Rohase Piercy
I guess it can be summarised as 'start, then stop, then start again!'
Getting started if the most difficult step for some people. Just go for it, write down that idea, that imaginary conversation, that vivid description, using whatever words you have available at the time, get it down on paper or on your PC. But once you're got a chapter or two down, stop. Stop and read it through, aloud if it helps, and see what you think. You'll certainly find it can be done better. Make corrections, find new adjectives and adverbs to avoid that case of repetition, cut out that totally unnecessary description or explanation. If there's a sentence or paragraph you know isn't quite right but you can't find the words right now, just mark it with a question mark. Leave it for twenty-four hours, and go through the whole process again. By now an idea should have arisen as to how to proceed from there. If it has, go on, write the next bit, then go back and correct it etc, perhaps reading it together with the first chapter which can still be improved. If it hasn't, go on anyway, force those words out, get something down that you can then work with and improve. And so on ... it's rather like doing back-stitch. It's a laborious process, but a strengthening one! Then you may get halfway through and decide the whole thing is a load of rubbish, but actually you've got a better idea, you could re-work it ... so do that, make a new start using your existing material but taking it in a new and better direction!
Don't despair, but don't get ahead of yourself either. That's my advice.
Getting started if the most difficult step for some people. Just go for it, write down that idea, that imaginary conversation, that vivid description, using whatever words you have available at the time, get it down on paper or on your PC. But once you're got a chapter or two down, stop. Stop and read it through, aloud if it helps, and see what you think. You'll certainly find it can be done better. Make corrections, find new adjectives and adverbs to avoid that case of repetition, cut out that totally unnecessary description or explanation. If there's a sentence or paragraph you know isn't quite right but you can't find the words right now, just mark it with a question mark. Leave it for twenty-four hours, and go through the whole process again. By now an idea should have arisen as to how to proceed from there. If it has, go on, write the next bit, then go back and correct it etc, perhaps reading it together with the first chapter which can still be improved. If it hasn't, go on anyway, force those words out, get something down that you can then work with and improve. And so on ... it's rather like doing back-stitch. It's a laborious process, but a strengthening one! Then you may get halfway through and decide the whole thing is a load of rubbish, but actually you've got a better idea, you could re-work it ... so do that, make a new start using your existing material but taking it in a new and better direction!
Don't despair, but don't get ahead of yourself either. That's my advice.
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