Alright..... I'm back and wanted to post, as promised.
I'll try to be succinct, but that doesn't always work. --LOL--
Okay - writing, revising, and so on......
To repeat, my published works have not been fiction - they've been technical books. So to an extent things are different, and I want to make that clear.
However, writing is also a disciplined process, and having some structure around that process is what gets you through, imo.
GENERAL THOUGHTI'm going to address longer works now - novel length.
Writing a book is VERY time-consuming and mechanical. It will take hours and hours and hours to get a first draft out. For me I have been given between 12 and 16 weeks to produce a first draft. Don't forget, most of us are working during the day. It's tough.
Not only that, but each chapter, when it's complete,is submitted to the editor. As the editor looks at it, you're working on the next chapter. When that is ready, you submit that too. In return, you get that first chapter BACK with comments, suggestions, and corrections (grammar etc.) done. You are expected to do these revisions AS YOU WRITE THE THIRD CHAPTER.
As you see, once the thing really kicks off you're on a bit of a roller coaster. And if you're writing professionally (ie. Getting paid to do it) then you can't just stop, or decide to take a break whenever you feel like it. Once a book contract is signed then you're on a deadline, and publishers HATE moving deadlines.
The reasons for this ought to be clear - the publisher is making space to get your book printed, they're putting together advertisements in print media, marketing etc. If you stop writing, lots of things get affected.
ONCE YOU'VE COMMITTED TO WRITING THE BOOK - YOU MUST WRITE THE BOOK.
It Sounds ImpossibleIt does, doesn't it? And hard work too. The fact is I've canceled holidays with the wife because a book deadline was getting tight. Over three day weekends I have locked myself in my spare room for 18 hours a day - over all three days - to get things done. I have canceled Christmas with the family to finish up. I have used my work holidays just so I can write on a book.
In other works it's all about commitment at that level - dedication to the cause.
You can take breaks - BETWEEN writing books, but never while you're writing one.
And so - there's a common process, a method. And here's what it is...................... I'd use this for MYSELF when considering writing a fictional novel.
Before you start the actual writing you must have the following in hand:
- A brief - half a page - summary of the story and what it's about.
- A brief - paragraph - on the intended market/genre you're aiming for.
- A brief - paragraph - on why your book is "special/different"
From this the following is created:
- A Contents page with chapter titles
- A short pitch for each chapter
- A longer pitch for each chapter
These are DIFFERENT documents.
The contents page with chapter titles is exactly what it sounds like. It, at a glance, tells you how many chapters there are going to be, and therefore suggests the length you're aiming for. LENGTH IS IMPORTANT FOR DISCIPLINED WRITING. Even if you're not going to use the chapter titles in the final work - they are useful here to get you focused.
The short pitch for each chapter takes your contents page slightly farther. It's the same, but beneath each chapter heading you add a single paragraph explaining what this chapter is about. What happens? In the case of fiction, what are the set pieces etc.
The longer version of this is the same - except - you expand things out so that each chapter is explained in more detail. You can have several paragraphs about each chapter, and even mini Contents pages under each one. In other words, break the chapters down, give yourself a structure. Set yourself a PAGE COUNT goal for each chapter. Publishers want to see an expected page count!
Once this is done to your satisfaction then you're ready to start writing the novel. If you've done the above well, then in essence you're "filling the blanks". The writing is somewhat mechanical - as typing is.......
BUT - I hear you say, what if I change my mind about things? What if I decide I want to add a new character, a new scene, or a new monster?
In my case, a 5% to 10% change from the above documents is fine - no issue at all. More than that, and you probably have severe feature creep (as it were). The documents mentioned are a very creative time (don't rush them!), and if you're changing things to an extent greater than 5% to 10%, then you probably didn't do a good enough job in the first place.
The process with the publishers is relatively simple. For every book I've done I've worked with four people:
- A Senior Editor
- An Editor
- A Technical Editor
- Marketing Team
I think for fiction we can ignore the Technical Editor.
The Senior Editor simply has ultimate responsibility for the thing, you don't have much to do with this person as an author, though the Editor might use them all the time.
The Editor is your contact, and you have to have a good relationship with them. You send in each chapter to this person, she/he edits your work, and sends it back for corrections. Microsoft Word had TERRIFIC features for editing, annotating, and adding making multiple drafts of documents - too few people bother to learn about these features, they're missing out!
Marketing is for sales etc. - we won't talk about them.....
The Editor will correct some mistakes - spelling, grammar etc. They will also note places where they got confused, or think things are unclear.
Now - PAY ATTENTION - this next bit is VERY IMPORTANT.
The best advice I was ever given by a publisher was the following:
WHEN WRITING, CHECK YOUR EGO AT THE DOOR. CHANGES *WILL* BE MADE, COMPROMISES WILL TAKE PLACE, AND THE PUBLISHER IS ALWAYS RIGHT!
In other words, no matter how good you think you are, the Editor will ALWAYS make corrections, complain, whine, insist. It's NOT PERSONAL for them, it's a job. Always, always, ALWAYS - these changes have led to a better book for me. However, I've not always agreed with them, and I have gotten protective of my words. I gradually learned to get over that. You should too. Criticism is good, and once trust is established, you can get what you want if you make a decent case.
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So where does that leave me?
Firstly, I wouldn't - personally - contemplate beginning a novel length story without all - or certainly MOST - of the above. It might sound like a pain in the rear - but the fact is it gives you real guidance on what you're going to do. If you don't do these things it can get out of control, you start to add more and more things, change the plot over and over, and get mired into things. Worse, you never finish.
As I stated earlier, writing requires DISCIPLINE. Even writers like JG Ballard described writing as "work". He would rise from bed at the same time every day, go to his writing desk, and write for a certain length of time. He would take a defined lunch, and when that was done he would write a little in the afternoon. Then he'd finish his "work" for the day.
Discipline, structured, committed. He did this every day. He built his life around it.
When I was writing, for instance, Wednesday night, Friday night, and all day Sunday were writing days. I told my family this was the case. In other words: DO NOT DISTURB ME DURING THESE TIMES. ACT AS THOUGH I AM AT THE OFFICE.
The main problem writing on my own will be the Editing. You MUST have an editor. And get this - YOU CANNOT FINAL EDIT YOUR OWN WORK. It cannot be done. Impossible. Someone else must do it for you. Preferably someone totally disconnected from the work (not your brother, sister, wife).
Secondly - Editors will correct your grammar and spelling etc. However - THEY'RE NOT TEACHERS. They expect you to know the basics of this stuff. The quality of your written English should be good. An Editor is just as much interested in the CONTENT as they are the mechanics. Perhaps more so.
Hm - this is getting long..... I'm going to stop now.
This is simply what I have learned from my experience in a (slightly) different field. Hope it helps.