What is your creative process like? What happens before sitting down to write?
I find it best to have the story idea fermenting in my head before I even sit down to write. I'm blessed in that this happens fairly quickly and grants me a quick turnaround speed. Usually the story, complete with beginning, ending and structure is already all there and all I need is to get it down on in a word document and fine-tune it a bit.
As a professional journalist, I seldom have time for any other process. But when I do get writers block I find it helps to just type out all the information I've gathered, add sentences I think I'd like to include. And then just tweak, rearrange and add and write until suddenly, it all clicks and I have a story.
The blog is far easier to maintain. I know what I want to say and how I want to say it. The links and the images are what take up the most time.
Since I have never been able to write from an outline, my creative processes are, basically, off the top of my mind. For instance. When I wrote the first chapter of "Fire From The Sky," over a weekend, Friday to Sunday, I wrote the first 43 pages with only taking breaks to eat and to use the rest facilities. Without sleep, I accomplished what was to become the explaination of all that would follow in the novel. When I went back to edit the chapter, I found that there was few errors to correct.
Basically, I get up every morning and make coffee. Then, I sit down to write. I follow The Artist's Way regimen and try to write three pages every day in a journal/notebook. After I do that, I read my e-mails and respond to them. Then I read all the newspapers I have in my Favorites. Then I do an on-line jigsaw puzzle. It seems that during that exercise, my mind has time to wander and I keep a pad handy to write down my ideas. Then I write on my blogs.
All activities are creative, if not purposefully or inadvertently rote. Ideas are my food. They can occur any time, anywhere, asleep or awake. It is my nature to seek and to see patterns. It is joyful to perceive underlying patterns and other connections in activities or entities that seemed previously distinct from each other. This last sentence is a poor reflection of my meaning, and it instructs me to look for a better way to express what I perceive. Abstractions can be real to me, almost tangible.
Research and notes. Brainstorming and winnowing down. Listening to and honoring all the crazy ideas in my head and then coming back with an editor's eye to cull the fluff and sculpt the potent parts into the structure of the article-to-be. Time to ruminate and then time to refine.
Usually I've been up in the wee hours because my mind is spinning with a story and the first thing I have to do is get the idea or usually the first page or pages of the story down.
Writing is hard work but that is part of the joy of it. I love to create and build things. There is a great sense of accomplishment that comes when you finish a physical project such as the sand box I built for my son or the renovations I have done on my home. Writing is also a building process of creating intellectual property. My latest book, "Does Your Bag Have Holes? 24 Truths That Lead to Financial and Spiritual Freedom," contains 24 chapters of approximately 10 pages each. Each chapter took me approximately two weeks of fulltime work to write. I began the process of writing each chapter by reading through all the research that I and my research assistants had complied on the topics of the chapter. As I studied and pondered on the material, I would seek divine inspiration and guidance as to what I was to teach and how I was to teach it. It is an elevating and inspiring experience as you receive inspiration and direction from a higher power on what to write. For example, I struggled for weeks writing chapter 3 of the book. I wrote dozens of pages but knew I hadn’t yet addressed the topic I was supposed to for this chapter. I then had an impression of the direction this chapter was to go and the inspiration came and I was able to write the chapter in a couple hours teaching powerful and insightful principles on becoming a good receiver and the function of prayer.
As I was writing chapters 7 through 10 of the book on the proper role of government, I felt that the Founding Father were helping and guiding me. One impression I had was to include stories from the life of George Washington. As I completed my writing on Washington, I was filled with the spirit testifying of the great and noble man of God he was. Words cannot do justice to describe one of the greatest men to walk the earth. I said a prayer of thanks. Thanking God for the inspiration and direction as I wrote about Washington and thanks for sending such a man to secure for me and all of this great country our liberty and freedom.
Each time a chapter was completed, I was amazed by the powerful truths it contained and the wonderful stories and parable which were created. It is a joy as an author to see all the research and effort come together. The purpose of the book is to help others and what a joy it is to receive comments from the readers of the book telling you how the book has improved and blessed their lives.   | | |
Lots and lots of "What If."
I usually ask myself what if over and over. Then, when the answers start to make me take notice, I start to flesh out characters for that scenario.
Just as one of my favorite American writers, John Updike did, I always begin writing with a sharpened pencil. I research a subject thoroughly before sitting comfortably, in a quiet room, to begin my writing.
The Internet is such a great resource and wealth of information. Sometimes I am researching one subject and another idea emerges that I can use then or at a later time.
I have a collection of art books which have wonderful photos that inspire me to write.
I begin with scribbled notes which sometimes I can't even decipher. I compile the data and what's in my head and I write it on paper. When I finally feel ready to publish the article, then I write it in Word and copy and paste it into my website.
I write from personal experience. Cultural issues that had a profound impact in shaping the life I chose to live are the subjects I write about. I've researched these topics to gain knowledge from other view points and then I write about what I feel based upon my experience, as to why these issues have such a profoundly negative effect upon our culture today.
I also use the Bible to prove every situation or circumstance a person might face in life is parralled with scriptural truth. To either explain why a person is experiencing what they are going through, or what must be done overcome and then stay free from what used to be a hinderance.
My process is quite intense. I feel as though I write all of the time, even when I am far away from my computer. (I work in my office only, and by choosing to restrict where I can write has made my writing much more succinct and focused.)
I generally get up around 3:30 am, make coffe and write for five hours. Then I write in my head, do research or otherwise think about what the next day's writing will be.
Creative writing, be it essay, poetry, screenplays or novelistic is to my mind like channeling a spirit. When I can get out of the way of the information coming through then all goes well. So I have to prepare to write in the same way a clairvoyant would prepare the room for a spirit. It has to be free of rancor and ego and professional pride. It takes a lot of energy to maintain this and I really can't be too social while writing because there are too many ways to get distracted or disturbed back into ego. There is a lot of puttering that goes on, and I've blogged about this process quite a bit. A lot of nonsense goes on before I actually begin to write something honest and true and sometimes I get a sense of something, a soft voice with a line or two and I begin. It's the softest voice so I have to pay attention to it. It's not a burning bush white heat inspiration. Just a soft flow.
A lot of praying and reading. I spend an enormous amount of time in my office where I write. Best writing advice -- spend time where you write. Your energy is there and it makes it easier to start. Starting is incredibly hard. Momentum is the most important thing.
When I sit down to write I stare at the screen, listen to music and stuff just comes to me. When I'm out and about though, I get bombarded by ideas. Just sitting around I get a lot of ideas for scenes and characters. I write them down where I can, or keep them firm in my mind. Most of my "planning" I do when I'm out and about, or waiting in a line, or sitting in a bus.
I don't think anyone can describe a creative process, simply because there are innumerable ones. However I have to be in my 'writers zone' when I sit to write. My piece has to be an extension of me, it should grip the reader completely. So I just write and allow the words to flow. My mind and fingers do all the work. |
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 | 31 | 32 | 33 | 34 | 35 | 36 | 37 | 38 | 39 | 40 | 41 | 42 | 43 | 44 | 45 | 46 | 47 | 48 | 49 | 50 | 51 | 52 | 53 | 54 | 55 | 56 | 57 | 58 | 59 | 60 | 61 | 62 | 63 | 64 | 65 | 66 | 67 | 68 | 69 | 70 | 71 | 72 | 73 | 74 | 75 | 76 | 77 | 78 | 79 | 80 | 81 | 82 | 83 | 84 | 85 | 86 | 87 | 88 | 89 | 90 | 91 | 92 | 93 | 94 | 95 | 96 | 97 | 98 | 99 | 100 | 101 | 102 | 103 | 104 | 105 | 106 | 107 | 108 | 109 | 110 | 111 | 112 | 113 | 114 | 115 | 116 | 117 | 118 | 119 | 120 | 121 | 122 | 123 | 124 | 125 | 126 | 127 | 128 | 129 | 130 | 131 | 132 | 133 | 134 | 135 | 136 | 137 | 138 | 139 | 140 | 141 | 142 | 143 | 144 | 145 | 146 | 147 | 148 | 149 | 150 | 151 | 152 | 153 | 154 | 155 | 156 | 157 | 158 | 159 | 160 | 161 | 162 | 163 | 164 | 165 | 166 | 167 | 168 | 169 | 170 | 171 | 172 | 173 | 174 | 175 | 176 | 177 | 178 | 179 | 180 | 181 | 182 | 183 | 184 | 185 | 186 | 187 |
<< PREVIOUS NEXT >>
| |
|
99698 interviews created
INVITE YOUR FRIENDS