rachelmanija (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
rachelmanija) wrote2006-06-12 12:54 pm
rachelmanija) wrote2006-06-12 12:54 pm
Things that help me write
At the Pima Writer's Workshop, when all the authors were on a panel and taking questions from the audience, one guy asked how he could stop playing computer games instead of writing. Everyone answered that question with their favorite tips, except for the last author, who said that the question was not about computer games at all but a profound question about what to do with one's life.
I am not going to get into profundities over what one might want to do with one's life. These are just a few things that help me to write instead of doing other things. Some of these, you'll note, contradict each other. That's because not everything works for every project.
1. Go to Starbucks. Don't take a cell phone, and don't pay to get on their wireless. Order a beverage and fire up the computer. Since I have nothing to do but write, and no cats, phone calls, or internet to distract me, I must write for at least as long as it takes to drink my coffee. This is especially good if it's a weekend and I go to the lucky Starbucks in Goleta where I wrote much of All the Fishes Come Home to Roost. The further I am from distractions and the more time I can reserve to be there, the more I get done.
2. Drive on the freeway, with music. I have to try not to get too hypnotized to pay attention to the road, but it's a great time to plot out the next bit of a story.
3. Go see a movie in the theatre. Also a good way to let ideas come to me. TV and movies on DVD don't work, nor do books. I think total immersion in sound and moving images with no other distractions must put me in some sort of light hypnotic state.
4. Write. The more I write, the more I want to write. Working on more than one project at the same time is helpful, because then I can have that wicked feeling of procrastinating on one of them which makes me eager to procrastinate more, and feed that into actually working on the other one.
5. Write fanfic. People are so thrilled when you write about their favorite characters that it reminds me of why it's good to write, and the near-instant feedback makes the whole thing less lonely.
6. Get a contract. Always an excellent motivator.
7. Collaborate. Like a deadline, another person waiting for the next bit ensures that the next bit gets done. Plus if you're totally stuck, you can always turn it over to someone else.
8. Don't tell anyone what you're working on. Criticism at a very early stage is often very squelching.
9. Tell the story in installments, so you have an audience who's always waiting for the next bit.
I am not going to get into profundities over what one might want to do with one's life. These are just a few things that help me to write instead of doing other things. Some of these, you'll note, contradict each other. That's because not everything works for every project.
1. Go to Starbucks. Don't take a cell phone, and don't pay to get on their wireless. Order a beverage and fire up the computer. Since I have nothing to do but write, and no cats, phone calls, or internet to distract me, I must write for at least as long as it takes to drink my coffee. This is especially good if it's a weekend and I go to the lucky Starbucks in Goleta where I wrote much of All the Fishes Come Home to Roost. The further I am from distractions and the more time I can reserve to be there, the more I get done.
2. Drive on the freeway, with music. I have to try not to get too hypnotized to pay attention to the road, but it's a great time to plot out the next bit of a story.
3. Go see a movie in the theatre. Also a good way to let ideas come to me. TV and movies on DVD don't work, nor do books. I think total immersion in sound and moving images with no other distractions must put me in some sort of light hypnotic state.
4. Write. The more I write, the more I want to write. Working on more than one project at the same time is helpful, because then I can have that wicked feeling of procrastinating on one of them which makes me eager to procrastinate more, and feed that into actually working on the other one.
5. Write fanfic. People are so thrilled when you write about their favorite characters that it reminds me of why it's good to write, and the near-instant feedback makes the whole thing less lonely.
6. Get a contract. Always an excellent motivator.
7. Collaborate. Like a deadline, another person waiting for the next bit ensures that the next bit gets done. Plus if you're totally stuck, you can always turn it over to someone else.
8. Don't tell anyone what you're working on. Criticism at a very early stage is often very squelching.
9. Tell the story in installments, so you have an audience who's always waiting for the next bit.