Writing Process

What is your writing process like? For instance, I write very slowly. I can spend hours and only get a few paragraphs down. I analyze every sentence and try to make it as perfect as it can get. It's been months working on my first book and I have around 25 pages. (Aiming for 100). Do you write at night? Slowly? Quickly? Listen to music? Silence? How distracted are you? My biggest personal issue is the motivation to write, is it hard for you anons to get started working writing? General writing process discussion.

Not sure that I can speak, since I haven't written in a long time. But my best, and basically only writing I've written that I'm proud of, was written really quickly. I didn't look back or revise, just wrote whatever came to mind. I'd start with an image or an action and develop an scene around it. If a scene started boring me and I got an idea for one later in the story, I just started working on that one. Your early draft will be shit no matter how meticulous you are, so having a fragmented pile of slush is fine. You can fix it in editing.

I used to be exactly like you. I would spend hours on something as mundane as an email paragraph, let alone actual writing. I trained myself to write faster by getting drunk enough to inhibit my perfectionism. Now I can write several thousand words a day. I think it's foolish to edit while you're writing your first draft, which is essentially what you're doing.

That's another question for the thread. Do you PLAN what you're going to write and does it help?

Well it's just how I write, i don't think there is a point to put it down if it's shit. I'd rather go back and edit something I think is good already and then have it turn out even better. Even though I am already picky, I plan on going back for a revision.

I, particularly, take some notes to guide myself but mostly try to move in the most organic way. It feels stiffed if you're just following a preestablished pattern.

I guess for this book I've been making a lot of notes because of how difficult the story is. But I take notes and think of scenes and jot them down to later add more to and refurbish. Sometimes even a phrase I like if I'll jot down.

I usually write at night. Other than that, I don't worry at all about making anything perfect. Even if an idea is kind of iffy, I still write it down. For a first draft, I just kind of let it all flow. It's better to have too much material than not enough.

Then, you're going to spend most of your time on editing, so you slowly clean everything up and worry about making it perfect in your next drafts.

How long do you guys write at a time? How do you get yourself into it?

Honestly when I write more I feel a sense of progress that motivates me to write more. You should give it a shot, if motivation is your issue. Think of it like setting in place the stone you will sculpt into precision with editing.