I think I enjoy short stories so much because they're predictable for me to write. Sit down for a few hours - if the idea is smooth in my head - it won't take me long to work through it.
When things get longer I have to plot and plan, Q and A, and all sorts of other things to bring out hte full story. I'm a strong believer in erotica or romance erotica that has a strong non-erotica plot, so I try to have a balance. My stories are like two wrapped up in one: the erotic elements (sexualy / sex life) and everything else.
The everything else is difficult to work on.
So I usually have a clearcut thought for the beginning and I sit and write until it runs to an end (a few chapters, maybe). Then I sit, look over my story so far, and figure out who my characters are, what's going on, what is the erotica plot, and what is the non-erotica plot. Then I write outlines or flow charts to figure out where the non-erotica elements need to go next. The rest of the story will go in spurts like this - write for a few chapters / plot the next few / write / plot . . . eventually I climb to the end. Revision can then involve a significant overhaul of the beginning - or not. I try to avoid that.
My current WIP is a historical flavored novel (not regency or some such) - but it's a fictional setting, fictional government and politics gone amuck. I had to invent cultures, religions, economics and landscapes - but it's not deep fantasy, it's on the edge of 'this could be real'.
for me my process is similar short or long. The most important element is character development. If I cant get in my peoples heads, i might as well give up.
1. I come up with an idea.
2. I let it sit in my mind for a day or sometimes a week - going through possible scenario and scenes, trying to establish character ties, in order to tell the story I want to tell. In general, it will often play out like a movie in my mind in quite a natural way.
3. I write a detailed sketch of each character and scene - from beginning to end. I always have the final scene established in my head before starting the process of taking the reader on a journey there. I like to have it mapped out so that I can add texture and nuances along the way, especially if there's some kind of unexpected twist or ending that requires some hints and plot-layers along the way.
4. I begin writing... usually it's the first opening scene, but sometimes I'll write them as I'm inspired and piece them together later. Because I know what the big picture is going to look like, it's not overly complicated to do this, however I do notice that these stories tend to require heavier edits because I can sometimes be repetitive.
5. Editing - this process feels like it takes forever. I'll hack, chop, refine, add to and re-arrange. Then I'll do the edits for grammar and proofreading.
6. Wait a day or two and re-read so that it's fresh and do further proofreads/edits.
7. Publish.
It's took me a while to commit to this kind of writing process. My earliest stories were basically "hazy idea concept, write, proofread once, and publish."
I begin with an idea, usually one that includes some images of both the characters and the situation. I have been told that description is my strong suit so I try to translate these images as I write. Memories of people and places I have been, things I have done, feed my imagination and my writing.
I tend to work it all out in my head before writing a word. The story usually comes to life in big bites. I rarely write anything out of sequence to add in later unless I am particularly inspired with a scene, image or dialogue and am afraid that I will forget the details if I don't write it immediately. I do a lot of writing in my work, so I tend to write quickly. I leave the story when I have run out of words at that sitting and continue again later or the next day.
Words are very important to me. I agonize finding the ones that will express exactly what I want to communicate as I write. There are nuances between words that will cause me to choose one over another and I may edit as I go. I leave the finished story alone for a day before doing a thorough edit, looking for repetition, errors or anything that I think I can improve. I spend quite a while doing this. Once the story is as polished as I can get it, I submit it.
Write it down, fast and sloppy, and accept the fact that most of it will suck. Figure out what works, what doesn't, and keep only the parts that work very well. Then: rewrite, rewrite, rewrite (I've abused the mods here with neurotic and continual rewrites...sorry). In other words, I don't even find the story until after the first draft.
It's starts with the characters. I'm more a storyteller than a writer, to be honest and I find my best works happen when I let the personalities in it drive the action. What they say and how they react determine where and how the events unfold. (Unless I'm basing it on real events)
Most times, I have a few lines in mind, maybe a twist when I start. Then I ponder the characters for awhile. I get into their heads and find their voices. Once I know who they are, describing how they react to each other comes naturally. This way, I can avoid things happening that are out of place. It creates a reality to the story that hopefully the readers can sense and join in as the story plays out.
I'm kind of the opposite of you, Metilda, in that erotica is what I write when I can't write substantial plot. This is my writer's block writing, if you follow. And I'm wordy enough just with some flirtation and some sex, if I tried to be genuinely creative I'd end up with "War & Penis," a million-word epic about two gay soldiers in the Napoleonic Wars.
My process is basically "Sit down, try to work on my novel, eventually realize I'm not coming up with anything productive, decide to write something else because not writing at all is the only real failure, be horny, write about people fucking."
The stories tend to work outward from a conversation. I like writing conversations. And once I start, I'll generally go well over the five pages a day goal until all the buildup is written, then let the story sit idle until I'm in the mood to write the sex. And the sex usually gets written at two in the morning when I couldn't sleep and suddenly had a flash of inspiration/horniness.
Then the publishing process is a fuckton of editing. My latest story lost over six thousand words before the sex and still had to be broken into three to live on Lush. Flirtation and conversation and buildup are fun to write. I'm seldom writiing sex before I'm 10k words into the story.
You guys make me feel extremely lazy. When it comes to my academic submissions, I'm all business and order. Everything has to be checked and rechecked. Then again, I'm generally working with the writings, ideas and thoughts of others combined with my own. But my poetry and my fiction, I'm sad to say that it is everywhere. I have an idea, a thought, an image, a phrase, and my mind just takes off. I may write notes here and there--which I generally can't find later. I live with it rolling around in my mind. Characters talk. Some things just don't go away. If I'm lucky and I get the time I can write it down. If I think that it is something that someone else might be able to decipher, I may write it to be shared. I could be so much more productive if I were more organized.
Writing erotica is freeing. It is so nice to not have to censor myself, infer intimacy and sprinkle things with innuendo. When I was in grad school I did a reading and a friend actually used the word "smut" as a description. Hurt me to my heart because I thought that it was the most unpretentious, honest piece I had ever wrote. And, people loved it. It changed things though. I drew a line between what I like to write and what I had to write right then. I'm still figuring out how to apply the same rules of organization to what I want to write.
When I grow up, I'm going to be more like Dancing_Doll.
Stop laughing. It's not an impossibility.
It makes a difference depending on whether it's based on real life events or complete fantasy.
For the purposes of this thread I'll concentrate on the latter.
1. Come up with a basic plot, with some idea of the genre and characters that I want to include.
2. Like Ashleigh, I tend to let the idea mature in my mind for a day or two.
3. I have no draft or formal planning stage but just start writing from scratch. I normally have a pretty rough idea what I'm going to write about but I am prone to change course and make my characters quite flexible.
4. In writing the bulk of the story, I will follow one of two courses. I write to my vague plan, normally with a fairly long intro, which develops the characters. Alternatively, I will abandon my 'plan' and actually let the story and characters write the story for me. I prefer this as sometimes I literally don't know what's going to happen myself. That might sound bizarre, but it's true.
5. I normally have a review of the story when it's 90% written and make sure I like what I have done and at this point I might do some chunky edits.
6. Once the story is finished I do a spell check to cut through the real stinker typos and then I do my own proof-read. I am absolutely awful at proof-reading my stories and sometimes I take five goes before it's right.
Danielle xxx
For me the process usually begins when I see a snippet of something play in my head. Sort of like a movie preview. Usually it's the opening scene of the story, or the ending. Occasionally I will see a picture online that will inspire a story idea.
Once I have a basic idea, I come up with a title. Eventually the characters just start coming out and introducing themselves. And then they bug me to write their story. Usually late at night when the rest of the world is sleeping.
I think the hardest part for me is coming up with realistic dialogue that doesn't sound completely cheesy or totally unrealistic.
Reading all your answers above I feel... "How the hell do I ever get anything written??" I don't have a process, at least consciously. My Native American grandmother was a story-teller, and story-telling is a rich part of our cultural tradition. Our whole Cherokee history was carried down by story-telling, not writing. So what's in my mind is just passing along a story. It might turn out in many different versions were I to write it down at different times of my life, but the basic story will be the same. I'm not really a linear thinker. Everything just flows into my mind from myriad layers and gets put into some semblance of order. Stories are just people and situations. I guess the situation comes first, and then I populate it with people, usually me! Most of my stories are about me, actually. What would be a challenge for me would be to create a character so unlike me that I could barely understand that character's motivations or thought-processes. When I can finally do that, maybe I'll be a good writer.
Step 1: Occupy offspring with snacks/toys/electronic games. Step 2: Turn on computer. Step 3: Type, like mad, because I know I only have about ten minutes before a brawl breaks out. Step 4: Let story sit for a week or so. Step 5: Submit story.
Want to spend some time wallowing in a Recommended Read? Pick one! Or two! Or seven!
For me, I usually get inspired by the most simplest thing and I let that linger in my mind for a little while. Sometimes it can be a few minutes, some a few days, and others it can be a long time. (I have had one idea in my head for months. I don't know how to really explore it...yet.) At that point I semi-write bits in my head, in other cases I don't. I open Word and just let my fingers take me on the adventure.
Normally I can write a story, at least the first draft in one go. I have a lot of time on my hands, so I can bust out an entire story in one day. Some people think that I don't put in the same effort because I write a lot. I say fuck you asshole, you don't know me. It isn't you to judge me what effort I put into MY work.
Once the first draft is done, I set it aside for a few days. Let my brain relax from it. Then I'll open it up again and begin to adjust, re-word and edit it. I don't normally change too much in the form of what I already had. But, I tend to really put in the effort the first time around.
At that point, once it is done. I let it sit for a few more days, before scanning it again for errors and submit to Lush.
I never know how long a story is going to be until it is finished. I never have that in mind when I'm writing, because that limits me, puts pressure on me. Sure, I'll get ideas to do Flash Erotica stories, but even those I don't worry about a limit. As long as they don't go over 1000 words.
I get inspired by anything.
I quickly write down a short summary to use at a latter date.
I write by hand and then type it up, editing as I go.
Then I send it to a friend Who edits more.
then I submit
I get inspired by anything.
I quickly write down a short summary to use at a latter date.
I write by hand and then type it up, editing as I go.
Then I send it to a friend Who edits more.
then I submit
Generally it goes like this:
1)An idea occurs. Usually it's very rough, revolving around a single scene, image or perhaps even a line of dialogue. It will grow and become masturbation fodder as it take shape in my head more and more until I decide "I have to get this down on paper"
2) Then there is a lot of Procrastination. As well as masturbating
3) Finally I begin to write it long hand on a legal pad, generally on the bus, or outside under tree on my break from work, whilst chain smoking and listening to NPR on my headphones. This usually takes a long time, because almost in variably, another idea with occur around this point distracting me. However when I'm lucky, I'll get hot and write until my hand cramps up.
5) More procrastination, more masturbating
6) I've finished the story long hand. I'm satisfied with it enough that I want to type it up. Usually this part involves lots of changes to the original draft. Honing fleshing out details. Often a lot gets altered in this part.
7) Once it's done, I re-read it to myself, checking to make sure it flows and to make corrections. Invariably I miss things.
8) submit it to Lush, and wait in agony for it to go up or be rejected.
9) Once it's been approved, sigh in relief and wait for it inevitably to be overshadowed by the work of more talented writers.
Ideas seem to come into my head unbidden, and then it is just a matter of working out the details. Alice was an example when I actually heard the beginning of the story in my head.
First I think of a SCENARIO...
THEN I think of my characters and create them...
(Then, INVARIABLY, my characters don't behave as I might wish and I have to write AROUND what they choose to do! Characters NEVER BEHAVE!!!!!)
So the whole fucking story changes!!!!!
But I'm OFTEN very lucky with my characters! They surprise and delight me!
Isn't that THE PLEASURE of writing? To have AN IDEA and see it USURPED by characters that say, "Love where you're going but THIS is better..."
And you can't argue with the characters that are speaking to you in your head...
xx SF
I'll share a KIND OF JOKE, I thing I wrote PURELY to please a loved and valued friend here... WE were playing, we got distracted in the moment and I REMEMBERED we'd left out characters out there... So I wrote this... (Four kids in a car...)
Hi Guys!
Message:
"Hi guys! Look, I'm Steve... I write you. Well, Lauren and I write you...
"But I'm Steve and SHE's Lauren! Steve we're gonna SCREW here!"
Yes I know that but WE write you. And tonight we don't need you so you can go...
"What do you mean go! I was about to FUCK Virgina here in the car!"
Oh, yeah... Hi Mike... Hi, Gina... Look, you'll get to fuck her but not tonight, okay?
"WHAT DO YOU MEAN! I just played a GIG! I wanna fuck this girl!"
NOT TONIGHT KIDS! GO HOME!
"Fuck You! Write that we fuck each other! Do it now!"
Look, if you don't shut the fuck up I'll write that a bear arrives here right now and fucking eats you!
"Be cool, man... Don't do that!"
I won't. Look, Lauren and I love writing you so we'll finish this tomorrow, okay?
"Well, okay..."
Good kids.
"Steve?"
What Virginia?
"Can you write so that Mike LOVES licking my pussy?"
Yes, Virginia I can do that.
"Cool! Thanks Mr Steve!"
See you guys tomorrow, okay? Lauren and I will make it REALLY hot and sexy and fun, okay?
"OKAY!"
(The characters write our stories...)
xx Steph
Several have said it and I discovered it several stories ago. It writes itself a lot. Some almost all, others just parts, mostly around a specific character.
I'm still working on what a writers "Style" should be. I'm writing one now and doing the outline and filling with notes and other stuff and it's a pain in a very soft part. I change my mind more often about the story line doing that.
Mostly I start it in the crux situation and let it develop like I would prefer it to be. Then I obsess over it for a few weeks, rewriting and changing words, trying to make it perfect knowing that it NEVER will be.
Several, like The 35th Generation, dropped into my mind almost completely written. I did need a genetic connection to make the idea work but that was still a violation after that long a time. Not a problem, I changed it but I don't think it's as strong as it should be. I was screwing with some photo-shop stuff and that picture popped out. I was laying in bed looking at the mirror in my bathroom and it just happened.
I see a picture, something on TV or just driving, people in my store or on the street. Songs a lot, I have a couple I'm working based on them.
Neil Diamonds Morningside is one. The first time I heard that on the radio I had to stop driving it effected me so much. Not because my life is that, it absolutely is not, but that is one of the saddest things I've ever heard. I cry when I hear it thinking about that happening. I am a maudlin old fart at times.
Harry Chapins Cats In The Cradle too, thinking about my children. That one scared the crap out of me and changed my life.
I read a lot of stories by the authors that have commented here trying to learn more about structuring the words to convey feelings and emotions like I want. I also tell them like I would prefer reality to be. The kind of person I am and strive for and how I would like to be perceived by others. I'm in my stories a lot and others I admire.
Listening, understanding what's meant and not just what's been said is the most important thing in our lives. Words and how to convey them so you "Feel" what I did or thought is what I want to learn. Pay very close attention to preachers and polititions, they control most people with just words.
Thank all of you for your words. I think the words are our "Real Gods" because everything we are, everything in the universe, is about words. Without them we would be nothing.
