Let's be real: there's never anything routine about writing. However, that doesn't mean you shouldn't have a writing routine. Or would "ritual" be the more apt word here??? Let's go with "strategy."
As a full-time ghostwriter for CEOs and entrepreneurs, a writing strategy is essential because writing literally keeps the lights on in my house. As a paid screenwriter, strategy is likewise essential to moving projects forward, especially when incorporating notes or doing revisions. And as a book coach for aspiring fiction and nonfiction authors, these are the questions that often come up:
-Are you a pantser? (Someone who writes "by the seat of their pants")
-Are you a plotter? (Something who plans out every scene and beat beforehand)
-Somewhere in between? (Plantser?)
-Should I write at the same time each day?
-Are mornings after a cold plunge and walk better?
-Are afternoons after my 4th coffee better?
-How do you handle notes/edits that you don't agree with?
-How do you find a good writing accountability group?
-If I'm introverted, does my dog count as a writing accountability partner?
As a thought leader here on Stage 32, I can't wait to dive in on all this (and more). While the AMA doesn't officially start until tomorrow, feel free to start dropping in your writing routine thoughts/questions, or borrow them from above.
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'Pantser' lol.
The writers who plot all the beats out and follow a set formula seem to lack an organic flow of action and living, realistic dialogue, IMHO.
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Hey, Jonathan Jordan. I hope you're doing great! Thanks for having this AMA! I'm definitely a plotter. I like to leave room to discover things as I write a script though. How do you handle notes/edits that you don't agree with?
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I am a pantser with a plan, lol! How did you get your first gig Jonathan Jordan
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Definitely a note-loving plotter, Jonathan Jordan. Changes are inevitable which is why I love a good note from a good reader. None of us know everything there is to know, right? What are your peak writing hours?
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Where is the ask me anything located at? Do we log on somewhere perhaps? I'm looking for a writing potential partner fir a drama/suspense movie.
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Hi, Karen Blaney. This post is the AMA.
You could put an ad on the Job Board (www.stage32.com/find-jobs).
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More pantser than planner, although I have learned to plan loosely. I find if I try to plan the whole story, my Muse thinks she's done and then won't do the actual writing. Haha!
I love useful feedback. Things that actually identify a problem and say WHY it's a problem. Suggestions are optional. I consider all the feedback I get, even if I don't agree with it, because sometimes I am the one who is wrong. It's beneficial to step back and let go of any attachment and really consider what is being said before deciding whether to use it, or disregard it.
I do my best writing either late at night (total night owl, here), or outside on my deck in the afternoon, where there aren't so many distractions. Mornings are a no-go for me...unless I stayed up all night. LOL
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Jon Shallit I feel you. For years, I was in the camp of "Only Pantsing allowed" for truly inspired writing. But here's the cool thing about outlines: You can ignore them whenever you want and whenever characters or storylines lead a different direction. I've found the biggest plus of an outline is that I'm actually motivated to get the thing DONE.
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Hey Maurice Vaughan, always good to see you here. When it comes to notes/edits I don't agree with, I use a lesson from "Creativity, Inc" by Ed Catmull (one of the co-founders of Pixar): "Best idea wins." I always take a step back and ask myself why I don't agree with the Edit/Note. Half the time, the reason is my own damn ego. The other half of the time, there's a legitimate story issue. Whenever I can point back to what's best for the story, it shifts the conversation I need to have with the author/producer/editor.
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Mark Deuce kindred spirits! And great question. My first paid screenwriting gig came thanks to Stage 32! I won their screenwriting contest, landed an agent, then got hired to pen a biopic. (Thanks for killing it, COVID.) My current option is also thanks to Stage 32. My first book gig came from an old co-worker. I was vocal at work about my love for storytelling and how I was learning how to edit books. She approached me about editing her book and the rest is history. Always start with your own immediate network! You never know what opportunities are waiting there.
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Leonardo Ramirez ooh, great one! You'll see lots of people say morning is best. Not me at all. I'm an afternoon guy. My brain and creativity is the most on fire after lunch. I try to save client meetings for mornings because that's when I'm a better listener.
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Sallie Olson one of the lessons I teach my book coaching clients is that Who the feedback comes from is often more important than What the feedback is. I take 90% of my managers notes because he knows the market really well and has a great eye for story. And I'm a fellow night owl, though as I approach 40, it gets more difficult to justify.
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Here's a go-to writing strategy I use often: Never stopping my writing session at the end of a scene/chapter. Always start the first sentence of the next section at least. Why? Because our right brains hate stuff that's "unfinished." Leaving that "cliffhanger" for yourself forces your right brain to talk to your left brain. Great way to prevent ye olde Writer's Block and start your next session with some energy.
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Always good to see you too, Jonathan Jordan. "Best idea wins." I like that! Thanks for the answer and idea. I do the cliffhanger thing sometimes when I write a script. I'll write the first sentence of the next scene or put a note at the start of the scene like "____ ____ happens."
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Maurice Vaughan In my mind, that note says "sh!t happens." At least, that's how it would look like in my draft.
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No problem getting it done-and I write the script first, the synopsis second, and the logline last. I guess I'm backwards. How can your write a short version of your story until it is all done???Seems like a formula based on a plan that can't change.
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Jon Shallit not backwards at all. Synopsis and logline totally need to come at the end when it's complete. But think of the outline like Research & Development. Ultimately, the message is the same: Do what works for you! Do what makes your work the best! That's the beauty of writing.
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Anyone else out there part of a writing accountability group? I joined one over a year ago and it's been huge to make sure I have a slot each week to take a break from client work and focus on my own projects. If you've found a writing accountability partner here on Stage 32, let us know.
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I'm part of the Writers' Cafes in Stage 32’s Writers' Room, Jonathan Jordan. I miss the Cafes a lot because of my schedule, but I plan on being at more of them.
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@Maurice Vaughn great reminder! I’ve never taken advantage of the Cafes either because (a) schedule and (b) forgot.
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Jonathan Jordan, if you're a plotter, how detailed should your outline be before you start writing? Is there such a thing as too much preparation?
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Ashley Renee Smith good question. Ton of leeway here. Since I’m a pantser at heart but plotter by practice, I keep my fiction plotting pretty loose. Basically, “in this chapter, MC goes to Wizard and finds out PC is still alive.” If you have a lot of world building and characters, you need more plotting ahead of time to keep everything straight and limit your work in revisions.
And yes, definitely such a thing as too much prep. These are the people who keep drawing maps of their worlds and designing the cover on Canva instead of, you know, writing! Learning how to write a film treatment is good practice. Longer than 5 pages and you’re probably overdoing it.
Recommended resource: the Storyclock
Workbook. PlotDevices.co. (No, I’m not paid by them. It’s a tool I used for a script based on a complicated court case.)
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I love the resources, Jonathan Jordan! Thank you!
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Jonathan Jordan Gosh, I've always been intimidated by people with writing routines. Either I'm writing all day on deadlines when I was working in media, or write last minute to meet a deadline because procrastination is my jam. With books, I can chip away periodically, and then when it gets to a certain point, dive right in and finish it in two weeks. So yeah, my writing routine is dysfunctional at best. lol. And yet, I eventually get stuff done. Or not.
I am the person who still needs to cut and paste pieces of paper on the floor to organize thoughts, chapters. I just can't do it via computer. I have to see it physically in front of me, like a story board except it takes up way more space. Because most of my books are non-fiction, I figure out the topic list, then group them into chapters. My printed off research is cut and paste under neat the topic heads (usually on a blank 8.5 x 11 paper), then once organized, I write in the computer in order. Yes, I had the interviews and other research ready to insert. And then sculpt from there.
Screenwriting is completely foreign to me so I plan to just going to chip away at storylines and practice A LOT. One thing for sure. There is no such thing as retirement for a writer.
Anyway, I appreciate you taking the time to do this.
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I'm in the beginning stages of writer a screenplay drama/suspense if anyone interested in joining me. I work full-time and write in the evenings mostly. The last time I collaborated it worked so well, we split the assignments up in half and bounced our scenes with one another. His goal was to produce the movie in NC which he did, Marked for Trade on Amazon Prime.
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I have no writing routine. Sometimes, I don't write for weeks. I still have managed 34 books and 3 pilots and 1 feature. Now, it's easier if I work at least a bit on a certain story every day, even if it's not actual writing.
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I had moved from all screenplays to ghost writing books for clients. It's a matter of $. They LOVE what I produce, so much so that 2 of them have started with me on book two of a series. And people that read what is produced love the writing. And yet, on here, the screenplay readers of my writing say things that are totally contradictory...like 'too many words...non-dialogue lines should be three lines long, no more...more white on the page...too descriptive...more descriptions in fewer words...more dialogue, less action lines...who is the protagonist...I love that your have an ensemble of protagonists...arggh. And yet I have sold screenplays in the past...I read submitted scripts sent to me by people on here that are supposedly 'technically perfect' but boring; they criticize my technique, and never discuss the CONTENT...one suggested a secondary character should be the main one, one said the word'started' has only one meaning, and sent comments in illiterate English...and on, and on...seems to me that the look of things is more important than the content to most readers.
Mozart, when told that he had 'too many notes' by Joseph2 of Austria, asked the Emperor which ones should be removed... crickets...then...'' just take out a few, then it will be perfect".
Now I write on demand when provided notes by the book clients, by phone conversations, or emails. I'd LOVE to get more screenwriting jobs, but most on here or elsewhere want a collaboration and offer no pay. Tnen I do almost all of the work and no results.
And I am very fast- a full feature in 2 weeks. This is a weird business.
On a writing routine-write like a demon when you get notes or are hired to do a job-the pressure of creation leads to an acceleration of intensity from rapidly firing synapses-you access the 'muse' who whispers in your ear-it's a religious experience-you contact the divine when the words flow like water, and you can't type fast enough, and you start hitting wrong keys like a madman...and that's GOOD!
I like to go visit possible locations for a script, and ask myself what the characters would do in that space. Then they start talking, and you just take dictation. So easy.
Thanks again for having this AMA, Jonathan Jordan! Happy Holidays!