I just noticed that the font of this blog changed from arial to times new roman. I am not sure why I made the change and I am not sure which one I like better. Oh, well.
As much as I want to jump in and start writing the story, I know I need to go through some preliminary steps first. I need thorough character biographies. I need a rough outline of the plot from beginning to end. I need to decide on the tone, theme, symbolism, voice and narrative style I want to use. Sure, I could skip some of these steps and just start writing, but there are some drawbacks to the “just sump in at start writing” approach.
First, I do not think the quality can be there. Yes, I generally know what I want to write and I generally know the characters. However, I think without an in depth knowledge of who the characters are and where they are going I cannot write with the level of detail that I desire. I think a key difference between a believable character and a character that amounts to window dressing is having a fully realized and fully understood character from the beginning.
Second, and connected to the first point, jumping in and just writing will probably result in a need for major re-writes in the future. Sure, all rough drafts need revisions but better rough drafts require less work than crappy rough drafts. If my rough draft is not consistent with the characters or consistent in tone, it is going to need a lot of work.
Third, and connected to the first and second point, I run the risk of whole chunks of my writing being thrown out. As much as I may like a particular scene or plot point early on in the book, if it fails to work in the overall narrative, if it contradicts later aspects of the plot, or if it just does not feel right after getting to the middle or end of the book, it needs to be cut. Sure, I always run that risk when writing and it will probably happen some no matter how well I plan, but I think careful planning can lessen the significance and the quantity of the cuts.
All three of these points are especially poignant for me because of my inexperience with writing fiction. Maybe I could just skip to writing if this was my 15th book and I knew the process back and forth. Maybe I would know enough to avoid inconsistencies, flat characters, and plot holes. Since I am not that experienced and I do not know this process like the back of my hand I need to plan, plan, plan.
However, planning cannot equal procrastination. Just like research, it is tempting to get stuck planning forever and never actually write. I think the best way to avoid this scenario is self awareness. Be aware of the tendency to procrastinate and the tendency to get stuck. Another thing to do is break the planning process down into steps and be aware of the amount of time you spend on each step. If you start getting stuck or spending too much time on one step, skip it and come back to it.
Here is my “Planning Plan” at the moment:
Plot Outline
The plot outline will be in a three act structure with a possible prologue and epilogue. The entire plot needs to fit into that structure and be easy to understand. Yes, the plot can be complicated if you wish, but I think (and from what I’ve read) the three act structure still needs to be clear. The plot outline does not have to include every single chapter or scene at this point but I think it should include the important events for the plot.
Character Bios
Every primary, secondary, and tertiary character needs a biography. This helps flesh out the characters from the beginning and will hopefully help me avoid character behavior inconsistencies as the story progress. I think the level of detail will vary. The protagonist will need a thorough bio. Any other primary characters probably will too. Secondary characters will need a solid bio that covers the important parts of their lives. Tertiary characters will need just enough to keep their actions and behaviors consistent.
Style
I lumped a few things together in this step. I think I need to decide my general style of writing from the beginning. This includes voice, tense, narrative, even word choice. There is not much more to this step. I need to make the decisions, write them down, and stick to them.
Tone, Theme, and Symbolism
I again lumped a few different things together for this one. All three of these generally reflects the feeling the reader gets from the story. What emotion do they consistently get from the novel? What larger ideas do they get from the novel? What connection does the reader get between the novel and things in the real world? I think these are very important. They make the difference between something that is just a story and something that has meaning. Why do these have to be chosen from the beginning? Consistency, and from consistency we hopefully find clarity. All three of these concepts are under the hood of the novel. They are not automatically in the face of the reader. They are subtle. Because of that, it is very easy for them to fight against each other and confuse the reader if they are not consistent. I think I will need to spend a little time of this step. My story has issues with all three. I think I may approach this step as a sort of college essay: analyze the tone, themes, and symbolism found in the following story.
Maybe then I can actually get to write the story I want to write. Who knew being an author was so much work.
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