Hi Folks,
Originally I didn’t intend to revisit this topic, but I received a great deal of discussion on it. If you followed the comments, you saw the tip of the iceberg. The rest were to me directly via email. And that’s fine, really, but if you could leave a comment in the comment form below, it would make search engines place my website on a higher level of consciousness or something, especially the god-like Google.
I’ll begin this with part of my response to a comment from last time, just in case you weren’t privy to it. The writer said she would look up “writing into the dark” to find out more about it but welcomed more info from me. In response, I wrote this:
Everything I know about writing into the dark is in the post. It’s simple. An idea occurs. Then the writer follows Heinlein’s Business Rules. 1. Write. 2. Finish what you write. 3. Do not rewrite except to editorial order, and then only if you agree. 4. Submit (or publish) what you write so readers can buy it. 5. Keep it submitted or published so readers can continue to buy it.
Lather, rinse, repeat. It really is exactly that simple. Heinlein’s Rules themselves are ridiculously simple. But they’re also ridiculously difficult to follow.
Other folks wrote to say they have experienced what I describe as writing into the dark. They say they wish it could happen all the time. News flash: it can happen all the time. You can make it happen all the time.
Writing into the dark can become a habit. It has for me. The writer has to decide to Just Do It. But honestly, frankly, Most Don’t. They’re scared of something. Maybe they’re afraid if they train themselves to let go and write into the dark and then found out they liked it, they would no longer have an excuse not to write. But think about that: if you’re looking for excuses not to write, maybe you just aren’t a writer. Or maybe you could be, but you don’t believe in yourself. Maybe you don’t believe it’s possible that you could have success as a writer.
Several correspondents wrote emails saying they were going to try writing into the dark. One asked whether she could edit or revise as she writes. Of course she can, as long as she remains in the creative mindset instead of the critical/editor mindset. TRUST YOUR SUBCONSCIOUS. And if she decides not to stay in the creative mindset or is unable to? That’s fine too, but she won’t be writing into the dark. All writers are different. Follow your way of doing things. If you find that doing it your way isn’t working for you (i.e., if you aren’t making your living from sales of your writing), you might at least try writing into the dark.
Another writer said it would be easier with a short story (I understand he meant a really short one that could be knocked out in a few hours tops) but that writing into the dark probably wouldn’t work for writing a novel. Okay. Problem is, I know a guy (actually, a pretty big deal writer) who wrote a 70,000 word novel under contract for another very famous writer in TEN days. Literally. From putting the first word on the page to The End, it took him ten days. He also wrote a series of blog posts during that time detailing the writing process (truly writing in public). He published those blog posts as an ebook and as a print book. Look for How To Write A Novel in 10 Days at Amazon (ebook). You can also purchase a print copy at Amazon if you’d prefer, and I’m sure you can also find it at Barnes & Noble. Oh… the author’s name is Dean Wesley Smith.
Now, I have not written a novel yet. I enjoy writing short stories. Some of those I finish in one sitting, and some take several trips to the computer. But I write all of them fast, either without looking back or looking back very little. I want to finish each story so I can get to the next one.
But when I do write my first novel (and my second and third) I’m going to write it as fast as I can. I’m going to write into the dark and trust my subconscious to take me where I want to go. My subconscious can commune with the characters and the storyline much more intimately than my critical, editor/teacher mind can. I’d be a fool to blunt that process.
I hope you understand I’m just trying to help here. If you don’t like the notion of trusting your subconscious and writing into the dark, by all means, Don’t Do It. I won’t say I’m always right—occasionally I make a mistake—but I will say this: 1) I never profess to know something I don’t know, 2) I have no personal stake in seeing you fail as a writer, and 3) I never teach something unless I know it thoroughly.
Okay, next time up, we’ll talk about the care and cleaning of personas and pseudonyms. I hope to see you here. And what the hey… be a pal and invite your friends.
Harvey
Harvey – That has worked me for on many short stories. Others are not up to my expectations and are put aside until I come up with an alternative ending or something.
Hi Mike, Same here. Some just don’t pan out. I believe (for me) that’s because I don’t trust my subconscious as much as I will when I have more practice. I’m a firm believer in writing into the dark. H
Works for me. I usually have a general idea of the story and go from there. I know when I have to change course, kick a character out, or make him stay in the background, and I know exactly where the change will occur but I don’t stop to make the change until editing time. Other times I may map out the first three or four chapters, but that’s about it. I do write character description down, however. Even then, changes happen. Maybe I’m just lazy. I confess that I am, but that’s how I write. Enjoyed the post, Harvey.
Gloria, the one big rule that trumps all others is that every writer and his or her technique is different. Some actually spend more time outlining and figuring out every minor twist and turn than they spend actually writing the story. Others write like I do. And of course there’s every variation in between. Every writer is different, and more power to them. You should do what works for you.
Just to clarify one point, when I say I write (on average) around 1200 words per hour, those are PUBLISHABLE words, not stuff I plan to go back and edit. If I develop a good “work” ethic (like sitting at a keyboard making stuff up is work), I should be able to write 4 – 6 hours per day. That’s 4800 to 7200 words per day. At that rate, it should take ten writing days (writing into the dark) to write a complete novel of 48,000 to 72,000 words. So if I gave myself 20 writing days, that should be plenty of time, right? 🙂 Anyway, once I’ve trained myself thoroughly to write into the dark every time, that will be my next challenge. Wish me luck!
Harvey
Very interesting, Harvey. I have done this and written my best two stories this way. Both were published. Since I’m still learning the craft, I did need to edit them, but less than usual. I think the issue is how much the writer trusts the inner self. Of course fear comes up, but that can be worked with. I am very curious, though, since you’re publishing very short stories independently, whether you’ve found a market for them.
Hi Carol, First, I have to question your definition of “very short stories.” 🙂 My stories run anywhere from a couple thousand words to around seven thousand. (My very short stories, flash fiction, are 55 to 99 words. One has had two short films made of it.)
I’m also about 1/4 of the way through a novel composed of short stories: that is, each story stands on its own, but all are also interconnected in an overall larger story (the novel). That first 1/4 is my collection, Stories from the Cantina, which came in at 26,230 words. And my next challenge will be to write a straight 60,000 to 70,000 word novel in about 20 days. (I might already have the story to begin that one.)
Since I began my “one new short story per week” challenge, I’ve written 15 new short stories (that’s 38,880 NEW PUBLISHABLE words of fiction). Now, that’s since about the middle of April (about 75 days) but, unfortunately, I haven’t been writing every day. All of those words were written into the dark. Every new twist or turn surprised me. The only time I got bored was when I realized how it was going to end. At that point, I just rushed to finish it so I could enjoy the excitement of writing the next one. 🙂 That doesn’t include blog posts or other nonfiction, and it doesn’t include stories I’ve started and then set aside. So that’s not too shabby for an old guy who’s learning a new trick. 🙂
As for whether my stories have found a market, the short answer is Yes. I’m on the verge, for the first time in my life, of making my living as a writer and I owe it all to writing into the dark, Heinlein’s Business Rules for Writers, and the guy who told me about them, Dean Wesley Smith. The number one best thing a writer can do to “market” his or her work is to write more and put more out there. Within about a week of publication through Smashwords and Amazon, my stories are available in about 100 nations worldwide. (Granted, I know how to do the formatting and the cover design so that makes it easier for me.) Of course, I’m also publishing collections, in both ebook and paper, when I compile enough stories around a particular theme.
Hope this helps! 🙂
Harvey
I get it now, Harvey. This is how I write. My biggest problem is I mostly feel as though I have nothing to say. On occasion, though, a thought noodles into my brain. I rarely let it fester. I sit right down and put it on paper (well, on computer).
Thanks for the clarification and the encouragement.
Hi Emilie, Can’t help you with the sense that you have nothing to say, except to say probably we all feel like that sometimes. “Why would anyone want to read my stupid stories?” is often in the back of my head. I just forge ahead because I Want To. Then I get a note from a reader that says how much he or she enjoyed a particular story, and just like that I’m out of the self-doubt and right back at it. 🙂 Case in point: Just last week I wrote and published (to this blog as well as to Amazon and Smashwords) “One Evening on the Pier.” I had told a friend I was thinking of taking it down and writing a different one, and she said I should leave it up, that it was good. I did leave it up and received several kind comments about it. Just goes to prove, once again, a writer is often his (her) own worst critic.
Doesn’t matter how you do what you do. If it’s fun, keep doing it. If it isn’t, or if it makes you go Unnhhh! put it down. 🙂
Harvey