Novel Writing - My Process
Yesterday, the start of a new story came to me and I wrote it down - New story.
Today, it occurred to me that you guys may be interested in how 'it' works for me. I am well-aware that I'm fortunate to have the ideas for stories arrive in my head, seemingly unbidden, and not everyone gets the same 'internal email' messages that I do. I can't help that, sorry... the best I can do is give a few prompts through the story-mentor tag.
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Yesterday, we met Dirk and Jamie driving in a truck. Dirk puked and Jamie declared her love for him. Believe it or not, that is exactly as it came to me, playing like a mini-movie in my head. I wrote it as I 'saw' it.
Then, yesterday afternoon, I felt compelled to write more.
Sorry, terrible hand writing
And more...
And more...
Around 5 full pages of handwriting. That makes perhaps 1500 words.
The odd thing is, I kept having to back-track.
Back-tracking...
The story wasn't 'happy' with where I was going with it. I know... weird, right?
I jotted a few paragraphs down to try to start the story, but with each one, I found I wasn't happy with it and went back a little further.
This is the process as I wrote it:
First paragraph
Dirk & Jamie - High school misfit sweethearts.
She is too cool for school - Tomboy, rebellious and confident.
He is a devastatingly gorgeous, but painfully shy introvert, new kid in town.
Nope... not quite there yet...
Second paragraph
(His) First day at school, part way through term, Dirk arrives with his shoes polished, shirt and tie, with blazer and trousers. He looks exactly like he Googled pictures of English Schoolboy and nailed it for Halloween!
I liked where this was going, but it wasn't quite doing it for me. I needed more set-up - backstory if you will... not much, but a little more.
Third paragraph
Mrs Hallam, the once-Homecoming Queen, married to the Football Captain, returned triumphant after college to land a cushy number at her old school as the Principal's PA (over-paid, over-qualified [on paper] trophy PA).
OK, I have a new player in the game... where does she fit in? How does she arrive? I decided I needed a little more.
Fourth paragraph
One glorious, sunny, late-September morning, Mr Pick, the portly, bald, nervous, confirmed-bachelor looked up as Mrs Hallam knocked on his classroom door. He waved her in, more as an excuse to ignore the disruption in class than any other reason. The students became quiet for a change.
From those four paragraphs, a story began to emerge.
I have two main characters (need more for this project), a couple of interesting characters that may become more involved as time goes on, and the idea for a story. How this develops from here will be interesting, but for the moment, I’m not going to write it in episode form, but I will keep you up to date with the progress.
This has prompted me to set another task for the story-mentor group. Write a couple of pages of a new story. Use pen and paper (and the story-mentor tag of course). Share your story… let’s see if this method helps you like it helps me.
Yes... I get that 'internal email' too! But I usually just leave the idea to ruminate in my head for a couple of weeks. Many die away, but the good ones remain and become better.
It's a method I learnt from Stephen King, in the introduction to his book 'Nightmares and Dreamscapes'.
I write down as many of my ideas as I possibly can. I can't count the times I've thought of an idea for a great story and it disappeared before I could write it down. Then again, I have notebooks filled with ideas I wrote down and haven't used yet :)
Thanks for sharing.I do look forward to your posts. I have some ideas about some stories and this has been a place of learning.Hope I will be able to turn the ideas to a brilliant write-up someday here. #upvoted.
Thank you. It always makes me smile when someone says they've learned something from my posts.
I liked reading about it. The fact is that the ideas in my head come just as unexpectedly - so if you do not have time to write it down, then it's possible to lose it. I like how you do it.
Today I will tackle the assignment you gave us yesterday. After in the near future I will do today's assignment :) I'm glad that you are active for the group
Thank you. I'm pleased you like my writing - and how I do my writing :)
I'm busy today (going to mum-in-law's) but I'll be back tomorrow to take a look at the tag and the stories on there :)
Sometimes I have a dozen ideas happening but I don't have a pen and paper, or I am in the middle of a crowd. Then I lose where the story was going...perhaps I needto carry a notebook with me...
I carry one usually :)
I'm starting my book! Really. (don't laugh. lol)
Do you see anything negative in posting a lot of the content here on steemit first, btw?
(it will be online, not published... I think. ...I know nothing of this industry))
https://steemit.com/blog/@lucylin/i-haven-t-got-a-title-snippets-part-1
https://steemit.com/blog/@lucylin/i-haven-t-got-a-title-ireland-trip-part-2
Not laughing :) Wishing you luck!
Negative? In what way?
If you want any advice on publishing, please ask. I have a few contacts (@s0u1 runs a small indie publishing house).
Thanks hun!
Well, I don't know!. lol
Hence me asking someone of experience in the old writing malarky..(that's you, btw)
Oh, you can rest assured - I won't be shy at asking you for your advice, as I go along..
Ah... LOL
No, I haven't had any negative experience with my writing here on Steemit.com. 'Personalities' - on the other hand - sometimes seem to be more than a little (shall we say) intimidated by me - or at least the side of me that's allowed to play on the platform... not many on Steemit know the 'real' me and I think that's probably for the best for now ;)
good job .thanks for sharing . i like your post and upvoted.
Thank you, much appreciated :)
This great education post sharing....I appreciate your writing......
Another one that comments and doesn't upvote.
I'm really sick of the spam-comments hoping for an upvote from me. Muted!
A very wonderful story. Well done, my friend, you are a really successful person
I wish you all the happiness
You are a special person
It's not a story.
Plus, you've not upvoted it!
Don't bother commenting again, I've muted you.
So spontaneous, love it!
Yes, it really is spontaneous when I write with a pen. I wrote most of my first novel that way - Trev was on nights and I sat up in bed most of the night, scribbling away. Then the next day, I'd take my notes and type them all up - So much fun!