Thank you, thank you! It's SUCH a good reminder. It's not even news, but we just need to keep hearing it over and over. Margaret Rogerson wrote in the afterword to Vespertine that she was sometimes so deep in depression she could barely lift her head off the pillow, yet she can't tell the difference now between those scenes and the ones she wrote when she was feeling better.
Maggie Stiefvater said that the more she knows about craft, the less able she is to get into flow *while writing*, because she's thinking so hard about the words. The act of writing feels less and less like the act of reading (you don't feel the same writing the scene as the reader will reading it) but that's ok, because she can still have the flow when reading.
It's all true. Now to go stare at the words some more.
This was so amazing, thank you for sharing. I love seeing the insight into your process and how I can apply lessons in my life (right now not with writing but with the cosplay build I’m on) everything that you create when it’s done seems so much easier than when you’re creating.
Also your BG3 character looks amazing!! And I’m always here if you want to DM again 👀👀
Oh goodness, I needed this post today. I was just saying to my critique partner yesterday that I'm struggling with this sequel I'm working on because I feel like I'm just meandering around in search of a wild plot, and it feels so very amateur in a way I thought I'd moved past. But the truth is, the amateurish first draft stumbling is probably just a part and parcel of how I write, and like you said, I'm comparing the work here with the shiny completed story that came before, and completely forgetting how I spent about two months in the spring knowing there was *something* wrong with the climax of that book and utterly unable to figure out how to fix it (spoiler alert, I did fix it, and I'm pretty happy with how it turned out). And that was draft 8+, not the first draft!
This was a great post. Sometimes it feels boring or hard because it’s just WORK. And that’s okay.
I think end confidence in a scene is more important than how you felt writing it. Once it’s done, are you confident in it and proud of it? If so, you’ve likely done a good job.
Anyway, this was a great reminder. Just because it’s hard doesn’t mean it’s not great. I’ve had “easy” books and super hard books, and in the end, I think they all read pretty seamlessly to the reader.
BG3!! So glad you're taking time to indulge some gaming, love that your char looks like you ngl. I try to make it resemble me in some ways as well, just to give a piece of me in each character I make each game.
Time flies, Luminaries 2 is coming soon for us and I'M SO EXCITED!!
Oh my gosh, do I need this post today. Writing has been so, so hard lately. I can't remember how it used to be! This has reinvigorated me 💙
I hope you enjoy Starfield!!!
Thank you, thank you! It's SUCH a good reminder. It's not even news, but we just need to keep hearing it over and over. Margaret Rogerson wrote in the afterword to Vespertine that she was sometimes so deep in depression she could barely lift her head off the pillow, yet she can't tell the difference now between those scenes and the ones she wrote when she was feeling better.
Maggie Stiefvater said that the more she knows about craft, the less able she is to get into flow *while writing*, because she's thinking so hard about the words. The act of writing feels less and less like the act of reading (you don't feel the same writing the scene as the reader will reading it) but that's ok, because she can still have the flow when reading.
It's all true. Now to go stare at the words some more.
This was so amazing, thank you for sharing. I love seeing the insight into your process and how I can apply lessons in my life (right now not with writing but with the cosplay build I’m on) everything that you create when it’s done seems so much easier than when you’re creating.
Also your BG3 character looks amazing!! And I’m always here if you want to DM again 👀👀
Loved this. Thanks for the honesty and encouragement.
What class are you playing in BG3? What act are you on! 👀
And Starfield looks so good just started it earlier and intrigued where it goes.
Oh goodness, I needed this post today. I was just saying to my critique partner yesterday that I'm struggling with this sequel I'm working on because I feel like I'm just meandering around in search of a wild plot, and it feels so very amateur in a way I thought I'd moved past. But the truth is, the amateurish first draft stumbling is probably just a part and parcel of how I write, and like you said, I'm comparing the work here with the shiny completed story that came before, and completely forgetting how I spent about two months in the spring knowing there was *something* wrong with the climax of that book and utterly unable to figure out how to fix it (spoiler alert, I did fix it, and I'm pretty happy with how it turned out). And that was draft 8+, not the first draft!
Thank you!!
This was a great post. Sometimes it feels boring or hard because it’s just WORK. And that’s okay.
I think end confidence in a scene is more important than how you felt writing it. Once it’s done, are you confident in it and proud of it? If so, you’ve likely done a good job.
Anyway, this was a great reminder. Just because it’s hard doesn’t mean it’s not great. I’ve had “easy” books and super hard books, and in the end, I think they all read pretty seamlessly to the reader.
BG3!! So glad you're taking time to indulge some gaming, love that your char looks like you ngl. I try to make it resemble me in some ways as well, just to give a piece of me in each character I make each game.
Time flies, Luminaries 2 is coming soon for us and I'M SO EXCITED!!
I keep hearing abt this BG3, curious how the vibes compare to bioware games? 🧐🤔💭
I needed to hear this today 🧡