Write, Write, Write!

[jian_sierra]

Well here's the weird way i write to make it interesting for me. When I start a story, I usually know the beginning and end of the story line. After that, I make up the rest which is fun. Sometimes I just get these cool ideas (based on my personal standards of course) on what to write and it just gets me really excited to begin writing

[MarkSen]

I agree with jian_sierrra! I have the beginning and end of the story, and then the main turning points in the story, and then just write everything else. Small encounters with other characters, dialog and descriptions, even characters, just pop up by themselves as I write. It's fun that way! It really helps you to tap into your other forms of creativity.

[Raijen]

@Jian_Sierra and @MarkSen: I've been finding that my brain works in similar ways to what the two of you are describing. When I get in my writing zone it's like I'm watching the story and just writing what I see in my imagination. Pretty neat, really.

 

Now to just decide which story to write next...

[Zannen]

Somehow, in some odd way, singing while typing seems to help me write.

 

I mean, that doesn't even make any semblance of sense, now does it? If anything, it should be prohibiting me from typing a coherent, least to say, grammatically correct sentence.

 

Somehow, I manage. It makes it easier to think about what I'm doing while singing about something else.

[Raijen]

Somehow, in some odd way, singing while typing seems to help me write.

 

I mean, that doesn't even make any semblance of sense, now does it? If anything, it should be prohibiting me from typing a coherent, least to say, grammatically correct sentence.

 

Somehow, I manage. It makes it easier to think about what I'm doing while singing about something else.

 

That's actually not odd at all, considering that the human brain has neurons that branch and connect in all sorts of different ways. I find that trance techno music helps me "get in the zone" as it were and hammer out several pages at a time of story.

 

Were I not so lazy, I would do some research to pull up, studies on creativity and what-not. Sadly, I'm lazy, so just take it from me that what psychologists and biologists are learning is some pretty amazing things. A practical book, in the mean time, is "The Artist's Way" by Julia Cameron. Somehow, she is able to make the creative process meaningful by giving artists techniques for self-discovery, challenge, and perspective. A good read if you're feeling a bit low in your craft or hobby.

[Sylphic]

The first time I ever really hammered out a story was during NaNoWriMo.

Even then, I only actually finished a story my second time around.

So, I guess a deadline helps with me.

Though, I'm a bit weird -- I tend to get into swings of creativity where I just want to write and come up with these amazing creations, and then it dwindles for a few months.

Then I'm back on the writing bandwagon, and if I get motivated enough, like yesterday, I actually finish a story. Haha.

Deadlines help with me. I used to listen to music, but I'm not really sure how much that helps anymore.

[Jonouchi]

Sometimes I find it fun to write something terrible and indulge in my inner Ed Wood so to speak. I forget all the rules rules rules of grammar and what makes a good story and just write what I think is funny. Sometimes I even purposefully misspell things for funzies. It really loosens me up for a full day of writing. Lately with how I have been writing a story about a killer from his point of view... it really does calm my nerves to tell myself that I am not that person and that I am really a silly happy person who just feels compelled to write something creepy.

 

Some other things that get me writing is... pumping up my sex drive. It keeps me up.

 

READ. Sometimes when I am reading I will see a really good line and I will snatch it up and base a story off that line. Some lines are just that good!

 

Riding on a bus also helps me come up with characters. I try to find two people who are having a convo, sit across from them, and act disinterested. You will be surprised what you may hear on the bus. This one dude could not stop talking about how terrible cops were and how dumb they were and blah blah blah he smokes weed and they can suck it. lol. it was really interesting to hear him go on and on about it. I learned that he was trying to help out this kid who loved to play guitar get away from his deadbeat dad who did nothing but discourage him.

[A_Akira]

Poet's perspective here but who knows this may be applicable or helpful for all the prose writers too!

 

Okay what my friends and I do sometimes to jump start the writing is a simple exercise. Basically, all of us would prepare our paper and pens with one person being the leader. He would then begin by throwing out a random word that pops into his/her head... like for example "Bird" or "Green".

 

The rest of us would take this word and write what ever gibberish that comes into our head for 1 minute straight - grammar, line breaks, sense and on-topicness entirely optional for that matter. The only thing not optional is continuous writing. This repeats itself for around 3-5 words.

 

We then take the most promising of these and then refine it into a poem as much as possible by however we want.

 

Hope this was useful and does anybody else have any ideas for poetry writing and how to jump start it?

[intune]

I like to write with music. Other than that, i give myself a deadline and just try to meet it. But, it's supposed to be fun, so I don't force myself too much.

[cehammock]

I will write a couple short pieces in the span of a month, and then write nothing for months on end. What is the most helpful is to have a sincere reader, who is genuinely interested in what you write. That is the most motivating. If no one wants to read it, it seems pointless to write it.