Originally posted by Renee Scattergood:
If you haven’t already, read these first:
Step 1 | Step 2 | Steps 3 & 4 | Step 5 | Step 6 | Step 7 | Steps 8, 9, & 10 | Steps 11 & 12 | Steps 13 & 14
Here is what I write:
- Basic actions and descriptions
- Dialogue (if it pops into my head) or a description of the dialogue
- Tell not show
Here is what I don’t write:
- Detailed descriptions
- Long, drawn out actions
- New character introductions
The only time I fill in descriptions and other more descriptive writing is if it pops into my head while I’m writing. The point here is for me to get the basic bare bones story out of my head, so I can build on it later.
If I have to introduce a new character, I don’t worry about naming them or describing them until later. To mark where these characters will be I use parenthesis with a short description like: (young girl) or (guard #1)
Later I will go back and name the new character and build on them but doing that right now would break my writing rhythm, so I do as little as I can to insert new characters without forgetting who I’m talking about.
Each scene, at this point, is usually about 150 to 700 words. The finished scene (when all the editing is done) generally ends up being about eight to ten times this. So, if the scene is 200 words, I know it will be between 1600 and 2000 words when finished. This gives me a general idea of how long the book will be when it’s completed.
This step takes a bit longer than the others. It depends on how long the story is. For a short story, it might take a week or two. For a novel, it might take anywhere from a month to two months, keeping in mind that I’m also working on other projects. For someone who focuses on one project at a time, it might take less time depending on how much writing time they put in each day.
The next four steps are all about building on the story. Next week I’ll go over Steps 16 & 17. Until then, happy writing!
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