My adventures in novel writing continue. I finished reading through all I printed out and realized, to my dismay, that the point-of-view problem I thought I had solved for one section of the story, was in fact not solved. Back to the drawing board for that one. I scribbled in the first set of revisions. Now I can go at it again when I transfer those handwritten changes to the computer file.
I find that I prefer to write my first draft by hand, then type, then print out, then revise by hand, then type again. Yes, I do also revise by reading on screen and making changes to individual sections (or short stories), but I find for this longer work, printing out and reading it on paper makes a difference. It seems a bit old school, I know, but what I realized today is that by working on paper, I was not distracted by every other open (or available to be opened) tab on the computer. My focus remained on the story. In fact, when I did open the computer today to implement some of those changes, I was immediately distracted by a notification of a FB post. Which I had to check. Of course. I mean, who wouldn’t want to see
with the caption: Too. Much. Catnip.
Okay, it’s my own photo, my own post. But who else liked it? I mean, he’s cute right? It is easy to get sucked into the seratonin producing checking of “likes.” But I digress. Again. That is the problem and the benefit of the Internet. There is so much to catch our attention and easy ways to find and convey information. (Here I am, writing this blog!) But the business of writing sometimes, most times, needs more concentrated focus. For me this means a messy desk of papers, notebooks, and print outs. It is not the most efficient or most ecological method, but for now, it works. I think it would work better if my filing system were better, but that goes for the electronic filing system as well. So, I ask once again for you, my readers, to share your thoughts. Don’t be shy! How do you like to write and revise? By hand? electronically? Do you have any suggestions for keeping track of your drafts? Inquiring minds want to know.
Oh and by the way of full disclosure, I contradict myself when I write this blog. These entries I tend to write directly into (or is it onto? Gerri, what do you think?) the computer (or phone or tablet, depending on where I am when I write them) with the exception of some of the poetry. So perhaps you would like to comment on your exceptions as well. Do you approach some writing with one method and other writing with another? Is it genre that determines the mechanics or time and place? I think for myself, it is a combination of both. If you are generous enough to share some of your thoughts with me, I’ll follow up with another post highlighting your contributions. (And probably another photo of Lionel 🙂 )
CRCreateADay 