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I distinguish not a whit between fiction and non.
As I am now eight weeks into Webless Sundays—no Internet; computer turned off—and two weeks into my four new rules, I feel confident enough to share.
RULE #1
No Web Browsing Before Writing
A valuable tool, this Internet, but also an amazing time suck. Days have dawned when I've sat down to write, decided to "just check my email," and emerged two hours later, not a word written, and wondered what the deuce just happened, only to repeat the exact sequence of actions the next day.
RULE #2
No Web Browsing While Writing
There is a time for everything. Each day I allot myself several hours specifically for writing. That is the moment to put words on the page, not check the news, or social media, or my Amazon sales—depressingly moribund most of the time. Social media was designed to suck you in and keep you scrolling and it's real good at that. When writing, I write, turning off my web browser and leaving it mute.
RULE #3
No Research While Writing
Insidious. I'm writing a horror-fantasy book with an Iraq War back story involving troop deployments, wounds, genetic engineering and coal mining. Any one of those topics can metastasize into hours of link chasing. (Not counting visits to social media) At day's end, I'm exhausted, have written very little, and must face the fact that, at first draft stage, I might not even use any of the day's catch. I set aside separate research times for specific topics.
RULE #4
No Rewriting First Drafts
Rewriting the first draft has a name: the second draft. Perhaps I should say, "No Rewriting while writing first drafts." Such a practice is a bad habit I fell into; clearly a form of perfectionism and a fear that the finished work won't be adequate—hence not finishing. I've done this on two other book drafts and absolutely trashed my motivation for completion. Without even reaching the last page, I dart back to the first and tidy it up, plugging in foreshadowing and doing all the tasks normally reserved for later drafts. Sure, I've got a shiny chapter or two, but I sacrifice the overall story, losing spontaneity along with the delightful plot surprises Mr. Subconscious will deliver if I'm not mindlessly polishing the same quarter panel over and over again.
The last two weeks I've written more, Web browsed less, and ended the day eager to return to work tomorrow, not burned out on skateboard fails, cute cat videos, and watching old movie clips.
I'll update my progress with this quartet of prescriptions as spring progresses.
6 comments:
These are really good rules. I need to follow them.
Hi JP THANK YOU for your four rules. Rule four is the one I hear the most about from other writers. No re-writing the first draft. So far, I'm sticking to that rule simply because it's enough to just get through the story. Give yourself the foundation of the story and then spiff things up in the second.
OR.... as a former writing instructor told me, "SPILL YOUR GUTS, then CLEAN IT UP. "
Don't mind me, I'm drowsy so I'm not paying proper attention to things. Anywho I agree with your entire list.
The internet issue, though, is the hardest, while it's also the most vital. I've sooo done the same thing with the "just check the mail" excuse, only to end up either on Pinterest or facebook or youtube for the next two to three hours. The internet is a major time-eater. So I have all the respect in the world for those who have a goal and hold to it without getting distracted..
The research deal is pretty easy. I do all my research for a project before I start. Less back and forth that way.
Thanks for the advice. I have a passel of editing to do, mainly with fleshing out description detail. For now, I just want to get through the basic idea for the story. Then I'll figure out what time of the year it is.
Thanks, Tom.
Staying off the web and social media feels a lot like quitting smoking: just one little puff.
FBS, outlines are fine, but I never know what I have until I see it front to back.
FSB,
Best of luck on your project!
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