Question- What is your writing process?

Glad I'm not the only one who likes to write on the train via phone!! I find my creative juices work best when I'm travelling around or out and about, so keeping notes and even writing whole certain sentences on my phone is fantastic. I already have a script to base all my writing events from before I begin writing, but its mostly the background/environment and other details that need filling in is where I need more of that creativity flowing in. I usually sit for a few hours at my laptop to write the main parts but sometimes my best writing comes from me sitting in bed on my phone!

Here is my first novel here, completed and binge-ready:

I'm working on my second one now!

I also write on my phone sometimes! But that’s usually because I’m too lazy to open my laptop. However, I’m too paranoid to write in public, it feels like others are reading what I write over my shoulder although that’s pretty unrealistic. Sometimes I do take some notes when I’m out and about though. I usually write when I have time during the day that means that I sit 30 min to 1 h consecutively at most during weekdays.

I’ve started to try to write 250 words a day, and it doesn’t have to be good. Looking back, I was editing what I had written way too much so that the story never moved forward and I lost interest. With my current story I thought that I should do a rough first draft first and then go back and edit it. I do publish it episodically on Tapas because it gives me some type of accountability to continue but I’m not really promoting it since it’s not that polished. I guess the main plot is in there and the characters. But right now there’s mostly a whole lot of dialogue and maybe more tell than show.

Let’s see how this process will work!

For me, an idea usually starts with me blasting music on my phone and coming up with cool story scenarios from the sound of the music. If I like the idea a ton, i'll take a mental note of it. I like to start drawing the characters, which can really give me a lot of ideas about them and their possible role in the story and gets me super excited!- I usually have a very vague idea of the story and characters at first.

I then usually start a google doc, where I will start dot pointing ideas and building off them. I always keep in mind that it will change, but I keep going and writing ideas. I will often rewrite the beginning outline later since I figure out what needs to be established. I continue this until I have a very solid outline of the plot with clear reasons for each scene and pay offs.

I then move onto my script, where I follow my outline (having the completed outline means I don't stress about what happens next or what the characters say.) The script will always have a first draft where I'm figuring out what characters say and what happens, and I will go back and edit to make sure the dialouge fits the characters, is relevant and is interesting. I continue this until the entire script is done.

Once the script is done, I go through and edit the entire thing because I get to see how scenes lead into each other and whether or not something works. I usually re-write the beginning because I have a clear view of the story, and I will add/remove scenes if needed.

With novels, it's very similar except writing takes me a lot longer and there's much more heavy editing needed because with scripts no-one but me needs to see it

I like to write in short sprints depending on how much time I have, it's usually 5 - 10 -15 minutes during which I try to write as much as I can (doesn't have to be pretty), with a very short break in-between. If I don't have much time (or if I don't know how much time I have), I go for multiple 5-minutes sprints. This way I can focus on writing and not distract myself, because it's 'just 5 minutes'. This method was VERY useful when I was doing NaNoWriMo

If I go for a longer writing session, I have to play music on my headphones, else I'll get distracted or procrastinate. Just playing the music does no count, somehow headphones make me switch to 'get this done' mode.

And as for writing itself, I usually start with a list of main events that I want to happen (in the same file for short stories, in a separate file for bigger projects), so when I'm stuck with one scene I can easily jump to another one. And then I just, go with a flow I guess? and see where my characters take me while still sticking to the plan. Or changing the plan on the way, if something feels out of character after other changes.

If found just having an audience motivates writing more.
(He just said get followers, you'll write more.)

I know what the sounds like right. But I find if I am more accountable I become more productive. You should set yourself a goal or a deadline. We all know what kind of masters of authorship we can be when a report is due the monday after a weekend right? You just need to channel that kind of energy on demand.

I also find that it helps to write the bulk of what you are going to write before editing (if you are posting chunkwise to tapas) all at one time. Then going back to edit the issue or chapter. You tend to be more consistent within the episode. Most people worry about staying stylistically consistent episode to episode; and then end up overediting older posts and taking up a huge part of their time.

For serialized fiction, I find it easier to just treat them like "Once, its posted I'm not going to touch it." You can see your progress as a writer reading your work, just like if you read a longtime webcomic, you can see how much the art style of the artist improves from episode 1 to episode 100.

tl;dr - Just write, get people to watch it, and then get stressed out enough to force yourself to be productive. Tapas is a really good place to do those things.

I write on my laptop, but also when I'm waiting for stuff (e.g. when in a queue, waiting to fall asleep, when in a meeting that doesn't really need my input etc :P) Being all deliberate/professional and sitting at a desk with distractions removed like people always advise brings out that inner critic that agonises over word choice for me as well I only do that if I'm rushing to meet a deadline or something, or if there's a group pomodoro session or something going on and there's peer pressure for me to make use of

... w ... what kind of laptop do you have? Laptops aren't much more difficult to open than phones imo ... just open the lid and press the 'on' button o_o If anything, I'm the one who's too lazy/impatient to type on a phone. How do y'all type on a phone? Can you do it as fast as with a computer keyboard? ... Am I just old and out of touch? XD

HAHAHA I never turn off my phone but I do turn off my laptop sometimes and it takes so long to start, I have a password, I have to open the browser and find the document I'm writing in. There's just so much work. I open my phone with touch or face ID and then just click on the google docs app and then I'm there, ready to write!

Haha I do think I write faster on the computer keyboard but I make more typos. And... I also don't write as fast as when I'm posting on the forums since I have to think more about what I want to write so the speed doesn't really matter in my case.

Ah, that explains it; I never turn off my laptop

My average writing speed throughout a 'session' also isn't fast because of the thinking, but once I do have a thought formulated, it's frustrating if it takes too long to type it out :'D Also probably why I hated doing schoolwork when we had to write things down on paper XD

Do the same, but with half a chapter and every day.

I mean the average writer without a physical disability should be able to compose about 600 words an hour on the very low end.

If you did that for 8 hours a day 5 days a week you'd have 2 rough draft novels a month.

I guess it depends on how fast you can type. XD

My process usually goes like this

1. Inspiration from something leads to a concept or idea forming in my head.

2. I write the first chapter and in that chapter I try to justify, flesh out, and humanize my concept or idea. This chapter is typically an introduction or a short intro that the reader can use to set expectations for the rest of the book.

3. I write the next 3 chapters. If I can't get past these 3 chapters, chances are my concept is too weak, I don't like my characters, or my inspiration has faded too quickly to go on.

4. If I can get to about chapter 4 or 5, by then I've probably written enough to analyze my own story and construct more of the stories skeleton. I can start to really plot out and plan events for later chapters, and even dig into characters.

Basically

1.Think of Idea

2.Write opening set up.

3 Test idea for a few chapters.

1. If I like the direction, I plot out the rest of the book and finish.

And sure there are more complicated things I do between those steps, but in essence, that's what I do. Some people might think it's odd not to plan everything out from the start, but I feel like if I did that I'd never stop planning. I'd get stuck in planning. And if I allow myself to play and see where things go for a few chapters at the beginning, it can actually lead to more interesting concepts than what I might have planned for before I was in the midst of creating. Still, I know it's not for everyone.

I’ve written both prose and comics, and my overall method is to vomit up everything in various outlines and rough drafts, get feedback, rewrite with that feedback, keep writing, scrap the story, start from the ground up and rinse and repeat…. Sounds chaotic and time consuming (it is) but, I got one of my most complete and cohesive stories from this method. I think the key is finding the right person to edit your work. Someone who is a better writer and who will give you honest, constructive feedback.

My process

1. I start by stretching in the morning.
2. I take a hearty breakfast.
3. BLOOD SACRIFICES FOR THE NARRATIVE ELDER GODS.

Well, no. Not precisely.

Now seriously.

1. I have an idea.
2. I ponder said idea for a while. (I colloquially say I'm "chewing it")
3. I research anything I think I'll need to develop the idea.
4. I explore different alternatives from the same initial thought.
5. I see which elements of each idea call to me the most and see if I can fit them together (I personally call this, in my mind, Hegelian Narrative Development, just because I'm a pretencious asshat deep inside who likes being wordy.)
6. Once the idea is set and I have enough research material I begin building around it from the outside to the inside.
7. I go from Macro to Micro in the world-building, reaching the furthest point away from the story and working my way towards the center.
8. Once the world is built I expand my character ideas using elements of the world around them, intertwining them to it, modifying my original ideas if needed.
9. With everything in place I can work on the plot, having a lot of breathing room with a developed world and characters.
10. I write multiple outlines about the story in broad strokes and then I split each "act" apart and then I split them apart again. I used a method called the "5 Columns" which I learned during Film Screenwriting School.
11. Once I feel like the plot is set I do a couple more passes writing it as a single chunk of story and later I split everything into scenes, making a list of scenes.
12. I proceed to make drafts of the actual story and revise them multiple times until I'm satisfied with the story.
13. Profit?