Working with deadlines

[flawed_ethics]

Okay. I know writting under a deadline, especially if your a half-assed writer like myself, will only hurt a story. However, I have had my heart set on completing and polishing my WIP for the holiday season. One driving factor is that I would then submit it under the Holiday (Christmas) Contest, since it literally takes place around this (2003) New Year weekend.

Of the outlined seven chapters, I have two done. Unproofread. (It does clock in at a meaty 13,000 words though.)

It's a lengthy story for me, and it's otherwise developing nicely. In fact, this past Saturday I churned out the second chapter almost in full. But with work, engagements and preparing for the holiday season here at home, my available time to type away is becoming scarce.

My question: are there any techniques employed by others here at the AH to establish successful marathon writing sessions?

Thanks!

 

[raphy]

Coffee. That's about it from me

 

[Colleen Thomas]

I don't write under deadlines often, but I do churn out a considerable volume of work in short periods. My advice is to vizualize. No matter where you are or what you are doing there are dead spots in every day. Perhaps waiting in line or in an office or the few minutes before bedtime.

Imagine your story, vizualize where it is going, try out different approaches all in your head. When you have time to write you will find that you get more done because you have already thought through exactly where you want to go with a particular scene. You have already examined and discarded false starts so your time before the screen is more productive. Chronic insomnia is also a plus

-Colly

 

[Icingsugar]

Are you talking about one sitting, when you say session, or a longer period of time? For the first, I recommend lots of fast energy. I work as a freelance writer, so I know all about deadlines. My drug of choice if I have to finish an article overnight is Sprite, or tea with lots of sugar. And candy, and chocolate, and basically anything that is bad for your teeth. Sugar is the key, it keeps you going like a Duracell bunny.

If it is writing diciplin for longer periods you are after, unplug the TV, the phone and the modem. It worked wonders for me.

 

[wildsweetone]

Not sure if this will help, but here's some thing I'm doing...

For me, I have 'x' amount of things I need to get done in 'x' amount of time. The next seven weeks are going to be the busiest time that I've ever had. I wish there truely were 30 hours in every day and only 5 were necessary for sleep.

Planning in advance, for work I know I'll need to make time for is helping. Ensuring that I have a good amount of background work done before I need it, will help when the time comes. Recognising and utilising any 'thumb twiddling' time will take up the slack.

In order to make sure I have time to write, I have a timetable. Occasionally I slip up, but I've become more regular with my writing than I used to be.

As a matter of routine, I get up earlier, write 3 x A4 pages of longhand stream of consciousness. This helps to clear my head of all the rubbish (okay quit laughing ) so I can settle into half an hour of writing.

5.00am - write 3 x A4 sheets longhand.
5.45am - shower, breakfast, sort out family etc.
8.00am - check the SG, catch up with friends, editing, housework
*** write for half an hour in this time slot.
11am - leave for work
After work, I recharge my batteries, a little playtime, drawing, reading, driving, loud music with solid bass beat, anything goes kind of time before knuckling down to family life again. If I have an urgent or big editing job on, then this recharging time is basically quartered.

Then in the evening, a slightly earlier dinner has given me the chance to write for 30 to 60 mins from about 7pm.

There is nothing on tv at that time, the family are busy doing their own things and I have about an hour to write. Mostly there is noise of some kind, tv, stereo (sometimes a couple, usually on different stations), shower, singing, phones ringing, texting etc... It's hard as I prefer writing in silence, but I'm learning to block it out.

With my own writing needs and now NaNoWriMo, I've basically been forced into making sure I have 'some' kind of routine in order to achieve writing goals. I'm not nice to know if I don't let my creativity out in some form on a very regular basis.

Things to try:
Why don't you think about signing up for NaNo and use it as an impetus to kick you into a better writing habit?

You may well find that it's not an essential part of life to watch that tv program that you've seen already. Try taping it instead, reward yourself with viewing it after your project is finished.

Try using a hand held tape recorder while travelling.

Go through your day as normal, but tomorrow, take explicit notes on where your time is spent. You may be surprised just how you can fit in more writing.

If you work, plan for recharging your batteries one whole day and call in sick. It's known as 'having a well day off' and can work miracles before you get to the point of being unwell from carrying extra expectations around.

Make a pen appointment time once a week in your work diary and use the 10-15 minutes to take a walk.

I hope some of this waffle helps.

wildsweetone
ps Somebody please remind me of this posting in about three weeks time.
pps Does this count as my evening writing time?

 

[snooper]

My 'day job' involves a lot of technical writing to deadlines, and my novels are all supposed to be written to a publisher's schedule. In both cases, if it makes the writing worse it hits my pocket.

The secret, as Collen Thomas indicated, is to have absolutely everything written in your head before you sit down to write the words.

For the novels, I have a complete plot and lists of the major characters and locations before I start. Then I sort out one scene at a time (not necessarily in the order they appear) in my head, anywhere but mostly in bed. Then I write that scene.

It does help that I only sleep about four hours a night, so I have lots of in bed think time.

Oh, and I still miss some of my publisher's deadlines.

 

[English Lady]

I just dont do deadlines*L* Once i tried it and my story went AWOL! it was a christmas effort...now i don't try and do anything for the competitions*L* Even my custom stories i write don't have official deadlines...I need it flexible*L*

 

[Colleen Thomas]

I just dont do deadlines*L* Once i tried it and my story went AWOL! it was a christmas effort...now i don't try and do anything for the competitions*L* Even my custom stories i write don't have official deadlines...I need it flexible*L*

Love your Av

-colly

 

[English Lady]

thanks colleen..i fancied a change

 

[Uncle Meat]

Are you talking about one sitting, when you say session, or a longer period of time? For the first, I recommend lots of fast energy. I work as a freelance writer, so I know all about deadlines. My drug of choice if I have to finish an article overnight is Sprite, or tea with lots of sugar. And candy, and chocolate, and basically anything that is bad for your teeth. Sugar is the key, it keeps you going like a Duracell bunny.

As a former freelancer, I know about the deadline all too well. I found it helped greatly when I came to the point at which I could tell how long a job was going to take. So I was able to say stuff like, "It's not due for two more days, and I can knock it out in one. So I'm watching Marx Brothers movies tonight."

But that was corporate stuff, just working with what I was given. I didn't "fabricate" anything of any substance.

As far as drugs go, I'm a caffeine kinda guy. Black coffee, all the way.

 

[Icingsugar]

As a former freelancer, I know about the deadline all too well. I found it helped greatly when I came to the point at which I could tell how long a job was going to take. So I was able to say stuff like, "It's not due for two more days, and I can knock it out in one. So I'm watching Marx Brothers movies tonight."

But that was corporate stuff, just working with what I was given. I didn't "fabricate" anything of any substance.

Same for me. Trite news reporting and corporate copywriting most of the time. But I see that I have a lot to learn here. So far,I haven't mastered any kind of time management sense. Every item I write is estimated to take "...fucking forever! Someone please give me my 9 to 5 job back!" Those tantrums pass though, everyday when I decide, just like that, to grant myself an extra hour of sleep in the morning. Just because I can, and want to.

 

[wornoutkeyboard]

Welll....

I am also currently a freelance writer. And honestly, while I have put a few things off here and there...by and large I do not have a real problem with deadlines. Once my research is done, I usually just stop whatever I might be doing, and write it then and there (of course, time permitting).

For me, fitting time in to write is still a challenge tho... I write, I am married, I have a young son PLUS I work PT waiting tables during the "in" season so that we have enough $$ for x-mas presents and what-not.

So I generally write very late at night as I can have absolutely no noise when I write. I've tried writing with background noise and all my writing comes out like garbage if I do that. So if it is a night I wait tables, then I usually start writing @ 1am and will write until at least 3am.

For me the trick is... I write EVERY DAY for at least 2 hours. No ifs ands or buts. Even if I write nothing but complete nonsense or type "blah, I am bored" ninty million times, I make myself write.

But then again.... it is my job. I should treat it like an obligation and not an activity I can do at my own whim.

I also only get about 5 hours of sleep a night and I live on soda or coffee after about 11pm every night.

Well, I'm not certain that I added anything new to this other than my 2c.

~WOK

 

[Guest]

Hello FE. I cannot offer any special advice re. deadlines, I am a procrastinator if a deadline is involved. However, I want to thank Colly for her first post. It is excellent advice and I urge you to try it.

I do the same. I have my next novel (NaNo) in my head and have been watching it like a film. I wake up and I am in a scene. I take a cig break and I return. I fall asleep in my yet to be written novel. It's playing in the back of my mind's eye at this very moment.

The only thing I am doing differently (for NaNo) is writing an outline (of sorts). I am, after all, in that midlife stage when the short-term memory failures are a nuisance.

BTW, I admire Alfred Hitchcock's films in the way I appreciate great books. It is well known that he created his films in his mind's eye, completely - shot by shot. The actual filming bored him. I love that.

regards, Perdita

 

[flawed_ethics]

Wow. Lot's of freelance writers out here. I didn't realize that.

Thanks for the advice though. Gauging of the various angles of approach, I suppose my biggest problem right now is my current situation. Long story short, it's leaving me little sanity in my life. But I've dealt with worse, so I just need to trudge through this like anything else. My reward (as wildsweetone) put it, would be to finish this story in time.

I just hope that I can find a willing editor willing to peruse it and point out the major flaws once it's done! It's bad enough being under a self-imposed deadline, but to ask a deadline of another is a bit much.

Thanks again!