Writing thought

[potentiality_26]

I recently finished a draft of a fic and I wrote it very differently than I usually do.  Unless it's a short story- say, less than 2,500 words- and I can think it up and write it in one sitting, I tend to be pretty scattered in the way I'll write said story.  I get scenes or peices of scenes (from many different points in the fic, and usually out of order) in my head, so write them down as they come to me so I don't forget them later, and then I slowly fill in the blanks until it's done.  Sometimes very slowly, because if I get distracted by another idea in the middle it could be weeks or months before I go back to it.  Also, the scenes that I fill in the blanks with tend to be the weaker parts of the story, because I know what needs to happen in them but they're really just there to get me from point A to point B and they lack a certain spark.

With this fic, I didn't let myself.  I hand wrote it from the first scene to the last scene, in order.  There's already some stuff I want to go back and change, which I'll do when I type it up, but what was interesting was how differently I had to think.  I had to go over the scenes that were really clear in my mind over and over again to make sure I wouldn't forget them but I got around to writing them, but the parts in between those scenes were definitely the better for it, because they fit better into the natural flow of the story.  I'm not sure how often I'll be able to do this- given the reasonably limited amount of time I have for fic writing in a given day, I had to go through it pretty fast- but it was a learning experience.  

What about you guys?  Do you write linearly, or do you just write things down as they come to you?  Are there aspects of your writing that you worry might suffer for the way you write?  Have you ever tried writing a story in a completely different way, to see what it's like?
  

Comments

[a-phoenixdragon.livejournal.com]

Depends on the fiction. Most of the time (especially when writing/posting a WIP), I tend to write in a linear fashion. This has bitten me in the ass a few times, as I can get stuck and have difficulty finishing a fiction (even if I really want to). I hate reediting a piece after I have already posted, so this makes it twice as hard if I screw up.

When it comes to pieces that need to be posted (complete) all at once, I try to write in a linear fashion, but I'm known for writing down the main plot-points as the characters give them to me, then connecting the dots and editing/smoothing as I do so. Half the time it READS smooth, as the characters generally have better control and grasp of the finer points of the plot that I (consciously) do.

Both types are difficult, but I enjoy leaping around a story...gives me a sense of freedom linear writing can't, lol!!

*HUGS*

CAN'T WAIT TO READ BTW. GIMME. *Pokes you*

*Still wants that icon*

[potentiality-26.livejournal.com]

I hate reediting a piece after I have already posted

Me too. If I have to rush something to the posting stage for a challenge or something, I never want to go over it again.

I'm working on it. :)

(It's lovely, isn't it? Sometimes I get distracted just staring at it.)

[a-phoenixdragon.livejournal.com]

Gods it is...I can see why you would get distracted!! Gakked with credit because Yum!!

[potentiality-26.livejournal.com]

:)

[verdande-mi.livejournal.com]

For the most part I do not write linearly at all and doing so is a big mystery to me, I don’t think my brain is cut out for it. I write in bulks I would say and I jump between beginning, middle and end as I want. I am much more focused on each scene and paragraph than I am the overall plot and I am very much a here-and-now-writer and I don't tend to be many steps ahead.

I haven’t really tried writing in a different manner other than trying and failing to write each day at the same time and so forth. That is too rigid for me, writing to me is a much more loose and fluid adventure. I have a lot of theory about the craft of writing, but I don’t think there’s any true way to write. Everyone needs to find their own way to make writing happen and write as they feel best for themselves.

[potentiality-26.livejournal.com]

It's interesting that if you strictly write linearly or the opposite, it tends to be kind of mind blowing to think that someone does it the other way around.

I am much more focused on each scene and paragraph than I am the overall plot and I am very much a here-and-now-writer and I don't tend to be many steps ahead.

Interesting. If I don't have the whole picture of a story already in my head, I never get anywhere with it.

I have a lot of theory about the craft of writing, but I don’t think there’s any true way to write.

I think you're right.

[liliannabelle.livejournal.com]

This is such a fascinating subject. I'm all over the place to be sure, and my attempts to write linearly have been failures--except I think when I was first starting to write, then it might have been more possible, or maybe it's just those pieces were shorter?

I agree there is tremendous value to changing things up--for me it has been switching genres, like trying to comedy/crack when that's really not my strength, or horror, or mystery. It's easy to do that with fanfic because the romance is always the heart of my story so the experiment with genre can succeed or flop, doesn't seem to matter to the readers cause they are reading for the pairing anyway, so it's a safe happy place to experiment!

I am in awe of both you writing linearly and you writing by hand, I would love to try those someday. For now I'm just glad I have the disjointed scenes, or fragments of scenes, that come to me because it lets me write when I have very little time to write.

[potentiality-26.livejournal.com]

I think it may be because it's shorter, sure. Since I normally don't write linearly, but I do when it's a fairly short piece, I think it's because a little vignette is easy to visualize as a whole right off.

I try to play around with genres too. Mysteries are a weakness for me, which is a shame because I've been trying to write them in original pieces for years. I've been trying to write them with FF as a learning experience, because you're right, it's a safe place to experiment since readers really are just in it for the shippy stuff.

I'd recommend trying both someday, if you ever get the chance, but I know what you mean- both of them need time you don't always have for writing.