Do it anywhere

* Edit * Whoops - this was supposed to be a reply to 'Why do you write' Sorry about that, I'm used to phpBBS.

Writing is something you can do anywhere with nothing but pen and paper. Ok, so a nice new laptop might be better but it isn't necessary.

Lacking writing implements (or in situations where it wouldn't be appropriate to scribble madly) I can still plan scenes or dialogue in my head. They won't come back verbatim later but the outline hangs around long enough to make it into a more permanent form.

I enjoy planning and writing my novels, and the satisfaction I get from a finished draft is powerful motivation.

Regards,
Simon

Hey, there should be about ten spawn threads, and I'm all for them.

That's great that you get those feelings of satisfaction. I think I felt some satisfaction in completeing a draft, but until I get something published, I don't have any lingering sense of satisfaction. Who knows, maybe people who were published ten times are still dissatisfied because they haven't written that world shaking story yet.

For me, when I am done with all the re-writes, and an agent is shopping the story around, there will be a bit of hope and satisfaction. Then when it is accepted, another degree, and then when it is on the store shelves, even more. Yet, until it has sold like hot cakes, I think I'll have a lingering dissatisfaction. Well, until someone offers a hefty price for movie rights at anyrate.

But it is good to be satisfied.

I carry a PDA with me, and a IR keyboard. My novel is in MS Word format, so Documents To Go works just fine on the PDA. When I'm waiting for an appointment, oil change, at a restaurant, whatever -- I just bust out the PDA and keyboard and start typing away. In fact, I use it to work on my novel during my lunch breaks so I don't "waste" valuable writing time. :lol

(Hi, Simon, welcome to the board. I use yWriter and love it!)

Hey, there should be about ten spawn threads, and I'm all for them.

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I'm glad about that - it felt as though I'd walked doggie doo into the hallway on my first visit.

I think I felt some satisfaction in completeing a draft, but until I get something published, I don't have any lingering sense of satisfaction.

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Sure, there are different kinds of satisfaction. There's not a lot of point rewriting and editing a novel or short story for your own entertainment - at some stage you want others to read it and appreciate your hard work, and that means getting it published.

I still think writing is tough enough that we should mentally turn every little stepping stone we navigate into the successful crossing of a hazardous rope bridge across rock strewn rapids.

I carry a PDA with me, and a IR keyboard.

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I did that for a few months, using a camera case on my belt. The problem was the PDA - a palm M125 which would accept about 2kb of text (200 words or so) before getting slower and slower. Eventually I would have to pause after each sentence and wait for the letters to appear, and I'm not that quick a typist. I justified buying the gizmo (and keyboard) by telling myself I'd write software for it and earn back the cost. Hah ;-)

I'm glad you like yWriter. It's served me well - 3 complete novels and one half-written, plus one complete rewrite and now another one on the go.

I never get much feedback about that program, which means that either lots of people are happy with it or hardly anyone is using it. (Or those who are using it don't like to ask for new features...)

I have software out there too, and I only hear from someone who wants it (I donate to non profits and sell to everyone else) or can't figure out how to do x. Weeks go by without any activity from my user base and I wonder did they abandon it? But they talk it up on message boards and refer new customers so I guess it's working fine. No news is good news.

ANYWAY... I had a Palm m130 which I liked at first, but there were a lot of frustrating problems with it. I found a refurbished Sony Clie which has 32MB memory built in and uses the memory sticks, which will store almost all the novels I will ever write. :eek The Clie has been awesome. I can't live without it.

I can still plan scenes or dialogue in my head

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Yeah. This happens to me all the time. I'll get all dreamy-eyed and lose track of what's happening around me, I get so involved in "writing" the plot idea or considering its implications.

I used to carry a little tape recorder but later realized that I remembered the stuff well enough for most things.

This is why I'm never, ever without a pen and some paper. I'm neurotic in my notebook habits. I even have an itty bitty one that I keep in my jacket pocket with a Pilot G2 for when I'm not carrying anything. So when a poem popped into my head last week, fully-formed (this never happens), while I was riding home on the subway, I was able to "pull over" to the side and get it down before it got away.

Don't let 'em get away!

When I'm away from my desktop PC, I just use the old-fashioned gray-matter to work on the story. It works pretty well. I spend a lot of time at my joe-job alone, fixing things, or walking from one place to another.

That's my strategy time. I block out the chapters I'm working on. I turn the work as a whole around in my head looking for ways to streamline it and make it work better.

When I finally sit down to write, I don't have to do much thinking. I just start typing and keep going until it's time for bed.

Yesterday I began a new chapter - the result of five days of careful contemplation. It went great, and I ended half way through. Today I blocked out exactly what needs to happen to finish the chapter. I'm glad I had a whole day to mull it over, because many of the ideas may not have come to me in the heat of the moment.

Desktop PC + broadband internet = pencil sharpening for the new Millenium.

I go elsewhere and use a laptop (no wireless on it) or I pull the network cable out of the wall so I can use the desktop. Otherwise I keep doing the website merry-go-round just to see what others have posted in the 5 minutes since I was last there...

In 5-10 years everyone would have a laptop or PDA and there'll be wireless Internet access everywhere. It's the way of the future.

However, be careful. There was an article in USA Today about identity theft at wireless hot spots. Make sure you always have a personal firewall on your PC...