Develop a sustainable writing process

One challenge writers face is carving enough time to cobble together a book length manuscript. The first thing one needs is to want to do it. You might have an idea you think is worthwhile. Or you just know you can do it but you might not know what it is you want to write about.

Some people know exactly what they want to write about. They plot out each scene in detail down to the describing what’s in each scene, what smells and tastes exist, what chatters are there and what they are doing, etc. Then they sit down and write it all down.

I’m not that way. I let my characters tell me what to write. I put them in a scene and say “Now. What’s up with you? Why are you there and who is with you. What kind of problem do you think is worthy of your effort? Will you fail or conquer?  In theory I want them to have enough trouble to overcome that in the end I’ll have 60,000 to 70,000 words down on paper. Then I’ll go back and fill in the details. Finally I’ll go from beginning to end as many times as it takes to make me happy with the result.

How do I get that many words? That’s the next post.