... of course, I still don't have a title ...
April 1, 1999
6:13 a.m.
The fantasy story is complete in first draft. Actually, I think this one holds up moderately well as a full-fledged story (unlike some others, such as my last one, that need major surgery in the rewrite phase).  The difference is that I knew pretty much what I was going to write before I wrote it. Sure, it still needs a little work. No such thing as a first pass that does everything it's supposed to. I'll clean it up tomorrow, though, and get it out the door soon. But the rewrite will likely be only a single pass. This is a question that I often get at conventions. Do I know how the story will end when I start? The answer is, of course, yes and no. When I plot stories before I write them, the writing is quicker and cleaner. when I let my conscious take me places, the writing is freer, but also slopier. And the story wanders. I write both ways. And I enjoy both. The hazard in working one way only is that if something sticks up the works with that one method, then a writer is dead in the water. There is no single right method. Just as a good carpenter is proficient with a variety of tools, or a good programmer is familiar with a variety of languages--and chooses the right one for their job, a writer (I think) should build a varied toolcase. Flexibility in approach is the key to prolificity (is that a word? I think it's a word, but I'm not stopping here to look it up. If it's not a word, it should be, and that's good enough for me in a journal entry [grin]). It's also the reason I don't believe in writers' block. Doesn't take a genius to say that if something isn't working, then you should try something else.   Have a great day.  Daily Persistence is © Ron Collins |
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... embrace optimism from my daily horoscope calendar for today |
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