I think it would be fun to see everyone's habits and rituals for when they write. Mine may be very different from many of you. I live on campus and it can be hard to find any quiet time in my town house on campus.
I do most of my writing in any empty class room that I can find. It's a little creepy sometimes; being the only one in a classroom and perhaps the only one in the entire academic building.
Probably 8 out of 10 sittings I have an iced coffee at my side. I do right now as a matter of fact. Lately, I've been putting on headphones and playing Techno or Dub-step nonstop. Music played softly with no lyrics seems to help my concentration.
Does anyone do anything real odd or interesting? Any funny superstitions out there?
No fun superstitions, I just get so involved with it I rarely look up. I don't need a setting, just a chair that isn't too comfortable. I've never read any of George RR Martin's books, but I do understand the fundamental purpose of a throne of swords.
Occasionally, though, I will get a drink or pack a bowl.
I like to have music going or else the silence is distracting.
I need google on hand for fact checking, but in an age of smartphones this is not too difficult in any situation, wifi or no.
I write fueled either on tequila or coffee. Editing the chapters...I can tell which is which.....
I'm against relying on the Creative Bubble. You know, a little writing space you call your own, where the muse sings you sweet songs of inspiration and your corkboard screams with colorful notes of encouragement and quotes from your favorite authors. I feel like these writer nests can really get in the way of writing.
That being said, I have the opposite of the creative bubble. I can't write at my desk. My roommates forget to knock, come in my room with some funny story about this one episode of this one show they're watching, then drift off without realizing the damage they've done. I can only get writing done at home if they're nowhere near the apartment.
Until my roommate situation is remedied, my usual habit is to write everywhere else I can. I work on my outlines while on public transit (if there is an open seat) and I write during my lunches at work. I also write early in the morning before my roommates know I'm awake, and late at night, when my roommates think I have gone to bed.
Coffee.
Superstitions? Hmm. Well, it helps to decorate my computer with something to do with my work in progress. For example, my desktop is of the galaxy. My laptop sleeve is electric blue, which is the color I associate with my main character. Keeps me focused.
I'm careful with what books I read while writing because I'm the author's voice will infect mine. Which is sometimes a lot of fun, except when you're in the middle of a project and your style suddenly changes. Then you're in a bit of a mess.
When I'm not writing I'm thinking of new ways to describe things. It's a habit I haven't been able to shake. I need to find a better word for innards. I use that word too much.
The last thing I'll share is post-its. I write all sorts of notes on post-its and stick them to my monitor at work. It keeps me from going back and doing crazy edits while I'm mid-project. Things like, "Filter Words? Remove them!" and "Don't forget the gun!" stick all over my Cintiq. In fact, I just realized some of them are missing. I wonder where they are... I hope nothing vital was on them!
Okay, I keep a journal. Not a diary. A little notebook which I can tote around in my purse and jot random inspiration on. It is also filled with post-its. Sometimes I forget key things about my characters, like for example, one of my characters smokes a cigarette in the beginning, which I forgot for a long time. So I made a note of it.
I get inspiration everywhere. I saw English lavander soap at the super market and immediately knew I had to add it in to my story. Out comes the notebook.
The post-it on the front reads like this:
Harrison smokes
Avery posture
Right over the top of each other like that. Well, I'm dyslexic, and every time I glance at it I read: Harrison smokes pot. Which he doesn't. It makes me laugh. Sorry, major digression. Somewhere Holden Caulfield is feeling sorry for me.
I never have a problem with reading. Yes, sometimes the influence bleeds in, but I'm usually pretty good at spotting it, printing it out, holding it to a mirror and asking myself if I am fucking serious thinking I'm gonna try to outdo these writers on their own terms. Not that I don't have confidence in my writing, but if you want to write better than HST, better than Kafka, better than DFW, better than anybody, then you can't do so according to the rules that they wrote, and even if you could, you would be so much better off writing your own rules (stylistic rules, not grammatical).
w/r/t post it notes, I substitute a well loved couple of notebooks (Titled: "The Early Works" and "Sophomore Effort," the second of which still has a lot of open space) into which any ideas that occur to me without fitting into the narrative at the place where I concieved them, or where I can do my outlines.
I outline after every draft, I never outline first. Not superstition, it just never worked for me the other way.
I usually spend my days out, working, doing housework, collecting ideas. Most of my writing is done in the evening, at my desk. My main issue is that I have to have somebody else around; I write best when there's something to ignore, and I just throw my headphones on. It works best when the husband's having a guys night and they're playing video games and making a lot of noise. I think it has to do with the idea of ignoring all distractions and really hunkering down. If I seclude myself I feel really isolated and I just can't get any work done.
@Beka agreed. That's why public transit and the office work so well for me!
I try to work new places. I bring my MacBook to new coffee shops a lot, to restaurants. I also like to work in different places around my house. Headphones unless I'm in my room, in which case I work anywhere but my desk. If i'm writing for a long day (greater than four or five hours) then I usually have to move around every two hours or so, otherwise I lose focus.
@miskokkoman, I know how frustrating it can be to have roommates who aren't understanding of your need to concentrate. I've only recently come under a living situation where everyone is of the same frame of mind on the matter.
I make notes on my phone, usually during music events and concerts (dubstep shows are a wierd place to get inspired, but it always happens). The Stephen Jones quote comes to mind: Live as many lives as you can, as fast as you can.
Best advice ever.
Once I discovered that I'm most effective after strong coffee (or two) or energy-drink. It's really helpful to get focus on writing and gaves magical kick in the brain. And I'm slightly addicted to it.
Also (and I don't know why) some of the best things I create were written after sex. Odd but true.
The third thing : my phone is full of chaotic notes . Public transport, malls, work, woods - idea can strike in the head everywhere and that "random" thoughts are 70% of future writing farbic. That's my opinion.
Most recent notebook scribbling - "elegant swirling spirals of asphault and concrete" and "I try to pass myself off as mentally retarded" .
I think there might be a winner there, just not sure which one...
If I wrote down every decent idea or cool sentence that popped into my head while out and about, the only I could carry in my pockets would be steno pads, and these steno pads would be full of useless random shit (I've tried it before.) However I have a pretty good memory anyway, and by the time I get around to writing it down I hopefully will have a couple more sentences or a paragraph or a scene to write down by then.
I will have a pregame ritual of junk food and Mr Pibb/Vanilla Coke. I may be watching a bit of TV or listening to music and I'm feeling wired and then the voice and the rhythm kick in, so I write. That's pretty much it every time.
At my 'writing bubble' where I have everything I need handy: dictionary, thesaurus, Elements of Style, Writer's Guide to Character Traits and a handful of other 'writing' books. Also, a printer, butt-load of notebooks, pens, highlighters, corkboard and dry erase board. On the walls I have framed pics of American Psycho, Fight Club, Pygmy, Invisible Monster and Pulp Fiction. Inspiration abounds around my little area. And, of course, a comfortable 'reading chair'. And usually a Red Bull. On thing I've kept out is a television.
No rituals, just sit my ass down and write. Works best for me.
Sporiadically (IE never enough as I should) or when the inspiration strikes (see previous brackets)
Longhand. 75% of my first drafts are longhand. Doesn't really matter where, as long as nobody's poking my shoulder going, "Hey, hey, hey," the way my kid does. So normally it's after she goes to sleep, since I do most of my writing at the house. I've read all the books where the experienced writer says to me, the not-so-experienced, "Set your time of the day and write then, every day." And I really do try that. Oddly, since I got married and have more demands placed on my time, I am making progress in that direction, all the while looking back to when I wasn't married and thinking, "Christ, what did I do with all that time? I could have written Ulysses with all the time I burned."
Ah. Hindsight.
I have to have a big bulky desktop to write on, don't have one now and I can't get nearly as into my writing using just a lap top. Then I must have coffee, if I really get into the story I can drink as much as fou
r pots a night. People can't be around, even knowing people are up and about in some other room throws me off so I write late at night. Then I play music, I have many different kinds of music to emulate the mood I need for writing but to name my top favorite artist to write to, Modest Mouse, MMJ, Muse, Marcy Playground, Rammstein, Adele, Empire of the sun, Amy winehouse. My list of music is quite long and varied so I'll end it there. I also have like nervous ticks when I write. I have to be chewing on something, if I can't find gum or a toothpick I chew pens and pencils into oblivion. I tap my foot and I usually get pretty paranoid. I like wearing a robe my robe when I write, not a must but it makes me feel more like a writer for some reason.
My only requirements are a desk and some silence.
If I'm at my apartment the first rule for me to sit down and write especially on the weekends is to have a clean space. Every Saturday I have to do the ritual cleaning of my desk, vaccum the floor, and make the bed. Weird, I know. I just find clutter to be distracting. I'll begin to write and start falling into a zone and in the corner of my eye if I see a mess I start thinking, "I really need to clean that shit up." I was raised by my Grandma so cleanliness is a blessing and a curse.
As for the outside world I don't mind having music on in the background but nothing with vocals. I'm a big a fan of lyrics and I know if someone is singing in the background I will start focusing on the words instead of what I'm doing. So the perfect enviorment for me is a large espresso, a clean writing station, and some ambient music on in the background.
You guys are making me wish it was Saturday already!
I carry a little moleskin notebook around with me everywhere. I spend the day taking notes, then at the end of the day, after dinner and I've had time to unwind from the BS of my day job, I go through my notes and type up the best ones into an ongoing "Random" file, highlighting ones that I plan to use in the near future. Then, I pour a very large Jack and coke, turn on my "Angry White Girl" playlist and work on whatever WIP I feel suits my mood.
I abhore word counts, so I dedicate myself to writing for at least an hour a day - even if that means staring at a blank screen. I'm not allowed to do anything except write during that hour. Then I read until I fall asleep.
Not exactly earth shattering but it works for me. I haven't hit a "block" since I started the routine. *knock on wood*
Oddly, since I got married and have more demands placed on my time, I am making progress in that direction, all the while looking back to when I wasn't married and thinking, "Christ, what did I do with all that time? I could have written Ulysses with all the time I burned."
Fuck, I could have written that...
I don't have any real rituals. I do smoke more when I write, it has become some sort of addiction trigger, so I guess it is better than snorting coke or drinking Everclear in that regard. I like to write longhand, but I am coming around to using Word and Scrivener, it does simplify things. My pens do always have to be black, and do always have to have the little rubber bit around the end--black because a HS English teacher beat it into my brain, and the padding because I keep a really tense grip on pens and pencils, and it fucking hurts.
What exactly is Scrivener and is it any good?
I've just started playing with it--it takes some getting used to. It is a word processing software built especially for creative writers and their needs. There are parts to hold your research, a bulletin board for character sketches, synospsis, a handfull of ways to patch together a draft, and formats for essays, short stories, novels, etc.
I like it so far. It takes some getting used to, though. I started with the trial version before spending the money on it (although it is cheap as software goes). You can check out the 30 day free trial on their site, which is http://www.literatureandlatte.com/scrivener.php
misskokamon - I have found that I don't have that problem if I have several books going at one time, but that might not work for others.
I do all my writing longhand. Most times I just find a spot I can be alone and break it out. Faygo Redpop and old school country music help.
I have a desk that I only ever use for writing, mainly because I have no other use for it. I've also found that having a place that is just for writing helps me ease into the right mindset more easily when I'm not totally feeling it.
I usually write at night, any time between 9pm and 2am. When I sit down to write, I usually set up a glass of water, a cup of hot tea, and an alcoholic beverage next to me and rotate between them as the night goes on.
The novel I'm working on is about a reality TV star and about modern media culture in general, so when I'm working on that, I usually start the session with about half an hour of looking at whatever new scandalous paparazzi pictures have leaked to the net, sometimes hop onto perezhilton or TMZ for a little while.
Then I get angry, realize I've completely wasted my time, and kick myself for not using that time to actually write.
If I've recently posted something on litreactor, I refesh the site constantly, hoping I got a new reivew or message.
Next to my desk is a bookshelf with my essentials, the books I go back to over and over again. When I hit a knot in the grain, it helps to pick one up, read at few random pages, or see how authors I respect handled the specific issue I'm dealing with.
When I'm on a good tear, I write until I get blearly-eyed and forget how the hell this sentence began.
Then I go to bed. Usually, the second my head hits the pillow, I wake right up again and I try to lull myself to sleep by planning out what I'll write the next day.
I almost always forget what I decided.
Moleskin notebook to electric typewriter to computer to workshop to forgotten.
I've actually stopped writing in lieu of hanging out on the LitReactor bulletin boards. Fuck.
What's the electric typewriter like Dakota? Better than a normal one? Easy to use? etc.
I'd like to own a normal one. You can pretty much find them in any thrift shop for 5 dollars. It has a word correct button but I think you have to load it with white out or something. It isn't too complicated to use the basic stuff on it but the thick paper you're supposed to buy for them can get pricey. I use regular copy paper because I'm cool like that. Maybe one day I will get Charles to sell me one of type writers.
Any other Moleskin notebook groupies here?
coffee, whiskey - sometimes both
mild edits while working
write as much as possible in one sitting because starting and stopping is hard for me.
@Jacks_username: Yip! I got set of them (all different sizes) for my birthday from girlfriend. Little did she know I would actually want to start using them right away, rather than, erm, thank her for the thoughtful gift.
Prose before hoes...
I prose in different area codes.
I've actually stopped writing in lieu of hanging out on the LitReactor bulletin boards. Fuck.
Yeah... The people here are just so interesting!
I can't get anything done because of the boards. I need to take a break from posting so much. I had my second Litreactor dream. The first one was pretty cool though, I was excited at meet-up or something but everybody else was really calm so people kept telling me drink another beer and chill out. Sounds too realistic actually.
Prose before hoes...
Genius.
Nice.
I don't get a lot done these days, what with working constantly, putting up assorted drifters, and having a toddler, but when I do, it's usually when I'm at a doctor's office or something, waiting rooms make me have a million ideas, so I scribble them onto whatever can pass for paper in my purse (usually the backs of receipts) unless I actually remember to put a notebook in there. Then once the chaos ends at like midnight, I type them into whatever story I was thinking about when I wrote them. It's not a great system, since about 25% of the time I either lose the receipts or can't read what I wrote by the time I get home, but since no one's paying me to tell them these stories, it's probably not really much of a loss.
That summons it up for me. Art of writing in it's truest form ^.
My writing habits: get drunk, procrastinate, procrastinate, write, repeat.