The writing process is how a writer (consciously or subconsciously) sets about writing what they do. Every writer has their own process, and I’ve talked before about the similarities and differences between writing as a pantser or as a planner (see here). Still, while I was teaching one of my recent Writing Safaris, a student was amazed at the amount of research, thought and planning I do before I write. For me, it’s a no-brainer because I don’t want to waste my readers’ time or mine. When I write something, I want it to be good – for myself as well as others.
So when the lovely Simon & Schuster author Jenn J McLeod approached me recently with the idea of joining The Writing Process Blog Hop, of course I said ‘yes’. Last year I spent a great deal of time and effort exploring where writers write – so why not now explore how writers write? It might be quite revealing!
The idea is that every author in this blog hop answers the same four questions, then points you towards four other authors doing the same. So… let’s do it! Here are my four answers…
1) What am I working on?
This month, I started writing a novel I’ve been planning for years. The idea for it came at a time when I was stressed out as a full-time mum of two kids under two, with very little money, isolated from family and friends, and really struggling with it. Novels full of adventure and imagination can really help with all that.
2) How does my work differ from others of its genre?
I write for readers who crave a return to stories of adventure that promise wild rides and an escape from the here and now, while staying firmly in the recognisable. My readers want more than just a drama or a thriller, more than just a romance or a speculative element that piques their interest – they want it all, told with a visual nuance, through fascinating characters in whom they can identify a part of themselves, all in the one story. Here’s some more about my novels, which my agent is currently shopping around to publishers. Wanna come on an adventure with me?
3) Why do I write what I do?
When I was reading English at University, I read everything my lecturers asked me to – Old English, Middle English, English Renaissance, the Neo-Classical, Romanticism, the Victorians, Modernism… the lot! I loved it all! But after I graduated and started travelling, I turned to the books that reflected my lifestyle – on the go, always learning, full of meaning, but also packed with the type of excitement that belongs to exploring a new land for the first time. Whether life slams you in the face with its harshness or breezes past you like a fairy wind, I see it as a gift. Life is magical. Life is about searching for improved existences and converting the unfamiliar into an adventure at once unseen and unlikely yet there and very real, sometimes thrilling and dangerous, yet ultimately ours to relish. Writers write what they know and what they love. So those are the types of stories I now write.
4) How does my writing process work?
My notes, ready for writing “Blacker Hell”.
Some sketches; some handwritten or collected notes; some computer files.
All my stories start with a thought. It might be something I read, a song I hear, a particularly meaningful experience, or a conversation with a friend that sparks an idea. Then I think about my idea for a long time. I think about people and places, and to whom this story might belong. I think about it until someone speaks up and says:
“Hey, you know that story idea you’ve been thinking about? Well, that story’s mine!”
“Great!” I’ll tell them. “You’ll have to wait though while I make dinner, put the kids to bed and finish this editorial project I’m working on for a client.”
That character will then grumble for a while until I have the time to sit down and write their story. In the meantime though, I’ll do some research. I’ll find a place for their story and will brainstorm what that place might look like. I may even sketch. I’ll think about their clothes and mannerisms, and I’ll have that all decided too before I sit down to write. I’ll also plan where the story will go, roughly, and how it will end. I’ll jot down notes on my phone, on the computer, and on paper. So by the time I actually start writing, the story itself already kinda exists.
By then, my character will have had enough of sitting in my brain too, and will be bursting to get down on the page. So off they go. I let them lead me towards the plot posts I’ve set for them, and they take me on the type of adventure I love.
Being a perfectionist, that’s not the end of my writing process of course. Once my story is written, I’ll give it some time to breathe before revising it and editing it. After that, I’ll give it to some trusted readers to critique it, thoroughly. Only then do I submit it to publishers or enter competitions.
Cool, huh?
If you want to read more about my editorial process, then that’s set out in my blog post When Is A Story ‘Done‘.
But what about other writers? Do their writing processes differ from mine and, if so, how much? To find out, I’m tagging three other writers (who will all blog about this next Monday) and I’m linking back to Jenn J McLeod (who blogged about this last week) so you can read their answers too. Jump around this blog hop, see where you end up, and don’t forget to let me know what *you* think about writing processes. Has anything I’ve said in this blog surprised you, or is it what you were expecting? Let me know in the comments below, or via your preferred form of social media 🙂
Jenn J McLeod
Jenn J McLeod writes Australian contemporary fiction about friendship, family and small country towns keeping big secrets. Her Seasons Collection of four novels (with Simon & Schuster) will keep her busy until 2016 – at least! Jenn’s writing process is here.
Website: www.jennjmcleod.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/JennJMcLeod.Books
Twitter: @JennJMcLeod
Alan Baxter
Alan Baxter is the author of dark fantasy thriller novels, RealmShift and MageSign, as well as the short horror novel, Dark Rite (co-authored with David Wood). He has around 50 short stories published, including in the Year’s Best Australian Fantasy & Horror (twice – 2010 & 2012). Alan won the 2013 Australian Horror Writers’ Association Short Story competition (tying with me – yay!). He has a triology of novels coming out shortly with Harper Collins Voyager.
Website: www.alanbaxteronline.com
Facebook: Alan-Baxter
Twitter: @AlanBaxter
Pip Harry
Pip Harry is a health journalist, university lecturer, saltwater swimmer, mum, YA author, lover of contemporary fiction, romantic comedies, chocolate, cider and meals cooked by other people. She is the author of novels I’ll Tell You Mine (UQP, 2013), Reality Chick ebook (Xoum, 2014) and Head of the River (UQP, 2014).
Website: www.pipharry.com
Facebook: Pip.Harry
Twitter: @PipHaz
Walter Mason
Walter Mason is a writer, spiritual tourist, lifelong dilettante and the author of Destination Saigon (named one of the ten best travel books of the year by the Sydney Morning Herald). His latest book Destination Cambodia is a colourful adventure to one of the world’s hottest new destinations, a fascinating literary journey in which Cambodia is vibrant and its people excited about the future while never denying their haunted past.
Website: www.waltermason.com
Facebook: WalterMason
Twitter: @walterm
Hi Zena (warrior) 😉
You’ve said a lot of things that grate and resonate. The things that grate are the things that you do that I don’t, and I’m not sure why, other than to think of myself as different. You said, for instance: “I write for readers who crave a return to stories of adventure that promise wild rides and an escape from the here and now, while staying firmly in the recognisable.” I still haven’t arrived at knowing who I’m writing for, other than for people who read. I’m still really writing for myself. I mean, I write stories I like. I don’t know how to get passed this stage, if it is a stage.
When I was completing my BA, I read what I had too, and some more, if I found it interesting. You said: “When I was reading English at University, I read everything my lecturers asked me to – Old English, Middle English, English Renaissance, the Neo-Classical, Romanticism, the Victorians, Modernism… the lot! I loved it all!” I didn’t complete a BA English; I completed a BA Social Science. Later, I specialized in applied linguistics. I sometimes wish I had’ve completed a BA English like you did because I find that literature very interesting. I love historical fiction, e.g. Philippa Gregory. I was thinking of studying psychology when I entered university. I guess that says a lot about me. I have tried to read widely as many suggest, but I just can’t read stories I can’t get into. I was spoiled, perhaps, by my favourites (the Dune saga). The effect Frank Herbert’s style had on me was to lessen my enjoyment of writing that doesn’t achieve the same level of satisfaction I get from reading his story telling style. I don’t even like my own writing sometimes because I can’t achieve what Herbert achieved. And some people have criticized my writing for its ‘seventies’ influence. I don’t understand that.
You said: “Writers write what they know and what they love.” I’ve heard this a lot. I don’t know what I know. I mean, I think I write about what I don’t know. I find that I set myself a goal of writing a story but have no idea about how to achieve it, and so use a slightly different process to yourself – I plot the structure before I write. I plot the story and then begin writing knowing where I’m headed. I don’t know that I write about what I know; but I certainly try to write what I love, and perhaps do it feebly. I guess the high hurdle I set myself by trying to achieve what Herbert achieved is an Achilles heel.
“All my stories start with a thought.” This is probably true of everyone, right? I mean, I have more thoughts in a day than I can manage and don’t always write them all down. I used to keep a dream diary. But I find ideas just pop into my head. Sometimes the ideas come too fast and I can’t manage it all. But sometimes those initial ideas generate new ideas as I write, and I often go with those too. I do not believe I think about an idea for long. I mean, I write ideas in my ideas notebook and come back to them another time but I tend not to think about that idea while I’m working on something else. I just keep them safe in the notebook so they don’t escape. I certainly don’t do what you do; let them fester or germinate until something happens or someone talks first – like that staring game. Who’s gonna blink first?
As for research, it doesn’t happen until I think I need more information on something that has appeared in the story and I don’t know much about it. Is this what you mean by writing about what you know? Know as in general knowledge, rather than as in something specific: yachting. You said: “I’ll find a place for their story and will brainstorm what that place might look like. I may even sketch. I’ll think about their clothes and mannerisms, and I’ll have that all decided too before I sit down to write.” This is your process. Mine is slightly different, I think. I tend to have these thoughts about the person, the place or an event the instant I start thinking and writing. If it’s a person, their appearance, their behaviour, their general outlook, their job, their purpose, and more, often suddenly appear in my mind. Writing this ‘stream of consciousness’ down often doesn’t seem to convey what I saw in my mind’s eye. Sometimes it is close, other times it isn’t and I struggle to find the words. The first read through often lets me embellish and refine the character, place and/or event. Occasionally I will re-think something if after the first (second, third, fourth) read through I think what I’ve written is flat and boring. But even this has its challenges. What is boring? I guess that’s something most people do: write, read, revise, read, re-write.
I guess I am saying these things because I am still oddly bemused about what I should be doing (often according to what others say) and how writing happens for me. Some people say there are no rules when it comes to writing fiction, yet others have lists of dos and don’ts. Maybe I’m not really a writer, 😉
Hi Robert,
Thanks so much for stopping by and for writing such an insightful comment in reply – it’s wonderful of you to share this, particularly because it all sounds so very familiar to me!
You see, I’d say that I’ve only come to know for whom I write very recently. For years, I couldn’t describe my writing to anyone succinctly. I tried to mix genres together to describe my writing style, but it never felt right. I got advice from other writers and editors, but their suggested descriptions didn’t capture the excitement and thrill I get from creating my stories. So I came up with my own description.
That in itself took a lot of thought and searching through my work for the one thing I could say my stories all had in common. It was only when I listened to a song playing on the radio one day that it came to me – my stories are all adventures! That single thought set in motion the way I describe my writing today. So I’d say to hang in there. Keep thinking about the one thing all your stories (or most of them at least) have in common with each other, and that will lead you to the type of reader for whom you (inadvertently) write.
And don’t worry that you didn’t read English at university – we could all go round in circles thinking about what we could have or should have done when we were younger. I wasted years of my life practising law whereas I should have been writing. But all of life’s experiences become useful when you’re a writer, which is what I mean when I say ‘write what you know’ – use your past experiences and history when you’re character-building and it will give your characters that extra layer of authenticity readers love. Perhaps one day you’ll be better than Herbert?
In fact, what’s all this about not feeling like a ‘writer’? Of course you’re a writer! Don’t worry, though, we all feel like that from time to time. Someone once said to me: you’ve got to believe in yourself. If you don’t, how can you expect others to believe in you?
So what if I write down all my story ideas and think about them constantly? That’s just the way I do it… I have to write things down, otherwise I forget! I used to start writing stories as soon as I’d created their plots, but afterwards I’d sometimes realise I’d written a story from the perspective of the wrong character and had to start again. So now I wait until I’m sure. But if you’re already sure – go for it!
In short, look at Cormac McCarthy’s “The Road” (have you read it?). Not a shred of punctuation anywhere, yet it’s one of my favourite books of all time, and it’s an international bestseller, now a movie. Now what does that say about rules? Have you read my blog post, Are Rules Made to be Broken? http://zenashapter.com/blog/are-rules-made-to-be-broken/
There’s only one Robert Easterbrook, so keep writing the way you do, refine your style and use the rules that suit you best – then success will follow 🙂
Great stuff! I love reading about other authors’ journeys!
Me too! So watch out next Monday for the next set of answers to these questions! I will be 😉
Great post, Zena. And a lovely line-up to follow, included Walter! Woot!
Woot! This is fun! Thanks for tagging me, Jenn 🙂
Yeah, I like it. That’s what I mean about expecting some interaction on the other FB group.
Cheers, Don
Gotcha! I guess the key to interaction is to start off by asking a question, as you have done 🙂