To Write A Book?

Hello,


Well, it's summertime, and that means a lot of time on my hands. There's a book that I'm trying to write, that I have all of the ideas for, I even mapped out the events in it in a Moleskin book, yet I continue to find myself making excuses as to why I shouldn't start.


About a month ago, I would would have told you, "Oh, no, I can't start with school going on. I'll wait until summer when I have more time." Well, it's summer, and now I find myself using the ACT as my excuse. That I'm too busy studying, and need to focus on one thing at a time.


I was really hoping to have had it finished by summer, so is it still possible? How long does it usually take for the first draft?


Thanks!
To Write A Book?
It takes as long as it takes. Sometimes you just have to sit yourself down and start writing, even if you have better things to do. If you continue to make excuses for yourself, you'll never even start it, let alone finish it - especially by the end of the summer!





It will take as long as it takes, depending on how much effort you are willing to put into it. Outlining as you've done is one of the smartest things a writer can do, and it will help you get from the beginning to the end. I've personally written a novel in less than two weeks before, but that was writing twelve to fourteen hours a day, every day, for ten days straight. It takes a lot of work and effort - it isn't easy - and that's only for the first draft.





Good luck!!
To Write A Book?
Depends how fast you write, but I'd guess at least 2-3 months. If you keep procrastinating, though, you probably won't ever finish. Writing is supposed to be something you enjoy, not something you feel you HAVE to do, so if you don't WANT to do it, you never will.





It's also really hard to get started, so you may want to begin farther into the story.
Reply:it depends on how long the books is for one thing...then how fast you write......then how much detail you put in and stuff.....usually when i start writing i can't stop and keep going under my covers with a flashlight!
Reply:It's all very simple.





Step 1) put butt in chair.


Step 2) put hands on keyboard.


Step 3) flail upon the keyboard with fingers until decent stuff comes out. You'll be too lazy to do 20 or 30 rewrites, so try to write good stuff on the first draft. That way you'll only have to do 10 or 15 rewrites.


Step 4) Get an agent and sell it. (Really sorry I can't help you with that one..)





Good luck. Don't go insane. All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy.





I liken novel writing to constructing a huge skyscraper, with no assurance that anyone would ever want to lease space in it. It takes faith and a steady butt.
Reply:I can definitely relate to what you're experiencing, and I sympathise totally. I hope I can help you here...





I've just started to emerge from a terrible spell of Writers Block, which lasted 4 years, despite having finished 2 novels before that. During the "Block" period, I kept getting terrific ideas for novels - I planned them all out, created casts of characters and everything - but I was too afraid to start even one of my new novels.





I tried to analyse my problem. I had such wonderful stories all there in my head, and as soon as I started to write them down, I felt they were spoiled by what felt like a clumsy attempt to capture them in words. So I think in my case it was a perfectionist thing that froze my ability to create. Maybe you've got the same problem...





It's taken a long time, but I've now learnt that you have to give yourself permission to make a mess, to write an absolutely terrible first draft, then you can fix it up after that. Remember - no-one is going to see that jumble of words except you. The first draft can be as appalling as you like - just get the words down, THEN start to craft them into something coherent. Try and separate the "creating" from the "editing" - there two very different processes that don't work well together. Just get the story out - get some "clay" to sculpt with later on. Even a page of absolute cr@p is MUCH better than a page of nothing.





This "perfectionist" variety of Writers Block is a hard thing to break, psychologically, and I still get scared when I'm faced with a blank computer screen at the start of a writing session.





Try to create in a non-judgmental way, try to ignore that nasty little imp sitting on your shoulder, telling you how awful your writing is as you create. Ignore the urge to hit the Delete button - keep every word you write down, then leave it for a week or two before you re-read it. The funny thing is - when you re-read your first drafts, they're often nowhere as toxic as you first thought!





Having lots of free time can be quite crippling too - the worst thing is that you feel guilty for not filling your days up with that intended writing project. Go easy on yourself. You've worked hard during the year, and you need to relax a bit, not flagellate yourself. Fill your day with lots of different things, including short writing sessions. Just write in short bursts - maybe 20 minutes at a time. Write your novel in bite-sized chunks. It won't be long before you realise you can't tear yourself away, and even start missing meals because you're so engrossed in your writing!





Good luck, I know that the first draft of your novel will find its way out onto paper this summer. Just enjoy yourself, that's the key!





Hafwen x





PS. Sorry this answer is so long...