Writing: A Grand Adventure

In case you haven't noticed - I love writing. I think it is fantastically fun and entertaining. I think it is one of the greatest adventures you can have...while sitting at a computer or with pen and paper in hand.

I recently did a writing workshop for a group of girls. I wasn't sure what they wanted to do or learn and I wasn't sure what their skill level was. Some of the things were way over their head. But some of the things I introduced they could have done. I think we could have storyboarded a story right then and there and it would have been awesome. The girls had great ideas and great imagination.

Anyway, I've digressed. I prepared some notes on the basic steps of the writing process for the workshop and I thought I might post it here. I've broken the process up into four general parts but it is kind of like the directions on the shampoo bottle. Lather, rinse, and repeat. So the parts are one, two, three, four, repeat, or some variation of that, until the product is where you want it.

Step One: Plotting and Preparing to Write

Things to consider when plotting and preparing to write...

1) Some people say, "Write what you know." I say, "Write what you want."

If J.K. Rowling didn't write about something that doesn't even exist we wouldn't have the wonder and adventure of the Harry Potter stories. If Stephenie Meyer didn't try to create a world in which vampires existed and could even love, we would have half the country with a hole in their hearts and not know why.

You don't have to be an expert to write creative fiction. You can be creative and create from scratch!

2) No single method of the writing process is absolutely and exclusively correct. There are lots of ways to write. There are lots of methods to plot a story. Try them all!

3) Study the different writing mediums. Study print, broadcast, blogs, journals, poetry, fiction, non-fiction, graphic novels, etc.

4) Decide on a perspective to tell the story. This will influence how you plan your writing.

You can find lots of ideas about perspectives on the web. Here are two critical limitations (using just the basic perspectives models) that will affect how you plot your scenes.

1st Person - You can only write what the one character sees or feels because you are showing the story through their eyes. This may be hard to do if you want to show a complete story with scenes that the main character may not be present for.

3rd Person - You can only write from an observer's point of view and it is harder to show internal depth of emotions and feelings because you have to show it physically or they have to say it aloud rather than just writing their thoughts. However, this is probably the easiest perspective (generally speaking) of the two to start writing in because it is easier to write a story where the main character doesn't always have to be present.

5) Reading is important when you are learning how to write. So read a variety of genres.

6) Immerse yourself in what you plan to write. If you want to write a biography, then read a lot of biographies to get a feel for what works and what doesn't.

Tools for Preparing and Plotting:

Keep a notebook of writing ideas.

Use a storyboard technique. (This is how I create the Halloween stories with my children. They'll give me about a million unconnected plot points. I write them on post-its and then we move them around and try to make a cohesive narrative. They almost killed me on The Horrible Halloween Heist but the storyboard technique saved the day!)

Research

Outline

Character Cards (These are like giant index cards that allow me to keep details of the characters straight. Anytime I write a physical or emotional quality about the character I add it to their card for continuity. I preprint the cards with the spaces for what will be most important for the story I am writing.)

Layouts of some of the locations that will be in the story. (Yes, I draw them and add color)

Mapping Thesis (This is really more suited for reports but...)



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