Ask the Author: Neil J Hart
Answered Questions (3)
Neil J Hart
I get stuck. Sure. But I tend to plot quite heavily in the first instance. If there are days when it's not happening then I either write something else; a short story or screenplay or a stream of consciousness until I feel like returning to the book.
Other great ways to wake up the brain, in my experience, are a nice long run (this gives me loads of time to think about plots and characters and work out why I'm blocked), play the guitar really loud, read a book or watch a film that touches on the genre or themes that I might be dealing with in the book. One of these activities usually kicks me back into life and gets the words flowing.
Other great ways to wake up the brain, in my experience, are a nice long run (this gives me loads of time to think about plots and characters and work out why I'm blocked), play the guitar really loud, read a book or watch a film that touches on the genre or themes that I might be dealing with in the book. One of these activities usually kicks me back into life and gets the words flowing.
Neil J Hart
Loads of things inspire me with my books. Mostly, other books (i try to read for the same amount of time as I write each day) but also films, tv series, dreams / nightmares and the things people say. I also treat the process of writing as a job. For a long time I considered it a hobby but that meant that I could just dip in and out when I felt like it. To actually achieve something with my writing I had to sit down every day and write. I like to set myself a 3000 words goal every day. Sometimes I'm done by lunchtime, other times I'm there until the evening.
One of the best tools I've found for my productivity is the software Scrivener. Among hundreds of features, it allows you to block out the work into folders and sub-folders where you can place each scene and shift the order around with ease. This makes 'seeing' the structure and the length of the book dead simple. Finding scenes and instances and character recurrences is now done in seconds rather than having to painstakingly scroll through hundreds of pages of a Word document into your eyes go funny.
One of the best tools I've found for my productivity is the software Scrivener. Among hundreds of features, it allows you to block out the work into folders and sub-folders where you can place each scene and shift the order around with ease. This makes 'seeing' the structure and the length of the book dead simple. Finding scenes and instances and character recurrences is now done in seconds rather than having to painstakingly scroll through hundreds of pages of a Word document into your eyes go funny.
Neil J Hart
My upcoming book series 'The Madison Chronicles' is centred around a girl called Sadie Madison who cannot forget and a prophecy - theForetelling - tied to her condition. I think the concept for this was borne out of being a little forgetful from time to time and wondering what it would be like to never forget a single thing.
The idea for the book was initially quite small: a short story, then a novella, then a novel and now a series (5 books plotted in total). The world surrounding Sadie Madison has expanded over the last two years as the book went from being set entirely in her home town of Iron Bridge to covering vast continents and, in later books, time itself.
The idea for the book was initially quite small: a short story, then a novella, then a novel and now a series (5 books plotted in total). The world surrounding Sadie Madison has expanded over the last two years as the book went from being set entirely in her home town of Iron Bridge to covering vast continents and, in later books, time itself.
About Goodreads Q&A
Ask and answer questions about books!
You can pose questions to the Goodreads community with Reader Q&A, or ask your favorite author a question with Ask the Author.
See Featured Authors Answering Questions
Learn more