Normally i would post stuff to do with writing on my Words blog, but since that doesn't get much traffic, i'ma post this here.
So i haven't actually done any writing for months. I'm kind of stuck, for the reason that i've got a story (Universes) that is so complex and multi-layered, that i've left alone for months. Also, when i look back at my stuff, the majority is at a literary level that i'm not happy with.
I'm a perfectionist. If i'm going to do something at all, it has to be done right. So how can i continue writing a story that i'm not happy with?
Either, i plot out the basics of the rest of the story, so i can get my dear baby's skeleton finished (I still haven't worked out how the story progresses, evolves, finishes), and then rewrite the whole thing. Or, i could start again now, rewrite the whole thing from the start so i'm happy with it, and once i finally get back to the point i'm currently at i can continue on with a story that is already decent. (Considering it's 183,000 words long at the moment, that's a huge undertaking.)
I really dunno what to do. :(
Say i decide to start from the start right now. First of all, that is going to take a huge amount of effort. I need to be 100% commited, and at a time like this, i don't know if that's possible. It might be better to wait until 6-week school holidays at the end of the year. Or maybe in a few years time when i'm a better writer, and my high school education is finished.
If i decide to plot out the rest of my story, it will finish differently than if i were writing it another way. My best plotlines have been made up as i wrote. I might be missing out on some great twists if i start planning it all out to the finish.
There is also the option of leaving Universes for later in my life, when i've got time and am a better writer. It's such complicated stuff, with such a diverse level of skill throughout it. It needs work, and a lot of it.
I could begin my next writing project, Hope Hurts (working title :P), which i'm excited about.
Bah. Everything's a mess. I dunno what to do. I could always try to push through with what i've got and just write till the story is finished... Now that i think about it, that may be the best way to go... but it's just so hard.
Grrrrrr. :/
PS. Don't forget to get your questions in for my 'Ask Me Anything' special. :)
I'd like to keep this untitled.
14 years ago
13 comments:
well i think you should decide soon
on what you are to do
;-)
Well...the way I see it you have a few options:
1)If you put "Universes" on hold until your writing style improves, you run the risk of losing interest in the project and then all your previous work will have been for naught.
2)Here's what I would do if I were in your shoes...I would put "Universes" on hold until the holiday break so that you can concentrate on school work and also so that you can analyze and maybe start thinking about a complete rewrite and how you want to go about it.
3)Don't let this consume you though. Enjoy life. Relax.
4)Also, if you need any assistance with the project, just ask. I'll be more than happy to help out where I can.
Hugs
Jayson
I have the same problem with songwriting sometimes. I'll start a song, not like some of it and never finish. However, I still keep them around so that I can always go back to work on them some more.
Sometimes when you write just one thing for so long you become bogged down in it. Perhaps its time to give "Universes" a break and write something else for a time.
My suggestion, write some short stories. Not just because I love that form of literature so very much, but because they help improve your writing and they are neat succinct projects. They allow you to start and finish something, refine it, and be proud of the results. I think that they could help refresh your mind because they allow you get out of one way of thinking and create several different others.
Well that's just what I think anyway.
Matt
Highwayman and Rhythm Changes both seem to me to make sense.
The only other thing I'd suggest is discussing it with someone who is familiar with the writing process. Dunno if there's anybody like that handy, though.
Some great writers basically set aside a certain amount of time that they would spend writing every day, or made themselves turn out a certain number of pages. It sounds like turning it into a job, but it seems to have worked for some people.
Honestly, it's probably better to have the skeleton to work with, then go back and rewrite it. I think that's what many writers do.
Having it planned out from start to finish doesn't mean you can't change it when you go back. That basic skeleton you write the first time isn't cemented in as your storyline.
hugs
you *may* be a better writer in later life, but you almost certainly *won't* have more time.
torchy!
Jeremy's right. Get you outline done first and then write. And if you stop work on this you will never go back to it.
You could toss a coin.
I often do this.
Then, having got into a mind frame that knows that that is decided - go and change my mind.
So you could choose.
Listen to the suncream song for advice.
Or listen to Rush.
If you chose not to decide, you'll still have made a choice.
Hope this makes more sense to you than it does to me.
Luv
Micky's Tig
I think I'd go with creating a skeleton for the rest of the story. Leave it open in parts. Bones don't make the body - needs other stuff too, so there should be room for twists here and there. Besides, it's easier to re-write a skeleton than start from scratch.
Work on it slowly until the long vacation at the end of the school year. Then reassess the situation then.
lol
its always hard :|
and my question is
how long is your...er...thing
O`h dear what to do ? Gees
you make it sooo hard !
Go a head and do the damn thing then you cam always rewrite it !
Like someone said there won`t be enough time later so don`t be fooled by that thought !
And how could that person ask a question like that ?
Your an Aussie and we all
know you all have at least 8" hahahaha !
Just a thought from an OCD perspective, you might wind up stuck revising and editing and perfecting forever and ever....
Once in a while with my blog posts - the ones I don't edit and correct and re-write - I sometimes just type it and quickly hit publish before I have a chance to think too hard.
*significant meaning or something*
:)
My suggestion is to let your existing writing sit.
Instead, work on short stories. Try to force yourself to write, say, a 7,000 word short.
That will get your writing going, give you practice, a sense of accomplishment, an ability to see your writing clearly, and so forth.
And, if you haven't, join a writing club!
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