Comments on: First drafts

By: Joni

Joni — Fri, 27 Jul 2007 06:21:39 +0000

FWIW, I’m a “organic, subconscious, messy first draft” writer and I think that even thinking of it as simply “following a character around” might be a bit self-destructive because it implies wandering (and your subconscious picks up on that and obliges).

Even if you don’t have a clue to the plot beforehand, and I often have only the sketchiest idea what will happen, you DO have a character with some kind of motivation (right?). One scene must literally drive the next, with a cause/effect -> cause relationship between scenes. So as long as your character either has some burning desire, or must respond to something that happened to them in the first scene (or very early), that should drive each scene and thus the plot — even with no advance planning.

That’s not to say that a scene might actually be caused by a scene 2 or 3 back; subplots help criss-cross and complicate those cause/effect relationships, which helps create surprises. But there’s still a driver in there and a reader waiting to see what that driver is going to cause. If you think of the story that way, it might keep you moving through the emerging plot more effectively than “whatever scene occurs” to you.

Like I say, FWIW. It works for me. (grin)

By: Janni

Janni — Thu, 26 Jul 2007 00:04:03 +0000

I didn’t think about having to throw out scenes b/c the characters went in different directions. Sigh.

I think as soon as one thinks of it as “throwing away” material, one gets in trouble. I think of it as more just part of the creative process … I need to write A to realize I need to write B to discover writing C would be even better. Just because I don’t use A directly doesn’t mean it’s not useful or important; A is what got me to B & C, after all.

By: Sarah

Sarah — Wed, 25 Jul 2007 22:17:41 +0000

What triggers my day’s writing, is my subconscious thoughts from the previous day’s writing. Often scenes and dialogues have passed through my mind. I am amazed at how plots and subplots infiltrate the story and show up in their proper places chapters later. I start without knowing how it will end. But, organic writing is messy and takes more revision. For me, the second draft is where the plot structure is placed into the story. The nice result is that huge, huge surprises occur (if it surprises the author it will surprise the reader), and a new character can pop in that becomes more important than anticipated. It often feels like I’m reading a book when I’m writing.

Yet, I’d like to outline my next novel so I can experience a different process and see what I can come up with.

By: Peter

Peter — Wed, 25 Jul 2007 20:45:20 +0000

With my first book (still trying to market it) I just followed the character and let them take over. It was messy, I couldn’t make the plot work and I had to keep revising and reviseing – I ended up throwing out more words than i kept (100k).

This time I planning it all out and playing with scene briefs and extended scene briefs, which is a script writing technique. So far it is working out a treat, but I’m frustrated I can’t yet get to the actual writing – which is the fun part.

Have a look at my blog if you want more details about scene briefs. http://www.MervynBright.co.uk.

Peter

By: darcy

darcy — Wed, 25 Jul 2007 16:29:13 +0000

L–I didn’t think about having to throw out scenes b/c the characters went in different directions. Sigh.

Clive–Yes, I usually plan and plan.

But–I want to try something slightly different this time. Partly just to get me going again on a novel, after spending most of my time on pbs. Partly just to see how it feels to have no idea of what comes next. Sometimes, I think we just need to take a risk and this feels risky to me!

Darcy

By: Janni

Janni — Wed, 25 Jul 2007 16:28:37 +0000

I have only sketchy ideas about plot, and sometimes literally don’t know what’s going to happen in the next sentence … I have to write in order, because since I’m following my character, I need to have everything they’ve already done behind me … but mostly, I give myself permission to right really, really, really rough first drafts as I follow my characters around and get to know them; and then once I know them I do large-scale rewriting to reflect what I know, sometimes completely revisioning half the novel or more in the process.

There are, of course, more orderly ways to follow characters, too, but that isn’t how I (usually–every book is different) work.

I also do a lot of listening–I try to get to the point where I can hear a character in my head talking to me, where I can see through their eyes–something it can also take a draft or two to get to. If writing were acting, I’d be mostly very much of the method actor school of same. :-)

By: Clive

Clive — Wed, 25 Jul 2007 15:16:33 +0000

I have to plan. If I dive straight in, the work will be structurally flawed. I like to plan characters, sets, plot, all before I begin to draft. But when I do draft, I can work through it quickly. I later find al lot less structural rework if I do it this way. Of course everyone’s different. It’s worth noting though, I always leave room to change things if the story is pulling me in a different direction to the outline.

By: L.N. Hammer

L.N. Hammer — Wed, 25 Jul 2007 14:48:35 +0000

As a former plotter who never finished anything until he learned how to follow the characters, um, can’t say I have much advice. Out of order scenes tend to get me in trouble, especially once I write the connecting material and the later scene no longer fits, as the characters lead me in a slightly different direction than expected. For getting things going, knowing a lot about your characters and how they’re at cross-purposes helps a lot, but you knew that.

What I ask myself when I start writing is, “Okay, what happens next?” Which is also what triggers the writing, and why I can’t outline.

—L.