Tag: Novel Writing

Novel Writing – My Process: Motivation

On By Kevin A. RansonIn Creativity, Internet, Literarian1 Comment

TheMatriarch3WorkingTitleLogoSmallNovelist Tim Waggoner was asked by one of his creative writing students for tips on “how to stay motivated to write.” I offered this suggestion:

On the subject of motivation in writing (when you can’t seem to get it done), I try to boost stimuli: read, walk, travel, explore, and above all TAKE NOTES. Being a writer means you’re always thinking about how to describe something, do something, or how things happen. And when you’re neck-deep in a project, you never know what little tidbit will solve that problem you’re working through. Don’t be afraid to step away from the pencil or keyboard and let your imagination be inspired.

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Novel Writing – My Process: Plotting

On By Kevin A. RansonIn Creativity, Existentialism, Literarian1 Comment

BookhouseIn a discussion of Stephen King’s book On Writing, he claims he doesn’t see the value in plotting. This is what I had to say on the subject on the eve of the 2014 NaNoWriMo:

Whenever I write a short story, I often envision it as a single scene or chapter with a single point of view. When I scaled that up to writing a novel, I treat each scene/chapter as a separate short story, giving it a beginning, a middle, and an end. To find those scenes, I usually start at the end, then work my way backwards to figure out what scenes I need to get to that conclusion; my first scene is often the hardest to decide upon: what is the perfect spot to jump into the story? I also imagine specific scenes – money shots – to act as way points to work toward while filling in all of the missing pieces.

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