Process

The Writing Process

Set out, retain your humility and your self-respect, and try to write when you can. Life, health, work, and love will get in the way. Find your way back to the page. Editors, publishers, and other writers will snub you. So what? Get back to the page again, and again, and again. 

Jenny Shank

The ever-changing territory of…

Process, or How You Write

One of the most enjoyable pastimes for writers is to get details on exactly how other writers get their books from idea to object. 

Information is out there. We can find out where, when and how much well-known writers write without too much trouble. It’s widely known that James Joyce wrote in bed. So did Edith Wharton, & Wharton finished by eleven a.m. Hemingway was done by noon. As for how much,  some write in binges, while others take a more measured approach. Pulitzer prize winner and 8-time novelist Colson Whitehead aims for eight pages a week. 

The thing that’s harder to discover about another writer’s process is how the thoughts enter their heads, turn into words, make their way to the page, get moved around, become polished, turn into a book, then make their way out into the reader’s mind. 

This “How” is a topic of great mystery–not only for well-known writers, but for ourselves. It’s a jewel whose facets include finding your why, nailing your premise or concept, making the time, finding the flow, having some fun, and knowing how to stop when you reach the point of diminishing returns. It also includes honing your work and sending it out. 

Arriving at a solid process for writing your book involves understanding how you work best, at least for this project, or this phase of the project.

Your best companions when tinkering with your process are curiosity, a sense of play, and a rock-solid belief that whatever you do to create your book is worth the trouble…because in the end, anything you can do to understand your writing process informs how you live the rest of your life.

Recommended Books on Process

Recent Posts on Process




How to Write a Manifesto



Process

In an hour Manifestos are an excellent tool for getting clarity about your life, or about a particular aspect of your life…like writing. Writing a manifesto reminds you a) your experience is valid, and b) if you don’t know where you stand on something that matters urgently to you, how …

,



How to Write More by Starting Small



Process

There’s a meme on that social media platform old people use (Facebook), which goes like this: Start by doing 1 push up. Start by drinking 1 cup of water. Start by paying toward 1 debt. Start by reading 1 page. Start by making 1 sale. Start by deleting 1 old …

,



Book Review: Quiet by Susan Cain



Process

Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking, by Susan Cain Tidbits from Quiet: Open plan offices reduce productivity and impair memory. They make people sick, hostile, unmotivated and insecure. Online collaborations can be very successful, but that doesn’t mean work groups are better in all …

,



How to Write a Novel in 3 Days



Process

That crucible of invention known as the 3-Day Novel Contest takes place every Labor Day weekend. Billed as “The World’s Most Notorious Writing Contest,” it originated back in the dawn of time, aka the late 1970s. Read the story of its birth here. My 3-Day Story: I entered the 3-Day …

,



7 Project Management Principles for Writing a Book



Process

Writing is a “learn by doing” thing, and the only way to learn how to write a book is to write one. This is problematic for many reasons, the main one being that writing a book is confusing, difficult, and almost always optional. Several years ago I borrowed a bunch …

,



How to Run Your Writing Group



Process

There is nothing so precious and productive as a good writing group. Why? It gives a writer: Accountability — people are waiting to read your stuff, so you write it Support — getting published ain’t easy, but we’re in it together Skill-building — not just in writing, but also in giving …

, ,