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Hecate
Note:
The original version of this post can be found at On Sat, 27 Jan 2001 03:36:42 GMT, Sigerson wrote:
<major snip>
First, comes the idea. No idea, no story. As soon as I have an idea, it gets put into my database (aka hopper) and I mull it over until I have a title - unless the idea suggests an immediate title, otherwise the idea is just numbered in the db. Next, when I feel I have sufficiently thought out the idea, I use Word to write an outline. The outline is linked to, and launched from, the db. Any other ideas concerning the story are then easy to add and all the data is in one place. The outline, apart from the title, is based on the idea(s) I have had, but I don't necessarily write a sequence of events, but a series of indented ideas which seem to follow the pattern I have in my head. Like Katie, when I start writing I have both the outline up and a virgin page in Word. I start writing based on the outline, but do not necessarily follow it. If things change as I am writing the story, then I follow the changes. These changes usually come about as a natural development of what I have already written, and often replace ideas in the outline. This is because, I often find when writing the story, that the natural development of the storyline and characters precludes what I had a first thought, and brings to mind other things I had not thought of. When the first draft is written, I get the computer to read it back to me. Computer vocalisation is ideal for picking out things that don't sound right as you get no emotion in the voice. Rather like Katie's monotone in fact, but without the effort. <g> When I'm happy with the draft, I send it to my editor, Denny, who sends it back with all sorts of scrawls through it. Then I have to sit down and do it properly. ;-) Usually, one more draft, one more reading and one more edit is enough. Occasionally, though, I wil send the raw draft to somone whose opinion I respect, and ask for some comments. That is usually dependant upon how much personal stuff I have in a story. I do put some of myself in every story, but I need someone else to look and see sometimes, someone who knows me, so that I feel safe, I suppose. Then I post and wait for the bad news. ;-) Hecate |
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