Ever hit a particularly tough scene in your novel that you can’t seem to get through? It happens to me pretty frequently. I’ll be writing along smoothly and then all the sudden I’m in the middle of a scene where it seems I spend more time backspacing than I do actually typing.
I’m not sure what causes it. Sometimes the scene is emotional. Other times the characters seem to take on a life of their own and no matter how *I* want things to turn out it seems they have their own ideas of what should happen. And then I start to stumble. I’ll write a sentence and delete a sentence and half.
It’s a frustrating process. And there have been times that I’ve just walked away. I hate doing that, though, because I lose valuable writing time. And these days, writing time seems to be a premium.
I finally found a solution, though. I got frustrated one day and thought that maybe going outside to work would be helpful. Of course, the problem with working outside is that the computer (and the iPad) are pretty well worthless since I don’t have a covered patio to work on. My outside table doesn’t sit directly in the sunlight, but it’s still bright enough to make the glare on the screen too much.
Instead, I took a table and a pen outside with me. I know, it’s old-fashioned, but before computers and typewriters, that how authors did it. They wrote everything by hand. Can you imagine? It’s not an easy process.
When I first started writing outside, I still struggled a little, but then something happened. It was as if thinking through the words more slowly allowed a dam to open up and all of the sudden the writing came more smoothly. I still had moments of frustration, but overall, the flow was back.
Lately, that’s how I’ve been writing a lot. I’m struggling through some tough scene of Biloxi Blue, but writing them long-hand has worked well for me. It also has the added benefit that when I do finally type everything into the computer, I can edit as I go. (Not a final edit, but it makes the final edit easier.)
I wonder if that’s why I like the revising process more than the writing process? I do. I love to edit. And if I could find a way to skip the writing and go straight to the editing, I would do it. Because I do all of my editing by hand. And it flows well.
So, which is better for you? Typing or long-hand? Or even your own form of short-hand?