Ask the Author: John L. Reed
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John L. Reed
This isn't really my advice. It can be attributed to Stephen King, but it fit me like a glove:
"My approach to revision hasn't changed much over the years. I know there are writers who do it as they go along, but my method of attack has always been to plunge in and go as fast as I can, keeping the edge of my narrative blade as sharp as possible by constant use, and trying to outrun the novelist's most insidious enemy, which is doubt."
I would write sporadically. And every time I sat down to write, I'd read what was written. As anyone who has ever written anything will tell you, when you read your own work, all you see is the bad. You don't like how something is worded, or you see spelling errors, etc. Then I'd start to doubt myself. Maybe the story isn't good enough. Maybe I need to change a few things. Maybe I'm a terrible writer.
Once that doubt crept in, I was done.
I once rewrote a story so much that I finally ended up with about 75 pages of pretty good writing, but had NO IDEA where to go with it. That non-novel is still sitting in a file somewhere.
So, listen to Stephen. Get your story down. You can always go back over it when your finished, and smooth out any inconsistencies. You've got nothing but time.
"My approach to revision hasn't changed much over the years. I know there are writers who do it as they go along, but my method of attack has always been to plunge in and go as fast as I can, keeping the edge of my narrative blade as sharp as possible by constant use, and trying to outrun the novelist's most insidious enemy, which is doubt."
I would write sporadically. And every time I sat down to write, I'd read what was written. As anyone who has ever written anything will tell you, when you read your own work, all you see is the bad. You don't like how something is worded, or you see spelling errors, etc. Then I'd start to doubt myself. Maybe the story isn't good enough. Maybe I need to change a few things. Maybe I'm a terrible writer.
Once that doubt crept in, I was done.
I once rewrote a story so much that I finally ended up with about 75 pages of pretty good writing, but had NO IDEA where to go with it. That non-novel is still sitting in a file somewhere.
So, listen to Stephen. Get your story down. You can always go back over it when your finished, and smooth out any inconsistencies. You've got nothing but time.
John L. Reed
It sounds corny, but I had a dream about it. The Four Horseman were loose, and the world was terrified, and we were trying to figure out how to survive. I woke up and thought, "hey, that's not bad..."
So, I sat down and began to write. I'm not usually a planner when it comes to writing. I have an idea of where I want to get, but not how I'm going to get there. It's usually a process.
I wrote the first draft of this book in two months, which might sound impressive, until I tell you that my first draft is pretty much a really long, detailed, outline.
Either way, I got to the end of the story, and still had a lot more to tell. And I can't WAIT for everyone to read it.
So, I sat down and began to write. I'm not usually a planner when it comes to writing. I have an idea of where I want to get, but not how I'm going to get there. It's usually a process.
I wrote the first draft of this book in two months, which might sound impressive, until I tell you that my first draft is pretty much a really long, detailed, outline.
Either way, I got to the end of the story, and still had a lot more to tell. And I can't WAIT for everyone to read it.
John L. Reed
I'm currently working on book three in the Thunder and Conquest Series. Book two is nearly ready for the editor (Layla [the L in John L Reed} is going to do a pass through first). I hope to have book two out early 2019.
I'm also working on a side project (contemporary fiction), that's semi-autobiographical, about an author living with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, and how that affects his life, both personal and public.
I'm also working on a side project (contemporary fiction), that's semi-autobiographical, about an author living with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, and how that affects his life, both personal and public.
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