I’ve been challenged to share seven things about my writing.
*Cue blank look*
Okay! Okay, I got it.
- I write in bursts that vary from one word to one hour. Why? Because I don’t have an office where I can close a door and shut out the world.
My concentration is constantly being challenged by the voice of my youngest spawn calling, “Hey, Mom?” or my husband (who has HIS own office) shouting, “Babe, will you look at this before it goes out?”, or our neighing, baaing, and barking animals.
- I complete most of my writing while standing. And it’s not ‘cause I don’t have a chair. Nope, sitting is for sissies. Standing is for studs (or stud-ettes).
Truth is, my back and ass hurt if I sit longer than fifteen or twenty minutes. The panache of youth has come back to haunt me. *sigh*
- The first book I wrote, Remedy Maker, had a complete 30,000-word outline (aka plotting). The second book, Troll-y Yours, I wrote shooting from the hip (aka pantsing).
And what did that teach me? Apparently nothing, because I wrote the next two stories using a combination of both methods. (aka Plotsing?) Now that I understand myself and the writing methods that work best for me, a complete outline is my modus operandi.
- (Am I really only on #4?) Many of my book characters are based on real people. (Yes, that means YOU!)
Don’t worry, I’ll change your name so your friends won’t recognize you. Maybe—hehehe.
Once upon a time, I sold Mary Kay. During that time, I looked at everyone’s faces to evaluate their skin and makeup needs. Now, you’re all fodder for my books and potential characters, plotting to take over a fictional world! Buahahaha!! Or, maybe I’ve trapped you in a pitch-dark room, crying for your mommy. But if you’re really nice to me? Well, I’ll just leave it at that.
- Robotic vacuum cleaners RULE!
Why did I mention this as part of my writing life? Mainly because I don’t have time to mess with that crap when there’s a story clogging my brain. Even as I type right now, my little friend has happily sucked up the spoils in our living room and is zooming to redock his little self. My Neato is named B.O.B., by the way. One thing I have learned during my author life: outsource that which others can do.
- I find that exercise is important, especially when I have been sedentary for hours.
The hamster in my brain runs faster on its wheel after a thirty-minute walk. Running Moving away from the white space and into the world seems to reboot my mental hard drive and opens the gray matter file to download info. When I’m writing a particularly tough scene, one that is emotionally driven, I’ll head out the door with my little dog. If a walk in the fresh air doesn’t help, and it’s too early to start drinking, I’ll search YouTube for an appropriate punishment in Yoga.
- Most of my writing is done on the laptop.
Before writing on a laptop, I used one of my spawns’ computers. If both were in use, I’d use my husband’s desktop model in his office. I tried to plot a story in freehand once but my mind moved faster than I could pen it out. I ended up frustrated, finger-cramped, and needing a drink.
So there you have it, Sheri Fredricks in a nutshell. And while that remark in itself should generate a few hardy-har comments, it is the REAL me.
Thank you for stopping by! If you have a moment, share some tidbits about your writing habits.
XO,
Sheri
Whatever your process is, keeping doing it. Love your stories.
I find noise-cancelling headphones work really well for me, too. Grin!
When I first started writing, I tried handwriting, too. I had the same problem as you. I also couldn’t read all of my own writing when I went back to it. My penmanship is BAD – I’ll be the first to admit it. I’ve found that outling works best for me. Pantsing ends up with me wandering all over the place, and the plot not really going anywhere. I write much better when I outline first. My longest book, “Quintana Roo, Yucatan”, is 564-pages-long. The outline for it was longer than my first completed book was! I don’t outline like… Read more »
I love how different each writer’s methods vary, even when there’s overlap. Similarly to the way I love how everyone’s brains work differently, too. The weird little meat sponges that they are. I chuckled at the sitting for 15-20 minutes max thing. I also do this when writing, but not for the same reasons. It’s more that my mind sputters out after 20 minutes and I need to wait for the words to refill before I can pour them out again.