On writing

[hope]

In the name that is all that is ridiculous in the world, I was up until 3am last night writing Jack/Ianto office supplies porn (you can point all the blame for that in amand_r's direction). I only stopped at 3am because it hurt too much to keep my eyes open. In the cold light of day, office supplies porn is still made of awesome, though I've paused to ponder the relative sexiness of a glue stick and just what might do instead.

In other words, I'm at the point of "I'd like to keep writing, but I'm not compelled to write yet, so I'll tweak my conditions until I hit the jackpot comfort zone and can hammer out words like a mofo again."

Other writers, do you do this too? Tweak the conditions until they're conducive to writing? Here are the things that I do:

• Change the place I'm storing the story as I write - between google doc to word doc.


• Change what the writing looks like on the screen. Often if I'm itching to start I'll just being hammering away in the default font and paragraph (Times New Roman in word, Verdana in google docs). However, I inevitably reach a point where the visual is uninspiring, or making me skim through re-reads. In this case I'll often change it to Georgia (10.5pt, 1.5 line spacing), which is my favourite font and paragraph conditions ever. If that's unhelpful, I try changing from serif to sans serif.


• Change the view of the document. Print view to web view, run-on to page separation, margins and width.


• Read it through as it would look when posted. Often I find this helpful for rendering all the formatting alone (markup while reading is a bit of a speed bump). I'll chuck it in a wordpress new post or LJ entry and read through it in preview. This is probably my most helpful tactic, seriously.


• Start building the header for the story. Combined with the point above, this gets me more anticipatory about upcoming posting, urging me on to write more.

...I think ultimately what all of the above does, even if I'm not putting new words on the page in the process, is keeping my attention on the story I'm writing, keeping it in the forefront of my mind. Hopefully keeping things turning over until I'm at the point where I can continue actually writing.

What are your tactics?

Comments

[derryderrydown]

I'll sometimes try switching to longhand. It means I can't nitpick words I've already got down because I can't read my own writing without concentration because there's no space to nitpick.

And I'll combine that with going and sitting in the park or in a cafe or something, to stop myself playing on the intertubes instead.

[hope]

I've found myself wishing I could write longhand, lately. I'm so very out of practice, I could never do it. I'd like to be able to go out and work in the park, though!

[piecesofalice.livejournal.com]

I do the "what it will look like posted" thing. I think it gives me an idea of what I want to see published - like, what's embarrassing, what's not etc - as compared to "hey, no-one will see this! I'll just fill it with song quotes!"

I've just done that with a fic for nixwilliams' birthday. It honestly helped me finish it!

[hope]

*nod* yup, totally. like trying on a garment when you're half-way through making it :D

[piecesofalice.livejournal.com]

Exactly.

And I LOL at your glue stick Tweet.

(IT'S TOTES SEXY. New fic genre, y/y?)

[hope]

I think it's a fine line I'm walking. A fine line drawn by correction tape.

[piecesofalice.livejournal.com]

...which can be drawn over by a ballpoint pen and highlighted, right?

_{Office metaphors make me want to go to Officeworks.}

[hope]

lol your icon!

Yes, yes it can. Hmm, highlighters...

[amand-r.livejournal.com]

::spreads arms:: That's right! BRING IT!

Well, actually, I don't write linearlly (Is that a word?) I wrote back and forth all over the document, so that when I get stuck in one place, I just scroll up or down and work on another part. Or I work on something else. If I'm really boned, I print out what I have (I always have a paper copy) and look at it that way.

[hope]

I've only started writing non-linearly recently. It seems to work best for me when I'm writing really long fics, though. If I know a handful of scenes I want to have in there, I'll write those out then try to fill in the gaps to convey the appropriate stuff to fasten the scenes together or convey time passing.

I've tried the paper copy thing a few times but I think it gives me too many school flashbacks! Same way I can't write in Arial, because it's the MS outlook font that I associate with work.

[amand-r.livejournal.com]

That's interesting. I can't publish without a paper copy, because my eyes don't see the errors on the screen.

Everything I write is non-linear. even that Jack/Emily/Alice thing from earlier this week. You are right that it works better with longer fics, though.

[hope]

I can't publish without a paper copy, because my eyes don't see the errors on the screen.

That's how preview posting works for me :)

Unless I have a big plan, all my fics are linear! I think that helps me get on with writing them, though, I feel compelled to keep tying to get to the scenes I like.

[amand-r.livejournal.com]

I have to vomit out the shit I like/have written by hand/have though of spontaneously all at once. This is how I com up with most of my jokes and punchlines. Than I write around the funny.

[zortified.livejournal.com]

What gets me going again is usually re-reading and polishing bits of what I've already written. It gets me into the story's mindframe pretty well and even if it doesn't get me writing, I've at least done a lot of the story-polishing for when I do finish it. ;-)

[hope]

*nod* I do this ALL THE TIME. I think my endings suffer for it, though, because they've not got as many read-throughs and polishings as the earlier bits.

[rexluscus.livejournal.com]

I work on the header. I swear, my headers are just as heavily considered and edited as the stories themselves.

[hope]

Hah! My main irritation with headers is that it takes me too bloody long to try and choose a title and summary. Oh, and I tend to write kinks and things that I don't want to spoil, so how to deftly handle that in a header has given me many an hour of internal debate.

[astrothsknot.livejournal.com]

I've bought a voice recorder to get around my strange writers block - I can make up fic, but can't physcally write it. So, now I say it as I create and it's recorded. I'm finding that effective

[hope]

I'm impressed! I don't think I could listen to my voice recap story ideas again *g*

[eyebrowofdoom.livejournal.com]

Jack/Ianto office supplies porn*

Win. This does not even really require a story. Just the concept is enough.

My optimal writing conditions randomise themselves according to imperatives, I presume, that are aligned with my misalignment to the intrinsic forces of the universe. I am envious of your apparent ability to fool yourself that it's okay to write now!


*lol, I went back and virtuously changed my i tag to em.

[hope]

Win. This does not even really require a story. Just the concept is enough.

WELL, TOO BAD. THE WORLD IS GETTING ONE ANYWAY!


The fooling myself that it's ok to write now only works sometimes. And it may take hours and hours for anything to actually happen.

[dm811.livejournal.com]

Hmmmmmm... These are very interesting. I totally do the anticipatory header and preview viewing. But I tend to leave it off until the very very end. Like it's a reward for finishing something. I do other things though, to change my own environment. Often I'll put on some DW or TW in the dvd player as background noise to keep me in the mood. I'm gonna steal some of your habits though, and see if they work for me too. Just not the font changes. It drives me crazy typing in serif fonts :P

[hope]

TV would be far too distracting background noise for me! I always end up resorting to my "scores" playlist when I'm writing :)