Problems putting imagination into words

Give yourself permission to write utter crap. A complete draft that you know sucks mightily is work which you can rewrite, revise, edit, and all that. So go for a completed work which you know isn't good and which you don't have to show to anyone.

When you approach the rewrite, that's the time to elevate quality. Fix mistakes. Determine what the reader needs to know for the story to progress and for the characters to be whole. Identify aspects which lend the work flavor, allowing the reader to envision it in the general tone of your mind-movie. And remember that the reader does not need to envision each scene exactly as you do, so long as s/he gets the correct information from and impression of it.

The five senses tip is good. One other I employ is to pick a single aspect of setting which stands in for the whole, suggesting to the reader what the rest is like without describing it. A rusting trailer with a torn screen. An Aubusson carpet so deep only the toes of the cop's shoes show. A black limo which smells richly of leather.

Maryn, hoping this is helpful

Sometimes the imagination works faster than the fingers and one feels engulfed. That's perfectly normal.

Take a deep breath, slow down and take it step by step.

> Give yourself permission to write utter crap.

That, exactly. Nail down the story first.

-cb

I used to have this problem, and realized I was trying to write perfect, complete sentences for the first draft when I should have been putting down all the scenes and ideas in my head onto the pages as quick as possible. So I started writing sentence fragments and the writing process became smoother and faster and more fun.

You can go back and fix the grammar aspects afterward when the creative foundation is in place.

kelzey2 said:

I have problems putting what I see in my mind onto paper.

When I'm writing, I can see the scene in my mind like a movie, I know what's happening, what each character will say, what they are going to do, etc. but I struggle to put it into words.

I've been told before to think about the five senses and what's going on the characters mind but it's like there's something stopping my story from going from my mind to the page, the words just won't flow a easily as I want them to.

Any advice?

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Write it as you see it, even if the vocabulary/grammar sucks. Then read it over and tidy it up so it's coherent.

I have the exact same problem. I can't put the scene into words as well.

The most difficult things for me are facial expressions and body language.
Also, tone of voice without adverbs (you know.. he said angrily, she said slowly)
Any advice on this?

maggi90w1 said:

The most difficult things for me are facial expressions and body language.
Also, tone of voice without adverbs (you know.. he said angrily, she said slowly)
Any advice on this?

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Adverbs aren't a problem used in moderation, but working on the dialogue itself can often address the issue. Examples:

"Get out of my way!"
"That's not how it's done!"

The context of what is said and exclamation can tell you the emotional state of the speaker.

You can also describe what the person looks like following a line of dialogue:

"I can't stand you anymore" he said, face flustered.

"That joke is real funny," she said and rolled her eyes.

"I know you farted," he said and left the room.

kelzey2 said:

I have problems putting what I see in my mind onto paper.

When I'm writing, I can see the scene in my mind like a movie, I know what's happening, what each character will say, what they are going to do, etc. but I struggle to put it into words.

I've been told before to think about the five senses and what's going on the characters mind but it's like there's something stopping my story from going from my mind to the page, the words just won't flow a easily as I want them to.

Any advice?

Click to expand...

What's stopping the story from going from your mind to the page in the way you wish is simply that you haven't learned how to make it happen yet. You haven't written enough words, written enough stories, put in enough practice.

Welcome to the world of writing. The struggle to turn the pictures in your head into words on the page is what writing is all about, and precisely why writing is so incredibly difficult. Every writer who ever lived probably began with the same problem you now face.

I never agree with intentionally writing crap. Always write the very best you can possibly write. If it still comes out crap, that's fine, but if the effort to make it good isn't there each and every time you sit down to write, you'll most likely never get past the writing crap stage.

There are no simple answers except to say writing is something you have to learn. It is, in fact, the art of learning how to turn the pictures in your head into the appropriate words on paper. The way you learn how to do this is through practice. And more practice. And still more practice.

After a million or so words, you should see significant improvement. Assuming you are actually practicing, and not just writing crap in order to get the words out.

Practice works the same way in writing as it does in any other field, be it playing the piano, shooting free throws, or operating on cadavers in med school. It only counts if you're trying to get it right, trying to do your best, each time out.

kelzey2 said:

I've been told before to think about the five senses and what's going on the characters mind but it's like there's something stopping my story from going from my mind to the page, the words just won't flow a easily as I want them to.

Any advice?

Click to expand...

Write it anyway. You can always revise if it doesn't quite work.

I often find I can't get what's in my head onto paper. If there is a part I am very stuck on then I just write it out as basically as I can without ruining the scene and then go back to it once I've written it all out =)

Leaving it for a little while and carrying on with your story won't hurt either. I find my characters tend to change, and become deeper so when I go back to it I can add more in depth info =)

What James said.

You might want to try the fantabulous "Learn Writing with Uncle Jim" threads. Also, read a few books in your genre, but with a writer's eye instead of a reader's. How did the author set the scene? How did they let you know how their characters felt? How and when did you learn what the main character's hair color was?

One way to figure this out is to see how others have already done it.

Also, while you should write the very best that you can, and put attention on learning your craft, if it's just one particular sentence or scene hanging you up, then I suggest that you do just jot down some notes and move on. You're not going to get perfection on your first draft. But neither does it hurt to try, so long as you don't let the attempt stop you.

Best of luck!

kelzey2 said:

Any advice?

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Stop caring about whether you're doing it right. Stop caring about whether other people will like it. Be spontaneous and allow yourself to write things that don't make sense, or suck, or are totally absurd. You can fix it later, but you can't edit anything if you don't write it first.

Jamesaritchie said:

I never agree with intentionally writing crap. Always write the very best you can possibly write. If it still comes out crap, that's fine, but if the effort to make it good isn't there each and every time you sit down to write, you'll most likely never get past the writing crap stage.

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That is true, but I think so many new writers get hung up in this way because they think it has to be perfect the first time they write it. It's true that you should always put in your best effort, but allowing yourself to shy away from writing because you're afraid what you write might suck is a bad way to approach it. Try to make it as awesome as possible, but don't beat yourself up if it sucks after all. Nobody writes a perfect first draft. Nobody.

Casual suggestion, try writing the story as a script. Just characters talking to each other, with a couple of brief lines for each scene to describe where they are and what's happening. Let it all out. Finish the story. Then go back and expand into prose.

-Derek

kelzey2 said:

I have problems putting what I see in my mind onto paper.

When I'm writing, I can see the scene in my mind like a movie, I know what's happening, what each character will say, what they are going to do, etc. but I struggle to put it into words.

Click to expand...

There is a very good reason for this. The imagined story is complete in your mind, almost like a move except a movie is still only something you watch and an imagined story is something you experience. It is multi-sensory. When you write you're trying to recreate action, meaning and lots of little subtleties that flash into your mind all at once. But you can only do it one word at a time and that's a pretty tall order.

I try to do the best I can and then come back and make it fuller. It's never going to be exactly as I imagined it but occasionally some scenes come close. I think it gets easier the more you write so my advice would be simply to do the best you can, move on if a scene isn't right but you don't know how to fix it and don't obsess about it.Come back to the scene later when it's not so fresh in your mind and when you've written more of the story. Your ability to write what you've imagined will have improved and you'll have an easier time of getting it right.

Welcome to the craft of writing.

And it is a craft, a labor, a bout of indentured servitude. Like any labor of love, it never ends.

Similar to the advice above, the only way to become proficient is to try and try often. Write write write and you will get better with every try.

Do not make the mistakes of some writers who measure a billion a times and fail to make a cut.

Writing is almost the opposite. You need to write write write until you realize a good cut. That is, sitting around pondering how to write will not improve your abilities as a writer. Only writing can do that.

Not to say there is not benefit from research and study. There is. Just saying that you must realize that the only way to become a decent writer is to write.

One saying i'm fond of is that you must write a million words of crap before you get to the good stuff.

I've found that more or less to be true. So get to writing.

and eventually, you'll have no trouble getting the words to match your imagination...

Mel...

Jamesaritchie said:

What's stopping the story from going from your mind to the page in the way you wish is simply that you haven't learned how to make it happen yet. You haven't written enough words, written enough stories, put in enough practice.

Welcome to the world of writing. The struggle to turn the pictures in your head into words on the page is what writing is all about, and precisely why writing is so incredibly difficult. Every writer who ever lived probably began with the same problem you now face.

I never agree with intentionally writing crap. Always write the very best you can possibly write. If it still comes out crap, that's fine, but if the effort to make it good isn't there each and every time you sit down to write, you'll most likely never get past the writing crap stage.

There are no simple answers except to say writing is something you have to learn. It is, in fact, the art of learning how to turn the pictures in your head into the appropriate words on paper. The way you learn how to do this is through practice. And more practice. And still more practice.

After a million or so words, you should see significant improvement. Assuming you are actually practicing, and not just writing crap in order to get the words out.

Practice works the same way in writing as it does in any other field, be it playing the piano, shooting free throws, or operating on cadavers in med school. It only counts if you're trying to get it right, trying to do your best, each time out.

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I agree with this. It is very hard to go from imagining making free throws to making them, so why should writing be any different? It's a serious craft that takes a lot of hair-pulling, time, energy, and lonesomeness to master.

I think of the "give yourself permission to write crap" concept not so much as permission not to do your best, but if your best at the moment is crap, that you shouldn't be hindered from getting it down and working on what's crappy about it (then, next time, not repeating mistakes). Because the more you learn, it seems, the more you think your writing is crap. It's a hurtle writers just need to get over and focus on improvement and the joy of the craft.

If you throw a ball at a net enough times, it'll eventually go in.

These are all unspecific platitudes, but writing is an unspecific, varied path for everyone. Really the only way to make what is in your head appear on the page (it never will, not exactly as you see it, but eventually you'll be happy with the well-crafted trickery you've laid out) is to read and write. At least in my experience it's difficult to give any better advice than that.

AW and SYW is a good start. So are workshops and classes, which if nothing else help you get over the daunting editing-process and getting feedback (which is all part of a writing career you can't avoid). And of course reading many books that inspire you to learn how the heck they did what they did. And writing. And revising. And submitting. All of that, and nothing less.

The Lonely One said:

I think of the "give yourself permission to write crap" concept not so much as permission not to do your best, but if your best at the moment is crap, that you shouldn't be hindered from getting it down and working on what's crappy about it (then, next time, not repeating mistakes). Because the more you learn, it seems, the more you think your writing is crap. It's a hurtle writers just need to get over and focus on improvement and the joy of the craft.

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Precisely. A great many beginners become discouraged when their early efforts are not wonderful. Allowing themselves to write something they know is imperfect can be freeing, as well as introducing them to the fact that most writers rewrite to improve early drafts.

Maryn, sure Mr. Ritchie is an exception

Tremendously good advice to outline, sketch and rough-out the basics.

Some people are able to stream-of-consciousness write like crazy on a first draft...this is just how their brains work.

If you are more visual, try playing with stick-figure drawings (like a script story board), so that you can see your characters on a page. Then sketch in the basic captions, and so forth.

OR, you might want to experiment with recording yourself telling the story--either audio or video. You would do this privately--so that no one else interferes with your story process--but it might be what you need to get you started.

Pay close attention to what makes you write, and what in your environment inhibits you...

Do you write better at a time of day or night?
Do you write better when listening to some kinds of music?
Do you like background TV noise?
Or do you need complete silence?
Do you need to sit at a desk, kitchen table, recline on a sofa, lie in bed?
Do you need to use a pen, pencil (plain or mechanical), crayon, computer, netbook, scrap paper, napkins, yellow tablet?

Read, read, read books in your genre...this is the best way to learn how established authors get their characters and plots across to readers.



But most of all: DO APPLY YOUR BOTTOM TO YOUR CHAIR (or sofa, or mattress) AND WRITE!

Another suggestion is to act it out, playing one role or all the roles. You may look odd, but you may also realize that if you drop to the ground, your nose is going to be up against the dragon's back claws--and they may be very uncomfortable, and smell funny.

This works well for tactile people. Everyone's different.

Linda Adams said:

Write it anyway. You can always revise if it doesn't quite work.

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Wanna bet?