The Place For My Writers Notes

Caught this in my morning scramble through Google news... recommended for me?

https://www.lifesavvy.com/22054/five-creative-writing-exercises-to-jump-start-nanowrimo/amp/

Oh, now google news is offering me aids for Nanowrimo? Let’s see…

Morning pages? Right, the Artist’s Way recommended starting your day with three pages of thoughts. Anything and everything that comes bubbling up. Of course, many of us know that approach as free-writing. It’s a good warmup, and a way to keep going when you need it… hum, they snuck one in there, about writing about an object. Just look around, pick something, and go! Google images can help, if you need more pictures…

Memory and dream journaling? Sure, dig back into the past, and tell us about a time when you… what are the stories that you share when talking to friends? What do you remember? What did you feel? Or maybe you want to do dreams? 

Writing prompts? I happen to participate in a weekly round of prompts, but a search on the Internet for writing prompts will keep you busy for many, many words. Looks as if there is one aimed at Nanowrimo, too.

Fan fiction! Pick a story, and retell it. Or maybe pick a bit character from your favorite story and tell their story?

Over here, https://writingexcuses.com/2021/08/29/16-35-what-is-the-m-i-c-e-quotient/ is starting a series digging into the MICE quotient. You may have heard of this, it originated with Orion Scott Card some time ago. Basically, the notion is that stories are built around four elements, milieu, inquiry (idea originally, but...), character, and event. Typically, a milieu story thread starts when the character goes into some place and ends when they leave. Inquiry starts when the character asks a question and ends when they find the answer. Character? Who am I up to some kind of self-understanding. Event starts with something disrupting the normal and ends with either a return to the old normal or establishing a new normal. Now, in between these bookends, you get conflicts. Something keeps the character in the milieu, something keeps the character from finding the answer, something keeps the character from changing, or something blocks achieving a norm of some kind.

Anyway, it's one approach to stories. And Writing Excuses is going to dig deep into the framework, the elements and how they fit together, plus how you can use them to guide your writing...

I may have to dig out my copy of Orion Scott Card's book and review what he had to say about it...

Elsewhere, someone asked for advice about whether or not to stop and make a revision to their work in progress or not. They explained they were about 50% or better into their story, but had just realized that there was a bit character in the early part who could play a bigger role as a red herring, and they wondered whether to go back and rewrite the early part now, or press on to the end and then do the revision. Here's my response...

I think the answer is yes. Seriously, I've seen advocates for both approaches to handling that great idea that comes in the middle of writing. One group suggests that you write yourself a note, to be used during revision, but then press ahead and write the whole thing. Their argument is that you may (and probably will) come up with other changes that need to be worked in, and pushing to finish first (a) ensures that you do finish, and (b) let's you work in all those changes during a revision pass or two, instead of repeatedly restarting during the first draft race to the end. Another group says no, when you have a change like this, go ahead and rewrite, patch it in, and then work forward from a strong base, with the change already in place. That way you don't have as much rework to do on the later parts, since you already worked in the change.

I think a lot of it depends on your own approach. If you are trying to keep the whole thing in your head, and writing, writing, aiming at that finish (aka discovery writing or pantser), then it probably makes sense to just make a note and keep going. You're going to keep on discovering things to work into the story, and that revision is going to be fairly hefty anyway, so go ahead and get a whole list before you go back and start making changes. On the other hand, if you have a pretty good idea of where you are going, and the change will be fairly major, (aka plotter?) then it may make sense to go back and work it in now. Incidentally, Lois McMaster Bujold has talked about her process, which involves writing herself a series of fairly extensive side commentaries while writing (I think of this as co-writing), which lets her keep track of changes like this for later revision, while still pushing ahead on the mainline without too much major upheaval. I suppose that might be a third approach, pause, write up bits and pieces without working them in, enough so that you think you have the idea well in hand, then go ahead.

So, yes. You may want to take a little time and at least write yourself a note, perhaps some character scenes and such, to help you keep track of that new red herring until you come back during revision and work them in everywhere. And go ahead and write the rest of the story as if you had made those changes already, but go ahead and push for the finish. OR stop now, go back and rework things to at least bring out that new character, add some scenes and dialogue and so forth, and then pick up again with a firmer base to work from.

Your choice. Whichever works best for your writing process, at this time, for this story.