Dear Fellow Writer,
I hope you're writing and getting closer to your dreams, whatever they may be.
Make plans for your future every day - and make sure your goals are fun, worthy and fill you with anticipation.
Then do just one little thing today that will pull your dreams out of the ether and into being.
Easy.
Keep
writing!
Write Fast Till The End
Rob Parnell
Writing short pieces - say up to around
5000 words - is usually fairly straightforward.
You can, in most
cases, just start writing and keep going until you've
said everything you wanted and then go back and edit for
logic, sense and flow.
And to fix those pesky typos!
If you've missed something out, you can
slot it into the text.
Or, if you've overdone a section -
or the writing is bad or unnecessary - you have good
friend in the delete button.
Writing longer pieces is different.
Having
a lot to say will take time and effort - the two things a
writer cannot afford to waste.
So what's the best way to approach writing
longer works?
It's all about preparation.
Knowing where you're going and having some idea of your
destination.
Some writers say they can't write using a
plan - or even knowing what the ending is.
They cite
Stephen King - who says he doesn't know what the endings
of his stories are going to be when he starts out.
It's
deliberate he says because he wants to write his
characters into impossible corners - and then work out
how they're going to survive.
Obviously this works for Mr King.
He says
the only book he wrote using a pre-written template was
The Dead Zone - but he says he found the book depressing
to write because he knew the ending!
Fair enough - but I'm not sure this
approach works for every writer - especially new writers
who really need to get that first novel written - all of
it, down on paper, existing - to help them get that sense
of 'yes, I can write a novel, I have proof.'
Most new writers never get to feel that
because they stumble during the novel writing process -
and the book goes unfinished.
There's really only one way to get a first
draft down - and that is to write quickly.
Write the
first draft before you change you mind about it.
Before
you 'grow' a little and have a different viewpoint on the
world and therefore your story.
It's easily done.
You're all fired up with
a story and can see its significance and importance - and
then half way through - several months down the track -
you wonder why you were so excited.
Or you begin to
change some character motivations slightly and, before
you know it, the story doesn't work anymore and you have
to bin it or start again.
Get your first draft down fast is always
my advice - especially if it's your first novel.
It
doesn't matter how it reads.
The first novel is a
learning experience - an invaluable one.
It will teach
you more about the writing process than any other
experience - and will stand you in great stead for the
future.
But in order to write quickly you need a
plan, a template you can refer to as you write - so you
can push through blocks and keep on writing till the end.
The template can be a series of dot
points, chapter headings or a detailed synopsis - it's up
to you.
But that's my advice.
If you sincerely
want to write your first novel - make a plan. Know your
characters, know your plot, know your story and its
ending, before you start.
And then, keep writing - as fast as you
can!
Keep
Writing!
The Easy Way to Write
THIS WEEK'S WRITER'S QUOTE:
"Read, read, read. Read
everything—trash, classics, good and bad, and see
how they do it. Just like a carpenter who works as an
apprentice and studies the most. Read! You'll absorb it.
Then write. If it is good, you'll find out. If it's not,
throw it out the window." William Faulkner
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