How do you guys- and by you guys I mean all the fanfic writers- writ your fics?

And by that I mean, do you listen to music whilst doing it, do you have a specific timetable for writing, do you plan everything meticulously beforehand, and even things like how you sit, what writing software you use, etc. etc.

I'm curious to see how the majority of DLPers go about their hobby.

 

I don't know how other people do it, but I like to scream at myself in the mirror for about 10-15 minutes before I write. Then a little crying... then write for a few minutes... bit more crying... then I'm usually good to go, as long as I have my muse.

*my muse is cocaine.

 

I watch streams (usually MTG) or listen to music (usually heavy like Sabaton or Amon Amarth).

-edit- Though, recently, I've been doing a lot of writing while at work. It helps sate the urge of having to divert my attention to other things constantly to break up the monotony.

 

I drink a lot.

My failures end in hangovers. My successes also end in hangovers, but I regret them a bit less.

 

If I find five minutes to spare, I hop on the computer and type like mad. Whatever comes out, comes out. I still revise, but I miss the days of outlining.... No music, usually.

Edited: Took out some personal info. Gaaah! I need to get off my phone and get some sleep.

 

I plug myself to a machine which generates a constant feed of (typically Scandinavian) extreme metal to my brain. Then I stare at the screen and hope to see some words materialize.

 

I sit at the kitchen table with a cup of coffee and type relentlessly until my son wakes up. It's like setting a random alarm as your deadline.

 

I find I utterly can't listen to music while I write. I can do it when I'm writing an essay I don't care about, or homework... but when it comes to actual writing I just can't. It's like it jams the gears of my brain - like I can't feel the flow anymore.

It's incredibly frustrating! It doesn't seem to matter whether the music is fast or slow or has lyrics or not. I really wish I could fix it.

Anyway, beyond the music thing - I like to form a rough idea of what I'm going to write before I do anything. Sometimes the story will wander into places I didn't expect, but if it doesn't then I've got some goal to work towards. I find overplotting really sets me back, because then I get too caught up in the details and it can become a little demoralising.

I've got a bad habit of continually re-reading what I've already written. I'm slowly weaning myself out of doing this so much, but it's tricky. It takes me a very long time to get anywhere because of this - I'm maybe too much of a perfectionist for my own good.

You've shown screenshots of this before, and I'm endlessly fascinated. I'd love to pick your brain on it.

My questions would be: Why do you write like that? Are there any parts of doing so that you find easier and harder than others? What about writing linearly do you dislike, if any?

Do you think you could perhaps make a timelapse video of you writing? Or just shoot us a few pictures of a document in several stages as it develops, and I'll animate it?

 

Well, since I made this thread, here's my method:

I come up with an idea over the course of a week- usually a really good idea that could be made into an awesome story if written properly. I then open up a writing program, type in the first sentence, get distracted by YouTube, and close that the document, never opening it up ever again.

Been working pretty good for the most part.

 

With my hands, usually.

 

I have a team of monkeys furiously typing away until something vaguely coherent emerges. Seems to be working so far.

 

"An infinite number of monkeys with an infinite number of typewriters and an infinite amount of time could eventually write the works of Shakespeare. Twilight was a two monkey four day job."

 

Oh, God. One word at a time.

Some tune-ski's on the radio, video game soundtracks in particular. Bottle of scotch, preferably full, though I've found having an empty bottle nearby is good comfort.

Pringles.

 

Phase one: on paper. Just write. Don't edit. Don't look back. Writewritewrite.

Phase two: type into the puter.

Phase three:

1. Prep drinks.

2. Prep snacks.

3. Prep auditory stimulation (low volume mysic).

4. Stop fucking procrastinating and get to editing already.

 

I write using wordpad in .rtf files. These are Dropbox-synced between home desktop, work laptop and my phone (though I never write with my phone- rtf editing and Android... not recommended). When preparing to post, I open the .rtf files in Word and let the auto-correct tools tell me what they don't understand, then save in compatible formats for posting.

Conceptually I think about the story during transit or between work tasks. Background music provided by whatever is still stuck in my head from the car's MP3 selection- currently a mix of U2, Tool, Faith No More, Korn, 80's hits and Fiona Apple.

I bounce between chapter files, concept outlines and scene-type files (comedy riffs, emotional moments, combat, teaching moments). When a chapter is close to ready, I save it as a version and reread it several times. When I'm tired of thinking about it without outside input, I post it to one site and see what the reviewers say. Assuming nothing needs major overhaul, I'll post the slightly-edited chapter to the other sites within a day.

 

Scrivener is a great program for writing. I don't use all the options it gives me, but a lot.

As for writing...whenever I have time and mostly in silence.

 

Generally, I wait until I have something else I really, absolutely must do... like, painting the house, or doing the dishes before the Wife gets home, or, y'know, working.

That's when the inspiration flows, and words magically appear at the ends of my fingertips.

 

Yeah, my most productive time was when I should have been doing a dissertation. In the month or so run up to my dissertation deadline I managed to do more than 50k words of not dissertation (a ridiculous rate for me). I can also very effectively plan stories while waiting for things to compile at work.

Other than that, well, I've been experimenting with conditioning myself. When I'm really determined to write I have a classical playlist which I play. The idea is that some day I won't need any actual motivation to write, I could just play the music and the writing will come easily.

It doesn't seem to be working.

Other than that, well, I can't write in short stints. If I'm writing it has to be for a minimum of 2 hours, but I usually assign an entire evening to it. Otherwise I can procrastinate it away, or in a more happy world, I can find my muse then run out of time.

Also, for maximum effectiveness I really should sequester myself away from the world. Phone onto Do Not Disturb, log out of IRC, close all browser tabs not either Docs or a story-related wiki (or the Youtube playlist).