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Writing into the Dark: How to Write a Novel without an Outline
With more than a hundred published novels and more than seventeen million copies of his books in print, USA Today bestselling author Dean Wesley Smith knows how to outline. And he knows how to write a novel without an outline.
In this WMG Writer’s Guide, Dean takes you step-by-step through the process of writing without an outline and explains why not having an outline boosts your creative voice and keeps you more interested in your writing.
Want to enjoy your writing more and entertain yourself? Then toss away your outline and Write into the Dark.
In this WMG Writer’s Guide, Dean takes you step-by-step through the process of writing without an outline and explains why not having an outline boosts your creative voice and keeps you more interested in your writing.
Want to enjoy your writing more and entertain yourself? Then toss away your outline and Write into the Dark.
118 pages, Paperback
First published May 7, 2015
189 people are currently reading
656 people want to read
About the author
Dean Wesley Smith
822 books176 followersPen Names
Edward Taft
Dee W. Schofield
Sandy Schofield
Kathryn Wesley
Dean Wesley Smith is the bestselling author of over ninety novels under many names and well over 100 published short stories. He has over eight million copies of his books in print and has books published in nine different countries. He has written many original novels in science fiction, fantasy, mystery, thriller, and romance as well as books for television, movies, games, and comics. He is also known for writing quality work very quickly and has written a large number of novels as a ghost writer or under house names.
With Kristine Kathryn Rusch, he is the coauthor of The Tenth Planet trilogy and The 10th Kingdom. The following is a list of novels under the Dean Wesley Smith name, plus a number of pen names that are open knowledge. Many ghost and pen name books are not on this list because he is under contractual obligations not to disclose that he wrote them. Many of Dean’s original novels are also under hidden pen names for marketing reasons.
Dean has also written books and comics for all three major comic book companies, Marvel, DC, and Dark Horse, and has done scripts for Hollywood. One movie was actually made.
Over his career he has also been an editor and publisher, first at Pulphouse Publishing, then for VB Tech Journal, then for Pocket Books.
Currently, he is writing thrillers and mystery novels under another name.
Edward Taft
Dee W. Schofield
Sandy Schofield
Kathryn Wesley
Dean Wesley Smith is the bestselling author of over ninety novels under many names and well over 100 published short stories. He has over eight million copies of his books in print and has books published in nine different countries. He has written many original novels in science fiction, fantasy, mystery, thriller, and romance as well as books for television, movies, games, and comics. He is also known for writing quality work very quickly and has written a large number of novels as a ghost writer or under house names.
With Kristine Kathryn Rusch, he is the coauthor of The Tenth Planet trilogy and The 10th Kingdom. The following is a list of novels under the Dean Wesley Smith name, plus a number of pen names that are open knowledge. Many ghost and pen name books are not on this list because he is under contractual obligations not to disclose that he wrote them. Many of Dean’s original novels are also under hidden pen names for marketing reasons.
Dean has also written books and comics for all three major comic book companies, Marvel, DC, and Dark Horse, and has done scripts for Hollywood. One movie was actually made.
Over his career he has also been an editor and publisher, first at Pulphouse Publishing, then for VB Tech Journal, then for Pocket Books.
Currently, he is writing thrillers and mystery novels under another name.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 183 reviews
December 20, 2017
I'm a firm believer that what works is what works when it comes to writing. There is no right way, there are simply tools, and some tools work better for some than for others. The podcast writing excuses and Brandon Sanderson's lectures are what drilled this belief into me, most likely.
So while I have nothing against discovery writing or "pantsing," I take issue with the way this book presents this style of writing and fails to address the strengths AND weaknesses inherent to it.
Smith makes some half-hearted attempts to say that this isn't necessarily the only right way to write, but he clearly believes that it is, as the book is filled with incredibly repetitive and immature jabs at outliners, english professors, editors, and publishers. Among the silliest things he recommends is to only write one draft of your novel. Fix everything as you go, as it comes up, immediately. Never do rewrites, never look back after it's done. I would really prefer not to have to point this out, but he doesn't have a single novel listed on goodreads that's cracked a 4 star average that I saw. Most are quite badly rated indeed. His "Thunder Mountain," series he keeps using in examples for this book has a 3.04 star average and the first book has a 2.76 star average. That's incredibly, unusually bad. I almost never see books rated below 3 stars on here no matter how bad they are.
Likely, Smith just doesn't care. I get the sense that he values quantity over quality, and he certainly does pump out licensed books at an astounding rate and that's incredibly impressive, and I'm happy for the financial success he's achieved doing it, absolutely. However, that's not the kind of writer I ever want to be, and I'm pretty sure that's not the kind of writer the majority of writers want to be, so who is this written for? People who want to write Star Trek novels for a living, I guess? Why not advertise it that way, then? Why not call the book, "How to write passable licensed novels at an astounding rate and earn big," or something of that nature?
Looking at the reviews, many people seem to have problems with his plotting and his endings. Nothing about this surprises me. When you "write into the dark," you may create rich characters, but your plot often fails to come together into a satisfying, cathartic, and symbolically significant whole. That takes planning (or a rewrite or two). Endings are the hardest for writers of this style. Don't take my word for it. Self-admitted pantser Dan Wells will tell you that endings are his biggest weakness by far and the thing he's had to work hardest at improving. His strategy is to not start writing a novel until he clearly sees what the ending scene will be, and he writes that first and writes towards it. So already we have another pantser that disagrees with these methods. George R.R. Martin is also a self-admitted pantser, which explains why Game of Thrones is spinning it's wheels and going nowhere in particular in a hurry. I don't think anyone sane expects a satisfying ending from that series, but gosh darn if the characters aren't so emotionally damaged and compelling in the meantime!
The one piece of advice in this book which I thought was A) presented in a uniquely clear way and B) wasn't hobbled by the problematic and biased way it was presented was his insistent reminder that you don't have to write your book front to back the way it will be read. You can go and write the last scene of the novel instead of wallowing on a scene in the middle. You can skip a chapter ahead and come back later. It seems obvious, but it's easy to forget in the moment, and bears much repeating, and he put it better than anybody else I've yet seen put it, so one star for that. Otherwise, take this very short, blog-post-sized book with a grain of salt. Not only may it not be useful to you, it may be actively harmful to your writing if you take its advice at face value.
So while I have nothing against discovery writing or "pantsing," I take issue with the way this book presents this style of writing and fails to address the strengths AND weaknesses inherent to it.
Smith makes some half-hearted attempts to say that this isn't necessarily the only right way to write, but he clearly believes that it is, as the book is filled with incredibly repetitive and immature jabs at outliners, english professors, editors, and publishers. Among the silliest things he recommends is to only write one draft of your novel. Fix everything as you go, as it comes up, immediately. Never do rewrites, never look back after it's done. I would really prefer not to have to point this out, but he doesn't have a single novel listed on goodreads that's cracked a 4 star average that I saw. Most are quite badly rated indeed. His "Thunder Mountain," series he keeps using in examples for this book has a 3.04 star average and the first book has a 2.76 star average. That's incredibly, unusually bad. I almost never see books rated below 3 stars on here no matter how bad they are.
Likely, Smith just doesn't care. I get the sense that he values quantity over quality, and he certainly does pump out licensed books at an astounding rate and that's incredibly impressive, and I'm happy for the financial success he's achieved doing it, absolutely. However, that's not the kind of writer I ever want to be, and I'm pretty sure that's not the kind of writer the majority of writers want to be, so who is this written for? People who want to write Star Trek novels for a living, I guess? Why not advertise it that way, then? Why not call the book, "How to write passable licensed novels at an astounding rate and earn big," or something of that nature?
Looking at the reviews, many people seem to have problems with his plotting and his endings. Nothing about this surprises me. When you "write into the dark," you may create rich characters, but your plot often fails to come together into a satisfying, cathartic, and symbolically significant whole. That takes planning (or a rewrite or two). Endings are the hardest for writers of this style. Don't take my word for it. Self-admitted pantser Dan Wells will tell you that endings are his biggest weakness by far and the thing he's had to work hardest at improving. His strategy is to not start writing a novel until he clearly sees what the ending scene will be, and he writes that first and writes towards it. So already we have another pantser that disagrees with these methods. George R.R. Martin is also a self-admitted pantser, which explains why Game of Thrones is spinning it's wheels and going nowhere in particular in a hurry. I don't think anyone sane expects a satisfying ending from that series, but gosh darn if the characters aren't so emotionally damaged and compelling in the meantime!
The one piece of advice in this book which I thought was A) presented in a uniquely clear way and B) wasn't hobbled by the problematic and biased way it was presented was his insistent reminder that you don't have to write your book front to back the way it will be read. You can go and write the last scene of the novel instead of wallowing on a scene in the middle. You can skip a chapter ahead and come back later. It seems obvious, but it's easy to forget in the moment, and bears much repeating, and he put it better than anybody else I've yet seen put it, so one star for that. Otherwise, take this very short, blog-post-sized book with a grain of salt. Not only may it not be useful to you, it may be actively harmful to your writing if you take its advice at face value.
April 23, 2022
I don't agree (and probably never will) with a few things in here, but this book still gave me a new perspective and reminded me of my early teen years when I just sat down and wrote whatever I wanted, shaped the story however I felt at the moment I got there, and enjoyed every second of it.
I'm an INTP. Outlining, finding out every little detail about my stories fires me, gives me joy like nothing else, it makes my logic thrive, but the thing is, after I'm done, the story looses the magic and I don't want to sit down and actually write it anymore, because I already know everything.
This year I want to try different type of writings, to see what would be the perfect match for me. And although I don't think I could ever go simply off my pants the whole time, I'll try not to come up with every single detail. Writing used to be so much fun when I was a kid. Nowdays the ideas themselves are more interesting for some reason.
But in conclusion: I agree with pretty much all of the negative reviews I've read, and I think this book is for those who just want to get into writing or want to find the joy in writing again, not those who are ready to publish.
If you want your book to be out there for others to read, please take it more seriously than this book tells you to.
I'm an INTP. Outlining, finding out every little detail about my stories fires me, gives me joy like nothing else, it makes my logic thrive, but the thing is, after I'm done, the story looses the magic and I don't want to sit down and actually write it anymore, because I already know everything.
This year I want to try different type of writings, to see what would be the perfect match for me. And although I don't think I could ever go simply off my pants the whole time, I'll try not to come up with every single detail. Writing used to be so much fun when I was a kid. Nowdays the ideas themselves are more interesting for some reason.
But in conclusion: I agree with pretty much all of the negative reviews I've read, and I think this book is for those who just want to get into writing or want to find the joy in writing again, not those who are ready to publish.
If you want your book to be out there for others to read, please take it more seriously than this book tells you to.
September 22, 2019
I've actually read this short book on the art of writing a novel without relying on outlines or other machinations three times now. That, as much as anything, tells me it's a book I value and that the advice inside – unlike that of so many fiction guides – is both more valuable and warrants returning to now and again.
One advantage Smith has over so many other would-be writing gurus is that he can actually back up his claims through his own work: over two hundred novels published (over a hundred of those through traditional publishers), and six or seven hundred short stories. So much of the time when I find a book on outlining I look up the author's work, read the first page and find myself doubting the virtue of their advice. But more than that, Dean Wesley Smith offers some concrete ways to begin, push through the middle, and end novels without outlines, which is a great deal more helpful than the usual "just listen to your muse" form of pantsing one hears about (it's worth noting that the term "pantser", not not explicitly pejorative, seems exclusively used by people selling books on the importance plotting.)
I can't say whether Smith's approach is definitively better than others. After all, there's no one correct way to write a book (I say that having had ten novels published, none of which followed the exact same process). However here's what I can say with confidence: the most important quality any book on writing should have is to make you want to put it down at the end and go write. Every time I've sat down with Dean Wesley Smith's Writing Into The Dark, It's gotten me to run off and start writing myself. That's five star writing advice as far as I'm concerned.
One advantage Smith has over so many other would-be writing gurus is that he can actually back up his claims through his own work: over two hundred novels published (over a hundred of those through traditional publishers), and six or seven hundred short stories. So much of the time when I find a book on outlining I look up the author's work, read the first page and find myself doubting the virtue of their advice. But more than that, Dean Wesley Smith offers some concrete ways to begin, push through the middle, and end novels without outlines, which is a great deal more helpful than the usual "just listen to your muse" form of pantsing one hears about (it's worth noting that the term "pantser", not not explicitly pejorative, seems exclusively used by people selling books on the importance plotting.)
I can't say whether Smith's approach is definitively better than others. After all, there's no one correct way to write a book (I say that having had ten novels published, none of which followed the exact same process). However here's what I can say with confidence: the most important quality any book on writing should have is to make you want to put it down at the end and go write. Every time I've sat down with Dean Wesley Smith's Writing Into The Dark, It's gotten me to run off and start writing myself. That's five star writing advice as far as I'm concerned.
August 27, 2017
I think this is a terrible book. I don't like judging books as "goods", but 5$ for a book that I read in like 2 hours is frankly outrageous. I kept reading it hoping to find the "Ha! That's the catch!" moment and when I got to 80% on my Kindle the book finished and the rest 20% is basically advertising for another book of the author.
Apart from that, this is one of those books with a couple of ideas that you can express in three pages, but the author writes and rewrites and rephrases them over and over again for 75 pages.
I've read multiple books about outlining a novel. Outlining is not the silver bullet to write a novel nor a method for all, but at least all the books about novel planning i read DO give you a method (often step-by-step) you can apply and explain why it might be a good idea to try it for your next novel.
In Writing Into The Dark the author uses an irritating I-know-it-all tone and I-swear-because-I-m-fun-and-easygoing that gets old and boring pretty soon.
Basically the book is: There is a mythical "creative voice" that is GOOD and a mythical "critical voice" that is BAD. Stuck on your writing? Blame the critical voice. Want to write? Trust the creative voice and if you're stuck or write crap go back a little and follow your creative voice more. You don't know what to write? Just write. What? Creative voice tells you. Because it is GOOD. Critical voice? BAD.
That's it, really. I just saved you 5 bucks because this is all the author writes over and over in different forms for the whole short and overpriced book.
How to shape characters and get to know them while writing by the seat of your pants? How to get a sense of the inner story structure? What if I missed some important parts chapters ago? How to develop and explore settings? Who knows, the author doesn't bother to say anything about actually coming up with a story and develop it.
If you pick up any book that talks about outlining novels they really take you by the hand into shaping a story. I'm not saying that outlining is inherently better than "writing into the dark". But really, if you pick up any book about writing, I may assume you're not Stephen King, you're and aspiring writer with little or no experience and frankly some generic hippy "follow your path, trust your soul while writing" kind of crap is useless.
Apart from that, this is one of those books with a couple of ideas that you can express in three pages, but the author writes and rewrites and rephrases them over and over again for 75 pages.
I've read multiple books about outlining a novel. Outlining is not the silver bullet to write a novel nor a method for all, but at least all the books about novel planning i read DO give you a method (often step-by-step) you can apply and explain why it might be a good idea to try it for your next novel.
In Writing Into The Dark the author uses an irritating I-know-it-all tone and I-swear-because-I-m-fun-and-easygoing that gets old and boring pretty soon.
Basically the book is: There is a mythical "creative voice" that is GOOD and a mythical "critical voice" that is BAD. Stuck on your writing? Blame the critical voice. Want to write? Trust the creative voice and if you're stuck or write crap go back a little and follow your creative voice more. You don't know what to write? Just write. What? Creative voice tells you. Because it is GOOD. Critical voice? BAD.
That's it, really. I just saved you 5 bucks because this is all the author writes over and over in different forms for the whole short and overpriced book.
How to shape characters and get to know them while writing by the seat of your pants? How to get a sense of the inner story structure? What if I missed some important parts chapters ago? How to develop and explore settings? Who knows, the author doesn't bother to say anything about actually coming up with a story and develop it.
If you pick up any book that talks about outlining novels they really take you by the hand into shaping a story. I'm not saying that outlining is inherently better than "writing into the dark". But really, if you pick up any book about writing, I may assume you're not Stephen King, you're and aspiring writer with little or no experience and frankly some generic hippy "follow your path, trust your soul while writing" kind of crap is useless.
March 2, 2017
This is a short manual for beginning writers, written by a pulp fiction writer and former poker game professional. The least I can say is that it goes against what many other writing manuals profess as an ultimate truth, namely: that fiction writing must be planned in advance, that outlining the plot is essential and so forth (there are all sorts of methods out there on that topic, especially focusing on screenwriting techniques).
Dean Wesley Smith takes the opposite view, the “panster” view, as it is often called. His key idea is that outlining a story beforehand is a way to give the “critical voice”, the learned, formulaic, derivative voice the upper hand, and thus screw the “creative voice” that writes from the unconscious (this assumption is barely explained, though, if at all). The author goes even further, advising against any rewriting, once the first draft is done. This means, in a nutshell, that writing a novel should or could be done without safety nets, since using them is nothing but a way to ward off fear, an expression of resistance and a way to sabotage oneself on the part of the writer. The book ends with a couple of interesting hints on “writer’s block”, on looping and cycling around the draft, on outlining a posteriori (instead of a priori), and on accepting to write extra words while experimenting.
All this should probably be taken with a pinch of salt, but by and large, his argument certainly is liberating, since it encourages writers to embrace uncertainty, to trust their guts first, in short to write from the inside, instead of adopting any of the formulas that are hard sold everywhere.
Dean Wesley Smith takes the opposite view, the “panster” view, as it is often called. His key idea is that outlining a story beforehand is a way to give the “critical voice”, the learned, formulaic, derivative voice the upper hand, and thus screw the “creative voice” that writes from the unconscious (this assumption is barely explained, though, if at all). The author goes even further, advising against any rewriting, once the first draft is done. This means, in a nutshell, that writing a novel should or could be done without safety nets, since using them is nothing but a way to ward off fear, an expression of resistance and a way to sabotage oneself on the part of the writer. The book ends with a couple of interesting hints on “writer’s block”, on looping and cycling around the draft, on outlining a posteriori (instead of a priori), and on accepting to write extra words while experimenting.
All this should probably be taken with a pinch of salt, but by and large, his argument certainly is liberating, since it encourages writers to embrace uncertainty, to trust their guts first, in short to write from the inside, instead of adopting any of the formulas that are hard sold everywhere.
January 5, 2018
I only picked this up because Dean Wesley Smith's wife, Kristine Kathryn Rusch, is one of the smartest cookies around. I've found her advice to aspiring writers to be thoughtful and well reasoned.
I'm afraid Writing into the Dark did nothing for me, and at $5.99, it felt like a ripoff, for what is essentially a long blog post plus a pitch to purchase another book.
While this might be helpful to beginner writers who are struggling to birth that first novel, virtually nothing is useful to a more seasoned author. Smith's conviction that the critical voice drowns out the creative voice, thus leaving the writer paralyzed and/or with a bland story seems reductive and ill-reasoned. Writing well requires the careful employment of the critical voice to ensure that one is being as creative as possible.
Mostly, this book seems ignorant about the actual craft of writing — and there is an actual craft, replete with mandates on everything from how to render dialogue tags to using deep point-of-view. Storytelling may be innate, but story writing does require technical knowledge.
Wesley has written over 150 books, so it's possible that his instincts are honed well enough to not care about craft. However, for most of us, even when dogged with the terror and uncertainty present in writing fiction, we can all benefit from writing more than one draft (another pet piece of advice) to ensure that the book is, in fact, readable and cogent from soup to nuts.
I'm afraid Writing into the Dark did nothing for me, and at $5.99, it felt like a ripoff, for what is essentially a long blog post plus a pitch to purchase another book.
While this might be helpful to beginner writers who are struggling to birth that first novel, virtually nothing is useful to a more seasoned author. Smith's conviction that the critical voice drowns out the creative voice, thus leaving the writer paralyzed and/or with a bland story seems reductive and ill-reasoned. Writing well requires the careful employment of the critical voice to ensure that one is being as creative as possible.
Mostly, this book seems ignorant about the actual craft of writing — and there is an actual craft, replete with mandates on everything from how to render dialogue tags to using deep point-of-view. Storytelling may be innate, but story writing does require technical knowledge.
Wesley has written over 150 books, so it's possible that his instincts are honed well enough to not care about craft. However, for most of us, even when dogged with the terror and uncertainty present in writing fiction, we can all benefit from writing more than one draft (another pet piece of advice) to ensure that the book is, in fact, readable and cogent from soup to nuts.
February 3, 2019
Well. That was brief and also strangely repetitive. To summarize, writing into the dark is choosing a character and a setting, and sitting in your chair until you have a novel. You’re allowed to correct as you go, but not write a second draft. If only I had the confidence of this man, I too, would have shelves of self-admittedly mediocre novels to my name.
January 22, 2021
If you're a newbie writer, be careful with this one. The author gives a lot of advice on his process, but he delivers it as though it's a must, despite saying there's no wrong way. He had some interesting things to say about discovery/seat of the pants writing, though what I don't like is that he tells you to revise as you go, but that's just not possible for a lot of writers, myself include. I hate doing it since it bogs me way down and I lose momentum. Also, I enjoy rewriting.
This may be overly critical, seeing as how I'm no even a published author and this guy's got over a hundred published works and has been on bestseller lists and all that, but I noticed a lot--and I mean a LOT--of his books tend to range under 4 stars in the ratings department. I've read plenty of good books that were rated under 4 stars, but I've read a whole lot more that just seemed to be missing something. It's not fair of me to say that seems like a mark against the author's style of writing, but there it is.
Edit 2019: I don't know what it is, but I'm gravitating more and more toward this way of doing things. I've read this book like five times. For some reason I find it highly inspirational. I must have been deluding myself about rewriting, but I can't stand it anymore. This could be due to the fact that I have a strong understanding of story structure and so I have no real need to outline. My want to outline comes out of a want to be structured from fear of failure. I've written into the dark, or nearly into the dark, and my writing is much better. I can see the difference that Smith talks about in his book.
I still think it's important to have a strong grasp of craft and structure, and I do some minor revisions to fill in broken things regarding my stories, but I'm pretty good at filling in the gaps without "rewriting."
Edit: January 2021
Because I'm a writer, and I know the craft, though I'm still learning, and probably always will be, I feel that this book is the best book on writing out there. It really is--even if you like to outline. The pure inspiration of this is amazing. I do believe that understanding the craft is vital, but coming to understand it does indeed let in the critical voice, because things like workshops, betas, etc inevitably get drawn in. And newbie writers often take criticism poorly.
Once you get past all that stuff, this book is pure gold!
This may be overly critical, seeing as how I'm no even a published author and this guy's got over a hundred published works and has been on bestseller lists and all that, but I noticed a lot--and I mean a LOT--of his books tend to range under 4 stars in the ratings department. I've read plenty of good books that were rated under 4 stars, but I've read a whole lot more that just seemed to be missing something. It's not fair of me to say that seems like a mark against the author's style of writing, but there it is.
Edit 2019: I don't know what it is, but I'm gravitating more and more toward this way of doing things. I've read this book like five times. For some reason I find it highly inspirational. I must have been deluding myself about rewriting, but I can't stand it anymore. This could be due to the fact that I have a strong understanding of story structure and so I have no real need to outline. My want to outline comes out of a want to be structured from fear of failure. I've written into the dark, or nearly into the dark, and my writing is much better. I can see the difference that Smith talks about in his book.
I still think it's important to have a strong grasp of craft and structure, and I do some minor revisions to fill in broken things regarding my stories, but I'm pretty good at filling in the gaps without "rewriting."
Edit: January 2021
Because I'm a writer, and I know the craft, though I'm still learning, and probably always will be, I feel that this book is the best book on writing out there. It really is--even if you like to outline. The pure inspiration of this is amazing. I do believe that understanding the craft is vital, but coming to understand it does indeed let in the critical voice, because things like workshops, betas, etc inevitably get drawn in. And newbie writers often take criticism poorly.
Once you get past all that stuff, this book is pure gold!
February 2, 2016
This is a great book for us pantsers! It's okay to not outline, to edit as you write, and write out of sequence. I smiled as I read this book and it validated my process. There's a method to the madness. :)
May 27, 2015
A few good ideas, nothing bad. It's really more like a few long blog posts than a book though.
The biggest problem with this book, as with a lot of Smith's otherwise excellent writing advice, is that he uses nonstandard terminology. You have to read carefully to understand what he's really saying. For example, he recommends no rewriting and revising. However if you read between the lines he describes his own rewriting and revision process. What he's really recommending is rewriting and revising as you go rather than in a second pass after the first draft is written.
I suspect Smith has one really good book about writing inside him, and pieces of it keep dribbling out here and there. It would be nice to see one larger unified book from him that puts it all together. Not just a larger collection of blog posts either. In fact--dare I say it?--a planned and outlined book. There's a lot here that dips into ideas he's talked and written about at greater length elsewhere (e.g. critical voice vs. creative voice) and some of that may seem unsupported or unclear if you haven't read that as well.
That's not to disagree with his advice here for novels, but for how-to nonfiction (not discussed in this book but what this book itself is) it can be useful for an author to have a clear picture of what topics they need to cover and which ones depend on and follow which others. Smith has a fairly well developed approach to writing, but it's not yet available anywhere in a unified form.
The biggest problem with this book, as with a lot of Smith's otherwise excellent writing advice, is that he uses nonstandard terminology. You have to read carefully to understand what he's really saying. For example, he recommends no rewriting and revising. However if you read between the lines he describes his own rewriting and revision process. What he's really recommending is rewriting and revising as you go rather than in a second pass after the first draft is written.
I suspect Smith has one really good book about writing inside him, and pieces of it keep dribbling out here and there. It would be nice to see one larger unified book from him that puts it all together. Not just a larger collection of blog posts either. In fact--dare I say it?--a planned and outlined book. There's a lot here that dips into ideas he's talked and written about at greater length elsewhere (e.g. critical voice vs. creative voice) and some of that may seem unsupported or unclear if you haven't read that as well.
That's not to disagree with his advice here for novels, but for how-to nonfiction (not discussed in this book but what this book itself is) it can be useful for an author to have a clear picture of what topics they need to cover and which ones depend on and follow which others. Smith has a fairly well developed approach to writing, but it's not yet available anywhere in a unified form.
May 21, 2015
Maybe one of the reasons I liked this book so much is that it confirmed the writing style I gravitate towards naturally, especially the discussion of "cycling" as a way to edit-while-you-go and build up momentum.
May 20, 2019
ขัดแย้งกับความรู้สึกสุดๆ เพราะ writing into the dark มันคือการเขียนแบบ pure exploration ไม่อิงกฎ ไม่มีเอาท์ไลน์ให้ยึด ลุยดะมุ่งไปข้างหน้าอย่างเดียว ซึ่งน่ากลัวสุดๆ
แต่เพราะช่วงนี้ศึกษาเรื่อง intuition และคุณดีนก็อธิบายข้อสงสัยแบบเก็บครบทุกจุด เพราะไอ้ที่เรารู้สึกน่ากลัว ทำไม่ได้ เสียเวลา... ทำไมเราถึงรู้สึกแบบนั้น เชื่อแบบนั้นล่ะ? และในเมื่อการเขียนฟิคชั่นมันคือการปล่อย creative voice โลดแล่นเต็มที่ แต่การเอาท์ไลน์คือความคิดวางแผนแบบ inner critics นี่
อ่านแล้วได้เรียนรู้อะไรเยอะมาก เพราะอย่างน้อยเราก็เป็นกึ่งๆ สายเอาท์ไลน์ กึ่งๆ สายแพนเซอร์ มาเจอคนที่แพนเซอร์สุดโต่งขนาดนี้ อึ้งเหมือนกัน แต่ก็น่าลองเหมือนกัน
หนังสือบางมาก แต่เนื้อหามาเต็ม ไม่มีน้ำเลย อ่านแล้วเปิดหูเปิดตาอย่างยิ่งค่ะ
ไม่ใช่หนังสือที่เหมาะกับนักเขียนทุกคน ยังไงเราก็ต้องกรองและหยิบข้อแนะนำไปใช้เท่าที่เรารู้สึกโอเคกับมันนะ แต่เราว่าเล่ม writing into the dark มันอ่านแล้ว refreshing ดี เพราะไม่เคยได้ยินใครพูดเรื่องนี้เป็นจริงเป็นจังมาก่อนเลย
แต่เพราะช่วงนี้ศึกษาเรื่อง intuition และคุณดีนก็อธิบายข้อสงสัยแบบเก็บครบทุกจุด เพราะไอ้ที่เรารู้สึกน่ากลัว ทำไม่ได้ เสียเวลา... ทำไมเราถึงรู้สึกแบบนั้น เชื่อแบบนั้นล่ะ? และในเมื่อการเขียนฟิคชั่นมันคือการปล่อย creative voice โลดแล่นเต็มที่ แต่การเอาท์ไลน์คือความคิดวางแผนแบบ inner critics นี่
อ่านแล้วได้เรียนรู้อะไรเยอะมาก เพราะอย่างน้อยเราก็เป็นกึ่งๆ สายเอาท์ไลน์ กึ่งๆ สายแพนเซอร์ มาเจอคนที่แพนเซอร์สุดโต่งขนาดนี้ อึ้งเหมือนกัน แต่ก็น่าลองเหมือนกัน
หนังสือบางมาก แต่เนื้อหามาเต็ม ไม่มีน้ำเลย อ่านแล้วเปิดหูเปิดตาอย่างยิ่งค่ะ
ไม่ใช่หนังสือที่เหมาะกับนักเขียนทุกคน ยังไงเราก็ต้องกรองและหยิบข้อแนะนำไปใช้เท่าที่เรารู้สึกโอเคกับมันนะ แต่เราว่าเล่ม writing into the dark มันอ่านแล้ว refreshing ดี เพราะไม่เคยได้ยินใครพูดเรื่องนี้เป็นจริงเป็นจังมาก่อนเลย
June 3, 2015
Short but effective and valuable
There aren't a lot of books about writing quickly without an outline, so this is a really handy (albeit quick) overview of the process according to one guy who's produced a lot of novels with it. (A LOT OF NOVELS. LIKE DOZENS.) His approach is unique, so it might not work for everyone, but I'm glad he explains it, since it contains many odd, counterintuitive elements I would never have considered on my own, such as cycling through the manuscript while writing, outlining as you go, and never saving a fix for later. I can't wait to try this!
There aren't a lot of books about writing quickly without an outline, so this is a really handy (albeit quick) overview of the process according to one guy who's produced a lot of novels with it. (A LOT OF NOVELS. LIKE DOZENS.) His approach is unique, so it might not work for everyone, but I'm glad he explains it, since it contains many odd, counterintuitive elements I would never have considered on my own, such as cycling through the manuscript while writing, outlining as you go, and never saving a fix for later. I can't wait to try this!
October 24, 2018
Too much money for what it is. But it killed the last idiotic notion, for me, that my process is wrong, and I must plot to be professional. What I do is pretty much described here. I gave it a 4 for validation.
December 25, 2018
Writing for publication/submission can be hard. Not necessarily the writing part (that varies a lot), but the process, and standing up to rejections, and hearing so many different things from different people. Sometimes, something fill me with enthusiasm about writing all over again. Often, it's going to a convention/seminar. Sometimes, hearing just the right thing.
I've met Dean W Smith a few times. He's always an inspiring speaker about writing. And the more I hear him talk specifics, the more I think, "Hey, that's how I write". This particular book resonates strongly with me, and flies in the face of some things I've heard other places. And I love it.
I hugely recommend any writer read this. It's a short book, really. And even if you hate everything in it, it will make you think about your writing and your process. Personally, I loved this, and feel very inspired, at a level I usually only get from attending DragonCon or Writing Superstars.
Check it out, writers. Or anyone interested in the writing process.
I've met Dean W Smith a few times. He's always an inspiring speaker about writing. And the more I hear him talk specifics, the more I think, "Hey, that's how I write". This particular book resonates strongly with me, and flies in the face of some things I've heard other places. And I love it.
I hugely recommend any writer read this. It's a short book, really. And even if you hate everything in it, it will make you think about your writing and your process. Personally, I loved this, and feel very inspired, at a level I usually only get from attending DragonCon or Writing Superstars.
Check it out, writers. Or anyone interested in the writing process.
June 21, 2022
This book was recommended by a Black writer on YouTube. I found this book to be exactly what I didn't even realize I needed.
If you are an aspiring writer, if you have already started writing your first book then I would highly recommend it. Oftentimes we receive book recs from many people because those books helped them but it doesn't work for everybody. But this book worked for me, it isn't lengthy or wordy, the author gets straight to the point and I understood everything that he wrote about it. This book will be what I refer to as I continue to write.
He also has several books on writing if anyone is interested. I also purchased another book from him about indie publishing which I can't wait to read.
Well Until My Next Review...Ciao!
If you are an aspiring writer, if you have already started writing your first book then I would highly recommend it. Oftentimes we receive book recs from many people because those books helped them but it doesn't work for everybody. But this book worked for me, it isn't lengthy or wordy, the author gets straight to the point and I understood everything that he wrote about it. This book will be what I refer to as I continue to write.
He also has several books on writing if anyone is interested. I also purchased another book from him about indie publishing which I can't wait to read.
Well Until My Next Review...Ciao!
May 23, 2015
Writing into The Dark Author Dean Wesley Smith.. Is a real insightful read into how the critical mind affect the creative and how that in turn can affect writers when they are writing with or without a plan.
I think it's also a great reminder to just let that creative voice win sometimes. And never to stop trying out new ways of writing..
I think it's also a great reminder to just let that creative voice win sometimes. And never to stop trying out new ways of writing..
September 19, 2017
I do believe this short book has stopped me going mad. I do not say this lightly. I also think it is written for people whose brains work in a certain way, those who think in pictures rather than words, like mine. If you can't think in pictures, or concepts, then you might think this book is some form of alchemy, but if you get it, you get it.
It is a quick, easy read that makes sense. There are a few repetitions in it, but I'll excuse them because I related so well to the contents. If you are a pantser, this is your cup of tea and you may already do some if not all of these things. If you are an outliner and fed up of being bored and want to get a bit of fire back into your writing, try some of these techniques and you may be surprised.
I have always been a pantser writing short stories, whether they be 1,500 words or 20,000 words. I sit down, I start, the words come out based on a movie in my head, I edit as I go, I jump about, and I stop when the words end. And I don't do a bad job.
Every so often I get an idea I think would make a good novel length piece of work. Anything I have ever read about writing novels has told me I should prepare some form of outline so I don't get stuck. I HATE outlining. It is boring. I've tried everything, from cue cards to software to try and get through the process, but I stop part way through because my brain is numb from doing such a tedious task.
A few weeks ago, I had an idea and I thought 'stuff it, why can't I write a novel like a story?' It's an action adventure, I want to be taken for a ride, not bogged down in some detail about a character's ex's grandmother who had one eye destroyed in a freak accident in 1972, and that is why she is terrified of blindness.
I then found this book. And this guy writes exactly how I do, even jumping back 500 words if I get stuck to get myself back in the flow. If I come to a point where I need to know something I don't know, such as what portable light source did the police use in England in 1937 because my character has one of these in hand lighting the way down a dim passage, I just jump on the 'net and find out. Two minutes later I am typing 'Wootton lantern'. Easy.
One of the other things the author talks about is outlining as you go, AFTER you've written a scene. I also do this by using the cork board facility in Scrivener, writing a line or two such as, Bob finds body in dim passage and is accosted by the killer. Scrivener is also great because you can easily shift scenes and chapters about.
I especially enjoyed Chapter 10 about the end of a novel. I understand completely. When I get close to the end, it is like a movie plays in super fast forward in my head. I know exactly what needs to come out in words. My brain is planning in pictures, but corresponds roughly to something like Characters meet in chapel, ticking clock (not literally), confrontation, wounded, last chance, saves the day. In contrast, when I see these few words, the movie of a complex interaction will play in my head with the characters racing against time to defeat the antagonist once and for all before the terrible thing I thought up as a consequence happens. For me, it is easier to jump into this movie any time I want with a few key words as a prompt than to try and follow some outline I wrote before I even started writing.
This book was such a breath of fresh air amid a multitude of How to write a novel books that I am more enthused than ever about writing. My faith has been restored. Thank you Dean Wesley Smith.
It is a quick, easy read that makes sense. There are a few repetitions in it, but I'll excuse them because I related so well to the contents. If you are a pantser, this is your cup of tea and you may already do some if not all of these things. If you are an outliner and fed up of being bored and want to get a bit of fire back into your writing, try some of these techniques and you may be surprised.
I have always been a pantser writing short stories, whether they be 1,500 words or 20,000 words. I sit down, I start, the words come out based on a movie in my head, I edit as I go, I jump about, and I stop when the words end. And I don't do a bad job.
Every so often I get an idea I think would make a good novel length piece of work. Anything I have ever read about writing novels has told me I should prepare some form of outline so I don't get stuck. I HATE outlining. It is boring. I've tried everything, from cue cards to software to try and get through the process, but I stop part way through because my brain is numb from doing such a tedious task.
A few weeks ago, I had an idea and I thought 'stuff it, why can't I write a novel like a story?' It's an action adventure, I want to be taken for a ride, not bogged down in some detail about a character's ex's grandmother who had one eye destroyed in a freak accident in 1972, and that is why she is terrified of blindness.
I then found this book. And this guy writes exactly how I do, even jumping back 500 words if I get stuck to get myself back in the flow. If I come to a point where I need to know something I don't know, such as what portable light source did the police use in England in 1937 because my character has one of these in hand lighting the way down a dim passage, I just jump on the 'net and find out. Two minutes later I am typing 'Wootton lantern'. Easy.
One of the other things the author talks about is outlining as you go, AFTER you've written a scene. I also do this by using the cork board facility in Scrivener, writing a line or two such as, Bob finds body in dim passage and is accosted by the killer. Scrivener is also great because you can easily shift scenes and chapters about.
I especially enjoyed Chapter 10 about the end of a novel. I understand completely. When I get close to the end, it is like a movie plays in super fast forward in my head. I know exactly what needs to come out in words. My brain is planning in pictures, but corresponds roughly to something like Characters meet in chapel, ticking clock (not literally), confrontation, wounded, last chance, saves the day. In contrast, when I see these few words, the movie of a complex interaction will play in my head with the characters racing against time to defeat the antagonist once and for all before the terrible thing I thought up as a consequence happens. For me, it is easier to jump into this movie any time I want with a few key words as a prompt than to try and follow some outline I wrote before I even started writing.
This book was such a breath of fresh air amid a multitude of How to write a novel books that I am more enthused than ever about writing. My faith has been restored. Thank you Dean Wesley Smith.
March 31, 2018
Useful as validation more than anything else.
This is a book for and about pantsers. The method Dean describes here for plunging forward without extensive outlining, and instead "cycling" through what you've written as you get ideas, is largely my natural method of writing. I've been struggling with following popular writing advice that's become gospel since the Nanowrimo method blew up: Outline, write forward and dry heave the words if you have to, never look back until it's done, fix it all later.
Every single time, I've come out with a draft that's an incoherent mess. Writers insist that it's natural, but my loathing for what I've done inevitably eclipses my motivation to fix it. It's just not the way I operate. If one thing is wrong early on, nothing that happens from then on is true to the characters and it veers completely down the wrong path. The entire draft was a waste.
This book didn't provide some mind-blowing new method for writing, but it did give me the confidence to trust my own process and do it however I need to get it done. Would I recommend this to new writers? Absolutely not. There's a few things Dean suggests here that I find so dangerously wrong, it would be detrimental to a new writer who doesn't know any better. I strongly feel that this is one of those books that require no recommendation - you will know immediately if it's for you, and you will know exactly what to take from it.
As much as I appreciated the confidence boost, let's be real here. This "book" is basically a blog post. 25% of the 75 pages are an excerpt from another of his similarly overpriced writing books. To ask $6 for something that you'll read in an hour is absolutely insane, and I can't recommend this at that price.
Blog | Twitter
This is a book for and about pantsers. The method Dean describes here for plunging forward without extensive outlining, and instead "cycling" through what you've written as you get ideas, is largely my natural method of writing. I've been struggling with following popular writing advice that's become gospel since the Nanowrimo method blew up: Outline, write forward and dry heave the words if you have to, never look back until it's done, fix it all later.
Every single time, I've come out with a draft that's an incoherent mess. Writers insist that it's natural, but my loathing for what I've done inevitably eclipses my motivation to fix it. It's just not the way I operate. If one thing is wrong early on, nothing that happens from then on is true to the characters and it veers completely down the wrong path. The entire draft was a waste.
This book didn't provide some mind-blowing new method for writing, but it did give me the confidence to trust my own process and do it however I need to get it done. Would I recommend this to new writers? Absolutely not. There's a few things Dean suggests here that I find so dangerously wrong, it would be detrimental to a new writer who doesn't know any better. I strongly feel that this is one of those books that require no recommendation - you will know immediately if it's for you, and you will know exactly what to take from it.
As much as I appreciated the confidence boost, let's be real here. This "book" is basically a blog post. 25% of the 75 pages are an excerpt from another of his similarly overpriced writing books. To ask $6 for something that you'll read in an hour is absolutely insane, and I can't recommend this at that price.
Blog | Twitter
December 28, 2023
This book is actually a lot shorter than I thought it would be. A full 1/5 of the e-book is taken up by a sample chapter from another book. So Writing into the Dark is actually a fairly quick read.
Because it's such a small book, I don't really want to give away too much. But the overall gist is this: You have permission to write without making an outline first.
I see so many aspiring writers in online writing groups start their questions with "Am I allowed to...?" as if there are iron-clad rules that they must follow lest they get detained and interrogated by the writing police. (Actually, there are some pretty prescriptivist people out there who will run you through the wringer if you dare to admit you break any of their rules. But they're best ignored for the most part.) Writing into the Dark puts forth the notion that you're allowed to ignore some of the most common writing rules (*gasp*) and write your story the way you want.
• You don't have to work from an outline. (You can write one as you go, though, to keep things organized.)
• You are allowed to go back and edit things as you're writing. (The author calls this "cycling", and it's encouraged.)
• You can write the kinds of stories you enjoy reading. (In other words, you don't have to write to market.)
Overall, though this is a slim volume, it's a useful one. I would recommend it to writers who might be feeling stuck or paralyzed because they're trying too hard to follow someone else's arbitrary writing rules.
Because it's such a small book, I don't really want to give away too much. But the overall gist is this: You have permission to write without making an outline first.
I see so many aspiring writers in online writing groups start their questions with "Am I allowed to...?" as if there are iron-clad rules that they must follow lest they get detained and interrogated by the writing police. (Actually, there are some pretty prescriptivist people out there who will run you through the wringer if you dare to admit you break any of their rules. But they're best ignored for the most part.) Writing into the Dark puts forth the notion that you're allowed to ignore some of the most common writing rules (*gasp*) and write your story the way you want.
• You don't have to work from an outline. (You can write one as you go, though, to keep things organized.)
• You are allowed to go back and edit things as you're writing. (The author calls this "cycling", and it's encouraged.)
• You can write the kinds of stories you enjoy reading. (In other words, you don't have to write to market.)
Overall, though this is a slim volume, it's a useful one. I would recommend it to writers who might be feeling stuck or paralyzed because they're trying too hard to follow someone else's arbitrary writing rules.
November 3, 2024
Very quick book. 📕 I love the idea of writing fast and once and done. The key is trusting your creative voice and shutting down the critical voice down. To do one draft without an outline, one needs to loop back often as you write and make corrections and alterations as you go. I’m trying this method now. So far I’m having fun!
January 4, 2016
This writing approach is very different. With the idea of typing into the "dark" with no plan or outline, this might be challenging to some writers and very daunting. Mr. Smith explains that using the creative voice in our heads, we can be better story tellers. The critical voice tends to outline books the creative side just goes with the flow of the story in our heads.
Mr. Smith explains why this is a better way to write although he does profess that there is no right way to work through a manuscript. This is just another option but he is very convincing in this option to write novels.
This book is very helpful in finding your "writer's way" to writing a story that will keep the reader's interest.
Mr. Smith explains why this is a better way to write although he does profess that there is no right way to work through a manuscript. This is just another option but he is very convincing in this option to write novels.
This book is very helpful in finding your "writer's way" to writing a story that will keep the reader's interest.
October 13, 2015
A Writing Book for the Rest of Us
Every bit of advice I've seen on writing advocates outlining. It's never worked for me. My stories emerge as I immerse myself in them. Finally, advice that focuses on writing without a roadmap. Half of this book is about giving yourself permission to do this. The other half is advice to engage your creative side and improve your result. It's pricey for the length, but well worth it.
Every bit of advice I've seen on writing advocates outlining. It's never worked for me. My stories emerge as I immerse myself in them. Finally, advice that focuses on writing without a roadmap. Half of this book is about giving yourself permission to do this. The other half is advice to engage your creative side and improve your result. It's pricey for the length, but well worth it.
November 24, 2020
Dean Wesley Smith is one of the better long term writers and teachers around. His book will not disappoint. Do you need an outline for your next novel? Nope. Smith shows the way. You'll also love his process and tips along the way.
April 24, 2019
A decent guide, albeit very short. Basically, think of it as "how to pants your novel."
Knocking off a star because roughly 30% of the pages in this book is a "sample" of another one of his books.
Knocking off a star because roughly 30% of the pages in this book is a "sample" of another one of his books.
July 12, 2022
Not helpful
After forking over $6 for a book that took less than an hour to read, I was treated to tasteless mocking of English teachers, self-aggrandizing statements, repetitive narrative and weird prescriptive advice.
The author says not to rewrite, and then describes his process of continually rewriting as he drafts. (I do that too.) The author never rereads anything he's written, which explains why this book feels like an underdeveloped first draft - it is! The author thinks outlines make books too predictable, creating a bizarre false dichotomy that suggests people who make outlines are not creatively discovering the story as they write the outline. I know outliners - they do their best creative work in the planning.
I have a pantser's heart, but I wasted tremendous time and effort trying to pants my first novel (it took six years and one million extra words - no exaggeration, I tracked this - that did not make it into the novel.) After all that effort, it remains a deeply flawed book. I have since become intensely involved in studying story structure and it has helped a lot writing the second book, but I still find myself lost in the weeds sometimes. I was hoping for a way to maintain the spirit of pantsing without sacrificing efficiency. The author's method seems more efficient than the one I used the first time, but it didn't come close to solving my problem or offering me new techniques for getting the job done.
The one takeaway I got was that the next sentence you write doesn't necessarily have to be the next sentence the writer will read. I may think about that next time I'm stuck. I like the idea of being able to go back and make changes as they come to you. Is that idea worth $6?
When I tried to implement the advice in this book, I became paralyzed at the notion that I could only write one draft. Feeling like I have to get it right the first time is an existential nightmare I don't need.
I'm not merely disappointed. I feel ripped off.
After forking over $6 for a book that took less than an hour to read, I was treated to tasteless mocking of English teachers, self-aggrandizing statements, repetitive narrative and weird prescriptive advice.
The author says not to rewrite, and then describes his process of continually rewriting as he drafts. (I do that too.) The author never rereads anything he's written, which explains why this book feels like an underdeveloped first draft - it is! The author thinks outlines make books too predictable, creating a bizarre false dichotomy that suggests people who make outlines are not creatively discovering the story as they write the outline. I know outliners - they do their best creative work in the planning.
I have a pantser's heart, but I wasted tremendous time and effort trying to pants my first novel (it took six years and one million extra words - no exaggeration, I tracked this - that did not make it into the novel.) After all that effort, it remains a deeply flawed book. I have since become intensely involved in studying story structure and it has helped a lot writing the second book, but I still find myself lost in the weeds sometimes. I was hoping for a way to maintain the spirit of pantsing without sacrificing efficiency. The author's method seems more efficient than the one I used the first time, but it didn't come close to solving my problem or offering me new techniques for getting the job done.
The one takeaway I got was that the next sentence you write doesn't necessarily have to be the next sentence the writer will read. I may think about that next time I'm stuck. I like the idea of being able to go back and make changes as they come to you. Is that idea worth $6?
When I tried to implement the advice in this book, I became paralyzed at the notion that I could only write one draft. Feeling like I have to get it right the first time is an existential nightmare I don't need.
I'm not merely disappointed. I feel ripped off.
November 4, 2016
While I think Smith probably overstates the case of never outline and never rewrite, this book could be a tremendous help to those who have trouble finishing (or starting) their work. When reading this book, it's important to remember that he is an extremely accomplished author with over 30 years of experience. His creative mind has been very well trained in crafting stories that work. I would never debate that the process he describes works well for him, and it is definitely a method worth trying for any writer. However, some writers need more structure. Some need to understand at least some of what they're aiming towards or they will never hit their target. So read this book, use what works for you, and disregard what doesn't. And, funnily enough, he says almost exactly that in the included preview of Killing the Top Ten Sacred Cows of Publishing.
February 17, 2021
Tips on writing a novel without an outline.
Writing without an outline is how I usually write, so I was hoping for maybe some tips, tricks, ideas on how to expand on the concept. What I found here were mostly things that I already do. Turn off your "critical brain" and write creatively without thinking about beats and foreshadowing and "writerly" stuff. Edit as you go. Step away from the computer when you are stuck. Stay in the character's head. The only really new thing I learned was the idea of doing a brief outline of each chapter after it's written to make it easier to find your place, know where to go to make adjustments/additions, etc.
Given that much of it was repetitive and the book itself is only a measly 67 pages (the remaining 40 pages are excerpts from another of his books) I really can't recommend this.
Writing without an outline is how I usually write, so I was hoping for maybe some tips, tricks, ideas on how to expand on the concept. What I found here were mostly things that I already do. Turn off your "critical brain" and write creatively without thinking about beats and foreshadowing and "writerly" stuff. Edit as you go. Step away from the computer when you are stuck. Stay in the character's head. The only really new thing I learned was the idea of doing a brief outline of each chapter after it's written to make it easier to find your place, know where to go to make adjustments/additions, etc.
Given that much of it was repetitive and the book itself is only a measly 67 pages (the remaining 40 pages are excerpts from another of his books) I really can't recommend this.
September 30, 2017
A nice quick read that explains how DWS writes what he calls "into the dark" (without a plan) and why. He argues that he (as a writer) and readers are bored with books that follow a plan because they are predictable. And I have to agree - I always prefer ends that I can't see coming!
As for how; pick a character and a setting and start writing - what do they see, what are they thinking and so on. He also includes advice including how to:
*Get started again when you get stuck
*Go back and incorporate elements that become crucial to the story
*Keep track of where you are up to
All in all, a simple and easy to understand guide to writing when you don't know where you are going
As for how; pick a character and a setting and start writing - what do they see, what are they thinking and so on. He also includes advice including how to:
*Get started again when you get stuck
*Go back and incorporate elements that become crucial to the story
*Keep track of where you are up to
All in all, a simple and easy to understand guide to writing when you don't know where you are going
July 9, 2020
Laughably Bad
Let me save you some time: the author knows everything, no other author knows anything, & you too could learn everything if you take his online course. I’m assuming the author sat down in one afternoon and wrote this down. I did gain one helpful piece of advice: if you don’t like to outline before you write, then outline as you write: write your chapter, then write down one sentence summarizing the chapter, so when you’re done, you have a list of what’s in each chapter.
Let me save you some time: the author knows everything, no other author knows anything, & you too could learn everything if you take his online course. I’m assuming the author sat down in one afternoon and wrote this down. I did gain one helpful piece of advice: if you don’t like to outline before you write, then outline as you write: write your chapter, then write down one sentence summarizing the chapter, so when you’re done, you have a list of what’s in each chapter.
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