It's interesting that I've just spent the past 5 minutes trying to think of a title for this blog and couldn't think of anything. What was my process? I sat at the screen and stared. Chatted on Facebook on one internet screen while I kept the blog up on the other.
I am sitting in a dark office with one tiny lamp lit, casting vertical light beams in the corner of the room. It's dark outside too. I can see a few raindrop remnants in the bottom left corner of the window because of the lights from the courtyard.
I feel like writing for fun in this setting. Instead, I'm writing to finish assignments. I have to get blogs done, write bibliographies, and writing for publication assignments.
Multiple deadlines definitely do not help my writing process.
This weekend I have a conference paper coming up. I am excited about it, and I think that the process of writing this particular paper is similar to most of the work I do in which I am actually interested. My other writing (dictated by academic or other necessity) has no real process. I usually procrastinate until I run out of time and am forced to do things. This semester is particularly bad because I am taking 12 hours. Back to the point--I am going to have fun writing this conference paper, and I am actually aware of my writing process for this type of work. So here it is.
I come up with an idea. These ideas really do happen to be determined by the whims of the muses. Once I have my idea, I research the topic as much as possible. (Even if it is fiction, I research anything that could be related to the idea). Then I spend countless hours writing outlines. I jot them down everywhere. I write them in class while I am supposed to be taking notes. I write them in church during sermons. I also write down any minor ideas I might have about the topic. They find their way into my day planner, on sticky notes, written on my refrigerator or pinned to my bulletin board. I have to talk to people to get my ideas to really start to solidify, so sometimes I don't even have notes. But conversations help.
My organizational system is non-existent at this point. I am trying really hard to start organizing ideas on Google Docs so that I can always find my brainstorms. Unfortunately, I don't always have time to transcribe my written notes.
Once the outline is written and nailed down, my stress is totally gone. I then start to write the paper out in my head. This is completely unintentional, but while I'm at the gym, or riding my bike, or driving my car, or taking a shower, if the paper drifts into my thoughts, it stays there until I have worked out problems.
When I write, I definitely have to be in the right mood. My office at home is really warm and inviting. My bookshelves surround me like guardians of my thoughts. And it's comforting to see all my books around me. I think...other people have written far more words than me...this shouldn't be that hard.
I pop in a CD (usually Mozart's Requiem, some Cistercian monk chants, boys' choirs, or something celtic), pull out some notebook paper, gather any and all outlines that I have written. Then I finalize the outline (again). Then I start writing.
It usually takes about 5-8 hours to get 20 pages done. I do it all in one sitting. I may take 5 minute breaks in between. I feel totally anxious and nervous the whole time I write. Then, when it's done. I don't look at it for a couple hours.
I'll revise it the next morning maybe. That usually just consists of copyediting. I tend to trust my first instincts on drafts.
This is how I write any paper or conference paper.
But conference papers have additional steps. When I'm done with my 10 pages or so, I don't look at them for a while. I keep talking about the paper to people. I brainstorm ideas some more. I think about my audience--would they prefer a more conversational style or a formal, read paper?
I make corrections the night before. I read my paper for time. I usually read it aloud 3 times because I am making corrections the whole time I am reading. The accurate time estimate comes from the 3rd or 4th read.
That's my process. After that it's just turn the paper in or deliver it.
About Me
- Lorna
- I like to pretend I'm from different countries when I meet strangers.
2 comments:
Five to eight hours of writing all in one sitting is quite a feat, Lorna. It also shows that you are young and spry. Now in my 50s I find I cannot sustain that pace. Intense writing raises my blood pressure and neck pain. So it has to be in shorter blocks.
Most professors counseling graduate students on writing dissertations will caution against looking for that large a block of free time for writing. More often the advice is to write for an hour at a time. Waiting for a big chunk of free time can lead to indefinite postponement, or discouragement that the project is too massive to ever start. That's a motivational problem I still face.
Of course, you gain the pleasure of being able to immerse yourself in a full project from start to finish.
I wonder if this process of writing all the content at once and revising only for copyediting might squelch the dialectic process that goes into writing. Of course, you are probably having a dialogue with yourself as you write for the duration. Would that dialogue improve and yield new insights when spread out over several days of revision? Hard to say, but it is something worth considering.
I think it's fascinating that your process, at least initially, hinges on getting an outline done.
I'm with Ken; consistent, daily writing beats sporadic, long term writing. If you write for an hour, give yourself a break. And so forth.
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