like to finally end up someday with your daily writing goal? Tell me all about it in the comments or shoot me an email. And if you don't want to share it, that's fine, I respect it, but respect yourself and take that goal and write it down on paper, the back of your hand, in a phone or smear food on a wall, but write it down and stick to it.
Until next time, keep grinding out your words.
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