Will I regret it if I leave it to fix later?

CocoCat · Dec 13, 2009

I've left myself a note of what to do to fix a paragraph next time I come to it. I'd like to just move on and make sure I get a full draft this time with no gaps so I'm eager to move on. I often find that leaving my writing for a while makes getting it right easier so this has become a habit but is it a good one or bad? Am I making life harder for myself by leaving myself work to do? Would you say this is an excuse to be lazy?

charlotte49ers · Dec 13, 2009

No way, I think that is a perfectly fine thing to do! At least, I hope it is because I'm doing the same thing here and there (highlighting, adding notes, etc.).

Nateskate · Dec 13, 2009

I have two answers.

If you want to include something and you know you can remember exactly what it is you want to do, then it's okay.

If you're prone to forget, then don't.

What works for me is to write the first draft without thinking at all about perfection. I just want to get the ideas down. And over-thinking slows the process.

But if I have a scene change or a new idea, I have to put it in or I'll forget it. Even with notes it can get overwhelming trying to remember.

Terie · Dec 13, 2009

Not only will you not regret it, it's actually a great strategy. It lets you move on with your work. When you come back to it, you'll likely have a fresher brain and often will immediately see the fix that eluded you before....and would've kept eluding you no matter how long you sweated over it.

The only thing is not to forget to mark it or put the note there; otherwise, you might forget to fix it later. If you're using Word or another word processor that lets you use a highlighter, use that. Believe me, it's extremely embarrassing to remember right after hitting Send that you'd forgotten to fix something. (Been there, done that, have the t-shirt AND the tattoo!)

Claudia Gray · Dec 13, 2009

Although there are some things it's better to go on and hammer out while you're there, a lot of stuff can be dealt with later. I keep a running list of things that will need revision over in another document; I address those items individually later on.

Madison · Dec 13, 2009

Leaving notes for yourself is a great way to go: it allows you to keep your forward momentum. I often leave notes for myself about big things like character change or scene change, and come back to fix them after I've finished the draft.

Shadow_Ferret · Dec 13, 2009

If you're working in Word you can leave little electronic Post-It notes. I do that all the time. Things like "Research this." My first drafts are full of those reminders.

Ardent Kat · Dec 13, 2009

I think it depends on why you're skipping it. If you need to do some research and you don't want to break up the flow of your writing, that sounds like a great reason to pause and come back.

For me, it's been a bad idea because I tend to skip over passages that are just, well, hard. It's an intimidatingly important section or something hard to put into words, so I figure, "I'll come back to it later. It's already hard enough to write this first draft! I'll get to it while I'm in edits."

It was a good thought, but didn't work out at all for me. Those sections are just as daunting and difficult later as they were the first time. Even worse because I've lost the flow and the mindset I was in during the first draft. Every section I skipped and came back to later, I ended up kicking myself and thinking, "Argh! Why did I do that?"

I'm glad I gave it a try, but never again. (At least not for those reasons) Try it yourself, but realize it may be tougher to come back to the second time than it was the first time. Learning your own style of what works for you can only come by trial and error. Good luck to you!

CocoCat · Dec 13, 2009

Shadow_Ferret said:
If you're working in Word you can leave little electronic Post-It notes. I do that all the time. Things like "Research this." My first drafts are full of those reminders.

Yeah my WIP is packed full of them. I just feel bad because this isn't really a first draft anymore -- just the first *complete* draft without holes and all the decisions made (ahem). I seem to leave a mess behind me each time I go through it.

CocoCat · Dec 13, 2009

Ardent Kat said:
I think it depends on why you're skipping it. If you need to do some research and you don't want to break up the flow of your writing, that sounds like a great reason to pause and come back.

For me, it's been a bad idea because I tend to skip over passages that are just, well, hard. It's an intimidatingly important section or something hard to put into words, so I figure, "I'll come back to it later. It's already hard enough to write this first draft! I'll get to it while I'm in edits."

It was a good thought, but didn't work out at all for me. Those sections are just as daunting and difficult later as they were the first time. Even worse because I've lost the flow and the mindset I was in during the first draft. Every section I skipped and came back to later, I ended up kicking myself and thinking, "Argh! Why did I do that?"

I'm glad I gave it a try, but never again. (At least not for those reasons) Try it yourself, but realize it may be tougher to come back to the second time than it was the first time. Learning your own style of what works for you can only come by trial and error. Good luck to you!

I'm not finding the scene difficult, but maybe a tiny bit fiddly and one that has to be right. I'm sick of looking at it for now but then I'm also sick of having so much left to do. This is just one more item left unfinished.

ishtar'sgate · Dec 13, 2009

CocoCat said:
I've left myself a note of what to do to fix a paragraph next time I come to it. I'd like to just move on and make sure I get a full draft this time with no gaps so I'm eager to move on. I often find that leaving my writing for a while makes getting it right easier so this has become a habit but is it a good one or bad? Am I making life harder for myself by leaving myself work to do? Would you say this is an excuse to be lazy?

I think a lot depends on how much of it you leave this way. Leaving notes to fix paragraphs and then moving on is a good way to maintain your momentum but if you're doing it a lot then there will be a horrible mess to try and clean up at the end.
My usual practice is to make a note, look at it again the next day when I reread my previous day's work and see if anything comes to me. If nothing does then I have to decide whether or not to give it a few more days to simmer on the backburner or throw it out altogether. Often a paragraph doesn't work for me because it doesn't belong so I make my decisions fairly quickly. I'm pretty ruthless.

kaitie · Dec 13, 2009

CocoCat said:
I've left myself a note of what to do to fix a paragraph next time I come to it. I'd like to just move on and make sure I get a full draft this time with no gaps so I'm eager to move on. I often find that leaving my writing for a while makes getting it right easier so this has become a habit but is it a good one or bad? Am I making life harder for myself by leaving myself work to do? Would you say this is an excuse to be lazy?

Dude, I've still got a "come up with something clever here" note in my work and I've edited it like ten times. Go ahead and be lazy, just don't forget about it. :tongue

job · Dec 13, 2009

Brackets. I use brackets.

[how did he get the counterfeits?] [what kind of oil did they use in lamps?] [phase of moon?] [explain this] [insert some lovemaking] [name of flower] [why does he care what happens to her?]

You get to a hard spot, you skip it and write past.

Admittedly, some folks feel good about this. Some don't.
You should do what feels right.

Hittman · Dec 13, 2009

If you're using Word or another word processor that lets you use a highlighter, use that.

Brackets. I use brackets.

[how did he get the counterfeits?] [what kind of oil did they use in lamps?] [phase of moon?] [explain this] [insert some lovemaking] [name of flower] [why does he care what happens to her?]

I use parentheses and colored text. Red means it needs revision, green means it needs research.

AryaT92 · Dec 13, 2009

Nateskate said:
I have two answers.
If you're prone to forget, then don't.

Couldn't have said it better.

Birol · Dec 13, 2009

A lot of very good writers I know do exactly what you did. A lot don't. If it works for you, then it's a good thing. If it doesn't, then it's not.

trocadero · Dec 13, 2009

I always have two docs open - my wip and another which consists of a table which has my outline down the left column, chapter by chapter (though I never stick to it) and an empty right hand column. When I remember something I want to weave through, or develop or add later, I open the table and write it as a note somewhere in the right column. I've been forging ahead so much lately, trying to get a first draft finished by Christmas, that my right-hand column has almost as much writing in it as my outline on the left. I don't mind - it gives me a lot of meat to consider when I'm revising and rewriting. And I can forget about it while I'm writing.

RunawayScribe · Dec 13, 2009

I like Nateskate's advice. How prone are you to forget the changes you want to make? If you're not going to remember, make the corrections when you think of it or keep a detailed list of stuff to change later. If you know you'll remember, though, there's no reason you shouldn't push ahead.

bettielee · Dec 13, 2009

I sort of do what trocadero has suggested. I do leave myself notes, always in some bright colored text, but if I think of something out of order, I hop into my outline (which is always very rough) and leave notes where things need to be changed or added.

I find in rewrites, I quickly take care of my little notes. Sometimes, they are unnecessary, but often, I find that I conquer them easily. It's almost like your brain new it was coming and worked on it when you weren't thinking about it....

and sometimes they give me great pause and I have to do some serious work, but because I've finished the novel and know my characters and my plot better by this point, I find it easier to finish what I left undone on the first pass.

Lady Ice · Dec 14, 2009

job said:
Brackets. I use brackets.

[how did he get the counterfeits?] [what kind of oil did they use in lamps?] [phase of moon?] [explain this] [insert some lovemaking] [name of flower] [why does he care what happens to her?]

You get to a hard spot, you skip it and write past.

Admittedly, some folks feel good about this. Some don't.
You should do what feels right.

I like those brackets; it's good as it distinguishes the text from the rest of what you've been writing. It's an aside...to yourself.

RunawayScribe · Dec 14, 2009

To further the brackets thing: I usually make those little margin notes in Microsoft Word. It's one of the editing options. You can highlight a section and add a bubbled comment off to the side. It's physically impossible to confuse them with the rest of the text, since they're surrounded in pink.

scarletpeaches · Dec 14, 2009

I never do any editing until the first draft is complete. That way I see how any proposed changes relate to the book as a whole.

Will I regret it if I leave it to fix later?

CocoCat

charlotte49ers

let it snow

Nateskate

Terie

Writer is as Writer does

Claudia Gray

Madison

summertime...

Shadow_Ferret

Court Jester

Ardent Kat

Kill your television

CocoCat

CocoCat

ishtar'sgate

living in the past

kaitie

With great power comes

job

In the end, it's just you and the manuscript

Hittman

AryaT92

Birol

Around and About

trocadero

RunawayScribe

It is what it is.

bettielee

I'm a sparkly fairy princess!

Lady Ice

Makes useful distinctions

RunawayScribe

It is what it is.

scarletpeaches