Oh, you don't want to imitate my production speed! I can take anywhere from a week (for flash that doesn't need much research, if any) to six months or more.
A concept can sit at the back of my mind for years--or it can grab me and I'll chew on it for months before I'm ready to even research anything. I also often do lots of reading and research before I put my fingers to the keyboard. I personally--this doesn't work for everyone--find that the more concrete details I have about things that are even tangential to the story, the firmer my grasp on not only what the setting is but what happens next and how it should happen. So I want to know not only how the buildings were set up at Catal Hoyuk, for instance, but what they ate, and how they cooked it, what animals they herded or hunted, what they painted on their walls. There are lots of aurochs horns and cranes in that art--now I'm off reading near-eastern and indo-european myths involving bulls and cranes. Oh, hey, there are other groups of mythologies that deal with bulls and cranes, what do they have to say? What do I know about cranes anyway? I chase any tangent that appeals to me. That period can last weeks or months. Once I get writing, if I get stuck, I often find I can unstick myself by discovering whatever it is I need to research to move forward.
Mur Laferty often stumps on "it's okay to suck" in order to persue some strange idea. I've also heard the advice of "you need to write so much crap before you begin to write well". I guess those tidbits are probably more in the "if you want to be a writer, you have to write" vein. But I can really get into your concept of "there is no such thing as 'just a story'". I like that. The challenge will be to get beyond the intimidation that brings and still write with it all on the line.
This is where that "double mind" comes in handy. And btw I love NaNo and think everyone who wants to write should try it at least once. And I totally agree that it's okay to suck--with a qualification.
It's okay to suck. Fact of the matter is, for most of us, our first efforts will more or less suck, even when we're giving them our absolute best. That's what the "write a million words of crap" thing is about. That's what it means--you have to start somewhere, and chances are you're starting at the bottom. And that's okay. It's okay to suck.
It is also the absolute, unalterable truth that, with some exceptions, first drafts suck. They just do. It's hard to get things perfect on the first try, easier to fine-tune and perfect once you've got something to work with. That first draft is gonna suck--you're going to do your best to make sure the final draft doesn't. If it does--well, you did your best, and you'll do better next time. It's okay for first drafts to suck.
But you're right, taking every project seriously--that's scary. It's intimidating. It's nerve-wracking. When I first read Gardner, I couldn't understand what he meant when he said that writing seriously was like working in a tank full of sharks. That's when you need the double mind the most, that's when "Hell, it's a first draft, it's supposed to suck!" can get your fingers moving past that horrible fear that what you're about to type is the stupidest thing you've ever thought of.
The sharks are you. And your defense is "yeah, yeah, it sucks and I don't care, so there, you stupid sharks don't scare me!" and secretly you cross your fingers behind your back and you say to yourself no it doesn't, no it won't, if I do it right this will be one of the best things I've done.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2009-12-08 07:35 pm (UTC)A concept can sit at the back of my mind for years--or it can grab me and I'll chew on it for months before I'm ready to even research anything. I also often do lots of reading and research before I put my fingers to the keyboard. I personally--this doesn't work for everyone--find that the more concrete details I have about things that are even tangential to the story, the firmer my grasp on not only what the setting is but what happens next and how it should happen. So I want to know not only how the buildings were set up at Catal Hoyuk, for instance, but what they ate, and how they cooked it, what animals they herded or hunted, what they painted on their walls. There are lots of aurochs horns and cranes in that art--now I'm off reading near-eastern and indo-european myths involving bulls and cranes. Oh, hey, there are other groups of mythologies that deal with bulls and cranes, what do they have to say? What do I know about cranes anyway? I chase any tangent that appeals to me. That period can last weeks or months. Once I get writing, if I get stuck, I often find I can unstick myself by discovering whatever it is I need to research to move forward.
Mur Laferty often stumps on "it's okay to suck" in order to persue some strange idea. I've also heard the advice of "you need to write so much crap before you begin to write well". I guess those tidbits are probably more in the "if you want to be a writer, you have to write" vein. But I can really get into your concept of "there is no such thing as 'just a story'". I like that. The challenge will be to get beyond the intimidation that brings and still write with it all on the line.
This is where that "double mind" comes in handy. And btw I love NaNo and think everyone who wants to write should try it at least once. And I totally agree that it's okay to suck--with a qualification.
It's okay to suck. Fact of the matter is, for most of us, our first efforts will more or less suck, even when we're giving them our absolute best. That's what the "write a million words of crap" thing is about. That's what it means--you have to start somewhere, and chances are you're starting at the bottom. And that's okay. It's okay to suck.
It is also the absolute, unalterable truth that, with some exceptions, first drafts suck. They just do. It's hard to get things perfect on the first try, easier to fine-tune and perfect once you've got something to work with. That first draft is gonna suck--you're going to do your best to make sure the final draft doesn't. If it does--well, you did your best, and you'll do better next time. It's okay for first drafts to suck.
But you're right, taking every project seriously--that's scary. It's intimidating. It's nerve-wracking. When I first read Gardner, I couldn't understand what he meant when he said that writing seriously was like working in a tank full of sharks. That's when you need the double mind the most, that's when "Hell, it's a first draft, it's supposed to suck!" can get your fingers moving past that horrible fear that what you're about to type is the stupidest thing you've ever thought of.
The sharks are you. And your defense is "yeah, yeah, it sucks and I don't care, so there, you stupid sharks don't scare me!" and secretly you cross your fingers behind your back and you say to yourself no it doesn't, no it won't, if I do it right this will be one of the best things I've done.