Elizabeth Barrette (ysabetwordsmith) wrote,
Elizabeth Barrette
ysabetwordsmith
  • Mood: busy

How I Write

difrancis put this meme on her blog.

How do you do it? By this I mean a bit about your process. Do you work off of a "pages per day" kind of deal--with a bare minimum of what you need to do for the day to be accomplished? A word count? Plot?

part two of the question formatting -- what does yours look like? When you're working on a work-in-progress. Times new roman? double space? single?


1) There are two options. Option A: I pick something from the stack of ongoing projects and work on it, taking reasonable breaks. I may have a specific project planned for a specific day, but usually not a word count or page count. I try to finish things before the deadline becomes an oppressive burden. Option B: A story leaps on my unsuspecting consciousness like a couger pouncing on a mountain goat. I resurface into this world when my partner knocks on the door and asks where supper is.

2) I write in MS Word using Arial 12 pt type, double spaced, double justified, because that is what I can read. Small type, serif type, and ragged margins are hard on my eyes. I try to be careful about this stuff because I spend many hours a day staring at this screen.
Tags: meme, writing
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  • 7 comments
glitteringlynx

glitteringlynx

June 9 2008, 23:41:20 UTC 13 years ago

1. Almost always happens as your option B. I find I can't just force myself to start writing. I have to get an idea. If nothing comes naturally to me, it'll be crap.

2. I typically write on paper first. I type it out, if need be, when I'm happy with it. Most of my works are hardcopy, however.
ysabetwordsmith

ysabetwordsmith

June 9 2008, 23:50:14 UTC 13 years ago

Learning to steer takes practice. I've been at this for decades -- and wordsmithing professionally for about 14 years -- and my control is still far from perfect. I can write nonfiction half-dead if needs must, but it's very tedious that way; I much prefer writing when inspired. For fiction, I need to be reasonably inspired, but I know a lot of ways to spark it if it doesn't arrive spontaneously.

I don't particularly want to be mugged by the muse when I'm in the shower, on a long car ride (it's cruel to my partner), or in a romantic situation. Come on, I spend hours a day in an opportune time, the muse can friggin' learn to aim. It's a huge target.
glitteringlynx

glitteringlynx

June 10 2008, 03:01:57 UTC 13 years ago

The main obstacle I've had for the last.. I dunno how long... was that I hadn't written a thing in years. There are good, physical, medical reasons for the absenteeism. My entire personality disappeared for a few years, so it's understandable that my creativity went with it.

However, having recovered and not being entirely the same person I was, I was uncertain if my creativity had been similarly affected. I mean, when you start taking drugs which affect your brain chemistry, and your brain now responds differently, will this affect other areas of the intellect and imagination as well?

Well, the best advice I've seen echoed over and over again is that the best way to work on something like creativity is just to work at it. Constantly. Practise, practise, practise. Something, I admit, I've never had the discipline to do (it's hard to validate the need for homework/practise when you do exceptionally well without having done any). So, I've started doing little bits and pieces during quiet times at work.

It has proven to be a little rusted around the edges from lack of use. With some oil, some sandpaper and some elbow grease, I'm confident it'll be back in working condition in relatively little time.
ysabetwordsmith

ysabetwordsmith

June 10 2008, 05:46:24 UTC 13 years ago

Good practice makes good progress. It will probably help to write smaller things at first, so you have a clear sense of accomplishment when you finish them. A good set of writing exercises would be useful, thought not always easy to find.
glitteringlynx

glitteringlynx

June 10 2008, 16:32:19 UTC 13 years ago

Oh yeah. So far it's been very short stories or poems. I have another short story tumbling in my mind, but I need to check some details first to make sure I stay consistent with existing knowledge.