What is YOUR process?

Word Jedi · Nov 7, 2011

When an idea hits, what comes next for you?
Do you start an outline of events for your story?
Do you just wing it and hope you get past the dreaded 30 or 40 page wall without slamming into it face first?
When or if do you do any background work on your characters?

KTC · Nov 7, 2011

Step #1 - Have idea and write for 72 hours solid until 1st draft is complete.

Step #2 - Edit

Step #3 - Submit

DeleyanLee · Nov 7, 2011

1. Get yet another idea

2. Decide if it ties into the current novel or not.

3. If not, toss it into the simmering pot of creativity in the back of my mind where it will stay for a few days to a few decades. If so, incorporate it into the present MIP.

4. Keep writing.

Word Jedi · Nov 7, 2011

KTC said:
Step #1 - Have idea and write for 72 hours solid until 1st draft is complete.

Step #2 - Edit

Step #3 - Submit

Whoa. I think I'll label this the JUGGERNAUT approach to writing.
An approach I think I will actually try this weekend.

leahzero · Nov 7, 2011

1. Get really fired up about the idea and start extrapolating plot points, characters, etc.

2. Make some coffee.

3. Check Twitter.

4. Read RSS feed.

5. Browse AW.

6. Look up and discover it's bed time.

7. Repeat the next day.

Chrissy · Nov 7, 2011

1. Get good idea in really weird place, or dark place, or while driving, and have no paper, a broken pencil and two inkless pens.

2. Determine to remember idea.

3. Forget idea.

LJD · Nov 7, 2011

1) Ideas never really 'hit' me but slowly develop. I make a bunch of notes, over many days/weeks, to figure out the overall plot.

2) Character notes and plotting...in either order. I am a plotter and I plan out each scene, though these change slightly as a write.

3) First draft, which takes a few months.

4) Rewrites....

Monkey · Nov 7, 2011

1) Get really cool idea. This is usually an overarching plot.

2) Figure out the best possible characters for this particular plot, and make notes on them.

3) Come up with a subplot or two based on interactions/goals of the characters and the theme of the book.

4) Outline the beginning, the middle, and the end. Gaps in between are fine, but I like to know where I am and where I'm going, and have some idea of the path between. I don't outline too strictly, because I like to leave room for flow and exploration and unexpected plot bunnies.

5) Write the opening. This is the hardest part for me. But if I don't get it right, I feel like I have no foundation on which to build.

6) Write the rest of the story. This part is looser, less rigid, and moves along faster.

7) Finish and let it sit for a while...usually a few days to a couple of weeks.

8) Edit, edit, edit!

9) Send to betas.

10) Edit, edit, edit!

11) Done! That is, until an agent or publisher asks for more edits.

Good thing I've come to enjoy editing.

blacbird · Nov 7, 2011

1. Feed and water the cats.
2. Clean the cat litter.
3. Take the trash can to the curb.
4. Load the dishwasher.
5. Wash the pots and pans.
6. Start a load of laundry.
7. Shovel snow off the front walk.
8. Vacuum the living room.
9. Eat something (optional).
10. Drive 22 miles to my place of work.
11. Work all day.
12. Drive 22 miles back from my place of work.
13. Shovel snow off the front walk.
14. Fix dinner.
15. Eat dinner (optional).
16. Apologize to family for not having time to vacuum the other rooms in the house.
17. Apologize to family for not having returned the empty trash can from the curb.
18. Retreat to bedroom with computer.
19. Work on two technical reports and an academic paper.
20. Go to sleep (optional).

caw

Drachen Jager · Nov 7, 2011

1) Get a Kernel idea.

2) Throw Kernel idea away as impractical, silly, not interesting enough, not enough material to hang a novel on.

3) Repeat 1&2 until 2 is passed.

4) Simmer and stir for 2-4 months.

5) Come up with a beginning, write it down in synopsis form.

6) Either begin writing, and work out the remainder as I'm working, or plot the rest out if I have another project going at the time.

7) Write a first draft over 6-8 weeks (I try for 2k words or more per day).

8) Give it a first edit for consistency and general language etc.

9) Edit pass for POV character's internalisations.

10) Edit pass for descriptions. Am I touching all the senses?

11) Get a good beta reader.

12) Edit some more.

13) Another few edits and betas and it's ready for prime-time!

Keyaroscuro · Nov 7, 2011

1. Sit in front of laptop.
2. Open Microsoft Word along with a million tabs on Google Chrome.
3. Start typing in a random Word document after surfing around the web mindlessly.
4. Get several sentences into the writing and think, "Oh hey, that's a fun idea, maybe I'll write more."
5. Half a book later...

seun · Nov 8, 2011

1. Have idea. Sit on idea for anywhere from a few days to fifteen years.

2. Start work on notes which will become character descriptions, plot points, issues and problems I'll come across in writing.

3. Decide where the story begins.

4. Write first draft. This takes anywhere from two to six months.

5. Leave draft alone for a month.

6. Read draft through, making notes on the way.

7. Start edits.

8. After various edits, I have a finished book. This is anywhere from five to nine months after I started the first draft.

9. Repeat with a new idea.

AlishaS · Nov 8, 2011

When a new idea hits, I jot down a few brief notes and just start writing. However, if I can't work on new project right away I try and do as much as an outline as I can.
When it comes to characters, I try to come up with names and descriptions off the hop but am always adding to the list as I go a long. Same goes for setting and what not, the more I write and introduce things the bigger my notes folder gets.

goldmund · Nov 8, 2011

Ideas come and go, it's actually starting to write a novel that scares the hell out of me.
Short story - fine, a week's work is nothing.
But to start each of my three novels I had to get really, really drunk and full of sedatives. It's like ripping out your own living heart, man. :-(

P.S. The good idea might be to keep writing scenes, dialogs and chapters without actually admitting to yourself that you've actually started to work on it. Just some research, taking notes. And then - voila! You just need to write the first paragraph.

Bukarella · Nov 8, 2011

I look for artwork that goes along with my idea in order to develop it. For example, for my latest work, I would be lost without a genius Bilibin.

Anninyn · Nov 8, 2011

1: Get idea
2: decide I'm not good enough to write it yet, wait
3: make several false, abortive starts
4 decide to write something else
5 fail
6: Listen to music, stare into space
7: Something clicks. Story comes together.
8: Decide to actually plot this one this time
9: Jot down plot.
10: admire self
11: start.

Up until recently you could probably cut it off after 6. We'll see if I actually finish this novel this time, shall we?

Stellan · Nov 8, 2011

This is usually how it tends to go:

1. Get a good idea. I mean, amazing. It's possibly the best idea ever. I'm going to sell a zillion copies of this and retire to an island made of gold.
2. Start writing it in a haze of excitement.
3. Lose steam about a third of the way in.
4. Putter around in a state of dejection. What the hell was I thinking? This was possibly the worst idea ever. Everrrrr.
5. Poke it again a few hours, days, months or years later.
6. Realise that it wasn't half-bad, really. Not great, maybe, but it has potential. Maybe if I change this and add a bit of this...
7. Finish it. Sometimes. Maybe.

scarletpeaches · Nov 8, 2011

1. Get a germ of an idea, inspired by a song, a snippet of conversation, a throwaway remark by firedrake...

2. This step is optional: outline it on an Excel spreadsheet. A list of chapters, what happens in them, cells containing formulae regarding word count, chapter average, estimated total and so on.

3. Speed-write the first draft.

4. Edit. This is immediate; I don't see the point in waiting; it wastes time when the book should be out there earning me money.

5. Bang out a query and synopsis.

6. Submit.

There's often a gap of time between getting the idea and starting to write it, or in other cases, between outlining the idea and starting to write it.

Kitty27 · Nov 8, 2011

1. Get an idea and cackle like mad because this is the BEST ever. I tell you that people will weep before my skillz.

2. Make a soundtrack because I MUST write to music.

3. Write like mad. Knock off 100,000 words in about four to six weeks.

4. Edit,research,and ~~probably~~ write some more because I have a serious word count problem.

5. Tackle the query and synopsis beasties

I don't do outlines,research,etc. Doing so slows me down. I want to get right into the story and write ASAP.

shaldna · Nov 8, 2011

Word Jedi said:
When an idea hits, what comes next for you?
Do you start an outline of events for your story?
Do you just wing it and hope you get past the dreaded 30 or 40 page wall without slamming into it face first?
When or if do you do any background work on your characters?

I sit down and start to write and see where it takes me.

I don't outline and I don't do character bios.

I don't do background work generally.

If I need to research something then I do it as I go.

I do keep a sheet - a single sheet - that's like a cheat sheet. I write on it things I may need to know in a hurry, like important plot points, or ideas that have come to me since writing that I want to include down the line.

Other than that I just make it up as I go.

Shadow_Ferret · Nov 8, 2011

I don't get ideas.

Jamesaritchie · Nov 8, 2011

Word Jedi said:
When an idea hits, what comes next for you?
Do you start an outline of events for your story?
Do you just wing it and hope you get past the dreaded 30 or 40 page wall without slamming into it face first?
When or if do you do any background work on your characters?

I just wing it, but that thirty or forty page wall is nonexistent, if you understand that winging it shouldn't mean writing without structure or direction.

I don't do background work on characters. They know who they are, what they've done, and where they've been. If I need to know anything, they'll tell me.

JSDR · Nov 8, 2011

1. Get idea.
2. Write the story.
3. FREAK OUT that it's horrible and anyone who reads it will lose their soul.
3.5 Go for a walk.
4. Read story and feel a little bit better about it.
5. Edits.
6. FREAK OUT that it's too awful and anyone who reads it will have their eyes bleed.
6.5 Watch a cartoon with my son.
7. Edits.
8. Beg someone to read it.
9. Get their comments. FREAK OUT that I'm a horrible writer.
9.5 Make cookies. (Eat half the dough.)
10. Calm down and integrate comments into story.
11. FREAK OUT about Anatomy quiz.
11.5 Email a friend about what a terrible writer I am.
11.75 Go on SYW and edit other people's stuff instead of working on my own stuff.
12. Do some house chores.
12.5 Chores inspire new scenes.
13. Continue to work on story...

Mr Flibble · Nov 8, 2011

1 - Get idea - usually an idea for a character. This will usually appear just when I can't write it (cos I have edits or whatever) Leave it to brew until I can write it.

2 Sit down. Put character in interesting situation. Write it. See what happens. It never ends up how I think it will.

3 - give first draft a rough polish so that it makes sense (Take out XXWhy is he doing this?XX XXinsert pub name hereXX, make sure all scenes in order I want them etc)

4 - Betas

5 - Polish

6 - sub

Storm Surge · Nov 8, 2011

1. Get idea. This is usually a character and setting. Feel annoyed at idea because I'm probably working on something else at the moment.
2. Ignore idea for a really long time. Wimpy ideas give up and go home. That's cool. I don't like wimpy ideas.
3. If it's a tough idea, it will come back. At this point I throw characters at it and see what sticks.
4. If the characters show me there is a plot and they argue with each other constantly, I start writing it.
5. I write for a long time. Usually very slowly.
6. When finished, I look at it, despair, and trunk it.
The end.

What is YOUR process?

Stand in the Place Where You Live

Writing Anarchist

The colors! THE COLORS!

Bright and Early for the Daily Race

Is me.

Professor of applied misanthropy

Zombie Fanatic 2.0

Horror Man

Is swimming with creativity frogs

---

Stealing your twiglets.

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The cake is a lie. But still cake.

Court Jester

wants moar baddassery.

They've been very bad, Mr Flibble

Surfin'