We are staying one week in Khao Lak, Thailand. The German has the opportunity to work remote on a project that requires about 100 hours and so we have decided to split it up into one week on the beach, and then one week in Bangkok. This means I get one week to write, and only write. My Iceland book is now off to editors (yes plural, I have decided to go with swapping services, so it goes through a series of them before it is finally finished) and I do not think it makes any sense to tinker with it until it is back. So that means I have one week to start a new project.
And my mind suffered a giant brain freeze of fear.
I honestly thought once I worked my way through the Iceland book starting a new project would be easier. I had done it before. Now it was time to start again. I do not even have work or other commitments pushing in on me like last time.
And not so.
So I did what most writers do, I let myself feel like I was working because I was on writer’s sites. 
And found out I should feel afraid, because everyone does.
Mhairi Simpson just wrote a post that could have been taken out of my head, (including fighting the battle of fat, because that has been struggle for me since moving to Germany) and over on Writer Unboxed Carleen Brice talks about Writing Through Doubt, and how she still is afraid despite the success of her first novels and even having them made into TV movies.
And finally, if they do not convince you it is normal, then check out Elizabeth Gilbert’s TED talk. Love her or hate her (and we writers need to accept that there will alway be people in both camps about us, and stop letting that stop us!) I find this to be a great pep talk. And now I am off to write!
I don’t think there is a real formula for starting a new story, unless you are a prolific bestselling author, I like to think there are a number of different ways and being free of the routine of work life is a good way to relax and let the imagination work. It will come.
I find writing short stories helps, its all just practicing until that certain idea comes along and takes off.
I think you are absolutely right there Claire! I started a short story today in fact, with that exact idea in mind. Write a short story to get a feel for my character and see if this is something that goes on beyond a short, or if it stays there. Either way the more you write the better you get, and this is the exact opposite of what most writers seem to do. We are so afraid of making a mistake that we dont actually write.
Just like language learning, we need to make the mistakes to get better!
You know every book I write is approached differently. Over the summer I had to fast draft for the first time ever because my agent pitched my book idea to editors and got requests before I even wrote it. I loved fast drafting. I wrote 20+ pages of notes–bits of dialogue, major events, etc. and then I took off writing and finished the first draft in two weeks. I loved it. The flow was great and I swore I would write every book this way from now on.
Well, now I’m writing another book and my planning was only about 12 pages, leaving a lot left to my imagination as the story is written. I wrote the first 25K in fast draft fashion and had to break for all the editing projects I’d taken on for clients. Now I’m revising my first 25K to get the story fresh in my mind again before continuing.
So I think we have to accept that things may not go the way we planned. It’s not necessarily something to fear, but it’s something to accept as reality.
I agree! Whenever I try to control my writing I end up frustrated and I feel like I am a crap writer. But perhaps just writing is best, and then going back and putting more control in at the rewrite stages might make me a happier (and faster) writer.
I have never tried fast drafting. I think I try to control everything too much. But perhaps I may try it this week and see how it goes (it sounds like how I write my Masters theses actually errr). It sounds like fun, and I want writing to be fun again. As soon as I told myself I would publish the fun disappeared and I panicked, due to the above mentioned fears!
Sometimes we waste time, and sometimes we push ourselves too hard. I “should” be writing, or editing, or whatever, RIGHT NOW.
Maybe, and maybe not. Sometimes we just have to wait for the thought/idea to ripen, in its own time. Just because a seed is underground, doesn’t mean it’s not growing.
I think, too, part of it is you know your last book isn’t “done.” It’ll come back from the editors with notes, and you’ll have to make changes… so even if you can’t actively do anything on it right this second, your mind is still kind of tied up in it.
I love that thought! I may print that comment off and post it on my laptop! I guess I also feel that I have been given this great gift of time off to write, and I am not using it, which stresses me out, which leads to the self doubt, and in the end has me not writing. Wash, rinse repeat! I (and most writers) should be easier on ourselves, unless of course we are not writing at all!
I don’t think I can offer anything different on the subject. I sometimes stumble on the first line when I am starting a new project, but once that moment passes I slip into the groove. I have noticed that every project is different and I have learned a heap from the first novel I wrote ( in edit mode) and my hope is I carry this forward into the second novel which seems clearer in my head.. . Keep moving and enjoy the energy, let it take you where the story needs to go…
I think it’s fine as long as you’re writing something. I, too, tend to blame myself if I’m not writing/reading/translating/editing, but blaming yourself doesn’t help. Oh, and there’s this feeling, if I happen to get some time, that I MUST use it for writing — well, not so, forcing myself into it doesn’t help.
I don’t think I can offer anything different on the subject. I sometimes stumble on the first line when I am starting a new project, but once that moment passes I slip into the groove. I have noticed that every project is different and I have learned a heap from the first novel I wrote ( in edit mode) and my hope is I carry this forward into the second novel which seems clearer in my head.. . Keep moving and enjoy the energy, let it take you where the story needs to go…
+1