how do you write?

[killallhippies]

are you a chaotic fucker who just sits down and starts typing whatever comes into your head with only a vague idea of where you're going or are an orderly little bugger who makes outlines, takes notes, writes a rough draft then a second and a final? just curious.

me? i'm a chaotic fucker. i couldn't write out an outline if my life depended on it. i start typing once i get a general idea and then i'm off. sometimes it sucks and i have to rewrite it. sometimes it rocks. it takes me awhile, but i'm often pleased with the results.

except my gay male stories. those always end up sucking.

 

[Couture]

I can't outline either. I couldn't bear to sit down and write if I knew everything the characters were going to do.

 

[fifty5]

Modus operandi

Sometimes it just comes to me - and I can flog the keyboard to death.

Other times, it cums to me in bed - then I go through it in my head, while I wait for the truck to be unloaded - and finally key it in.

No, not 'finally', 'cos then I re-read and re-write.

Occasionally even type notes about the characters and their characteristics.

But, to date, those that see the light (get published) have come from the gut and write themselves.

Maybe that's why I've only published 2...

 

[OhMissScarlett]

Most of the time I have a very clear idea of a definite beginning and end to my stories. It's the in between I get bogged down with. Most of the work goes on up in my head before it ever hits the keyboard.

I guess I'm chaotic when it comes to actually putting it down. I may make notes on Post-it's, but you'll never see me making character outlines or anything like that. My characters come to life as I go along. I'm not a very productive writer, but I know what I want to write.

 

[MLyons]

When writing for readers, I'm an orderly little bugger. I write a rough draft (which to me is an outline). I revise it. I revise it again... and then I have someone look at it. Then I revise again, and again. Then I have someone else look at it. Then I revise again, and again and again... and then again. Then, when I can't stand to look at it anymore, I revise one more time. Then I post it. This process takes for fucking ever, and is quite draining, but in the end I have something I have no regrets about. When I have done the very best that I can, the bad votes I might recieve can still sting, but are much easier to swallow.

When writing only for my self, I'm a chaotic fucker--and there are usually all kinds of regrets there, but I won't go into that.

 

[Huckleman2000]

I usually write from the inside out - what I start with usually winds up in the middle someplace, and I work from there to the edges.

Unfortunately, that's my "work" writing.

I'm having a damnably difficult time writing my first story for this site. I have an incident (and idea) that I'm basing it around, but I keep cutting everything else because it sounds boring or superfluous. My work writing has to be very direct, without anything that isn't of consequence. So I'm good at cutting. I just need to focus on what is of consequence in this type of writing.

 

[Rumple Foreskin]

To outline or not usually depends on format, genre, and the author's personality.

Format: I've never seen a survey on this subject, but I'd imagine a higher precentage of novels are outlined than short storis. My assumption may be biased by the fact I always outline novels and never outline short stories.

Genre: Many action/adventure and mystery authors don't use outline. Many people who write mainstream and multi-generational, multi-character epics do use outlines.

Personality: There is no right, wrong, or "best" way. Do whatever works best for you and your project.

Other than that, my writing technique is very much like MLyons. In fact, it may be the only thing I have in common with that fine writer. To paraphrase Hemingway, first drafts are shit.

Once I have an idea, I try to rough out a story. Turning that into readable prose is a matter of adding, subtracting, and organizing it until something resembling a story emerges. That's the fun part. Once it's finished, the re-writing begins.

Rumple Foreskin

 

[The_Fool]

Yes....

 

[R. Richard]

I don't work to an outline as such. I do usually have a very strong idea of my characters and their basic interactions before I start. When I do start to write, I find that the characters more or less write the story. That is, they develop during the course of writing the story. That last does not work well with an outline.

As has been pointed out, the longer the work, the more necessary it is to have some sort of framework to keep things in order.

JMHO.

 

[carsonshepherd]

Outline?

What the fuck is that?

 

[LilDarlin]

My Style~

Crazy~Disorganized~

When I try to write. It never happens. Thewn while in the middle of something, anything/everything it hits me. Then watch out. Flurry of papers, pencils galore here I go...
Then there are those times. Stress relief, answering emails.(music on), reading others poems/stories, something just pops out at me.~~a Word~ usually just one word, and I am so gone..
Then I am typing hysterically~Words flowing, manically getting all thoughts, words and phrases running, gallopping thru my mind. Have to keep writing till I get every last one..every word, phrase, thought out. Sucked dry. Nothingness..Tis done. No more. No less. Whew~~~
Is my crazy world of words. Love it, and hate it at times..

Good Luck to all you in your writing. May the dreaded *block* never darken your door...



LilDarlin~

 

[neonlyte]

Short stories get written straightout, quick edit, leave alone, re-read, re-edit or re-write. Though my last two went straight from type to posting with only a quick edit, they both have much higher vote/read ratios than stuff I've taken time over. That suggests to me I must be killing some of the 'life' in the stories by working them too hard.

Long stuff: 3 novels in draft. One heavily reviewed on Story Feedback Circle, will start re-working that once the current project is done.

One is hung and may re-surface. Needs a large amount of research to deal with the main plot set mid-seventies pre and post revolution Portugal. It's a tiime factor problem.

Current project, two thirds way through first draft, intending to complete this month using Nano as the spur. Spent six months researching story, it's a fictional tale woven around a real event that occured in 1992. Huge catalogue of links, articles and background, the story writes itself. I knew where I wanted it to start and finish, the 'real event' provides the backbone along which the story meanders. It's taken me in directions I never even considered when I started out, it's also much more sexual that I thought it would be, which is a bit of a surprise as it was not meant to be sexual in nature, it was just that these things kept popping up. Some of the more graphic scenes will probably be cut for the audience I'm aiming for.

Outlines - frames I'd say.

Chronology mattrix essential if you have story linking characters through their lives. Start with the oldest, give them a year of birth, add everyone else alongside them. It's a huge aid in reminding you that things actually happen in the lives of your characters that influenced their current attitudes in the character development your writing.

Neon

 

[impressive]

No "formal" outline -- but I usually have a pretty good mental outline before I start writing. Sometimes, I just have a scenario in mind or a character ... and I start writing to see where it leads. (Hence the dozen or so half written stories in my folder.)

I have never done "character sheets" (yet) 'cause my work is typically pretty short (under 15,000 words). If tackling a longer project, I think I'd use 'em.

 

[cookiejar]

I never outline, I hated them in school ... I hate them now. I usually have an idea of what I want and just type. As I go along I insert phrases, whole sentences, even switch places for paragraphs. Somehow I tie it all together at the end to make a reasonably structured story.

 

[rgraham666]

All my stuff so far is short stories and I haven't done any outlines for them.

When I get an idea for a story, I spend a lot of time thinking about it. I visualize the major scenes and work on linking them together.

If it's a 'short piece of smut' I don't do much editing. Clean up sentences and that.

If it's a longer piece, I 'hand polish' it. Read it, polish, read it, polish, send it to people I trust to be honest, get their comments, read, polish.

Takes a while, but it's worth it. My longer pieces have consistently high votes. Except for the one bombers.

I do have one longer piece I've outlined. It's going to be four inter-related short stories with two central characters shown at five year intervals. I needed the outline to make sure I kept things straight.

 

[Boota]

I don't outline short stories. They're short. I don't see the need. I can remember them well enough. For novels I have a fairly extensive outline and notes, mainly because I don't want to forget any points that I need to cover or resolve. If I got all the way to press and didn't catch a mistake like that it would drive me nuts FOREVER! LOL.

 

[CrimsonMaiden]

No outline. Just go with the flow.

 

[eric shawn listo]

I get a fairly good idea in my head of where it going, characters and such, then go at it. I love to be surprised by something I hadn't thought of originally. Thats where the textures, senses and feelings come from.

 

[killallhippies]

neat. nice posts. i wondered if anyone would actually bother to outline a short story and now i know the answer is pretty much a straight forward no with a few exceptions.

 

[Belegon]

The only thing I've outlined was done with a co-author, so the outline was necessary. Usually I just listen to the muse. Some of my best bits have come out of "the void" and I fear if I had an outline I would have an excuse to resist these messages...

 

[scheherazade_79]

I usually start off as an orderly little bugger with a proper plan, but as soon as I start writing the plan flies out of the window and I turn into a chaotic fucker. This might sound weird, but if I'm writing a story rather than a pure description of a sexual act, I tend to write a plan after finishing it - just to make sure the plot flows.

 

[millennium_bard]

I usually have a good idea in my head where the story is going.
Sometimes I'll have a whole scenario prescripted in my mind before i sit down.
But the best work are those stories that just seem to flow efforlessly.

My late brother was much the same way except for his magnum opus. He left story lines and character sheets outlining physical characteristics and personality traits etc.
These have proven invaluable to me as there are a few pages missing from his manuscript where I have to fill in the blanks.
I have to do just that before I can submit the third chapter in his final story.

My Survivors series seems to be one of those that just writes itself as I type. I'm just along for the ride there.

My Strange vacation series seems to have run into a bit of writer's block for now, but I have no doubt that it will be continued soon

My Gonad The Ballbarian story was intended as a one shot deal, but after writing it, I have at least 4 more episodes in mind for when I get the time to sit down and type them.
The Gonad stories just seem to jump into my mind full blown (if you'll forgive the pun) and are all there, complete and waiting for me.

 

[Octavian]

how do you find the time to write, killallhippies?

With 27000 posts to your name since April last year killallhippies, I am amazed you find the time to write, whether in a chaotic fashion or not!

Octavian

 

[killallhippies]

Re: how do you find the time to write, killallhippies?

With 27000 posts to your name since April last year killallhippies, I am amazed you find the time to write, whether in a chaotic fashion or not!

Octavian

fuck you, post counter.

 

[Quiet_Cool]

I can't say an outline really, but when I write short fiction, I know exactly where I'm headed, to the point that, with most of my stories, I write them in pieces and put them together when i'm done. They fit almost perfectly. I can't say that applies to what I've posted here, but then, not much happens but shagging, and how much planning and plot development does that take?

As for long fiction, I'm doing NaNo, my second attempt, and I'm finding that plotting certain ideas with the intent but not promise to follow through is helpful.

Q_C