Taking a break

[James118]

I was originally going to title this thread 'Peaks and troughs', but you'd probably expect it to be about pacing. Narrative pacing, to be precise.

No, I'm talking about taking a break from my current project, a prequel to The Earthfault. I've had it done from beginning to end for years - as I wrote it before TEF for the sake of consistency - and have therefore been editing it even before I began TEF. As such, I've read it all the way through many, many times. I don't even intend this current time to be the last (I'm tracking the changes on Word, so it's presently an absolute mess in terms of what's visible onscreen). And this time I'm really focused on polishing it as finely (not quite finally) as possible, to prepare it 99% before I release it hopefully in the next few years. One thing that I fell short on with TEF was sentence structure, so I'm going all out on the prequel's variety in that area for ease of reading and narrative pacing.

Long story short, it's pretty bloody draining to be that focused on such an omnipresent aspect of the story, a story I've read time and again and almost know like the back of my hand (because the focus was on TEF for the last few years). And doing intense editing for the last few weeks and months has really sapped my strength on the project.

So I'm taking a break.

Ordinarily, I'd probably look to outlining future installments of the series. And maybe I will over the next few days or weeks. But for now, I'm actually writing an intriguing and (I hope) innovative little thing I came up with last year. Already got about 4 pages into it, added another 2 today for the first time in months, maybe a year or more. But yeah, right now I'm just throwing down action and dialogue and prose as they come to me, first draft, improv style, fast and fun.

So what do you guys do to recharge your creative batteries after a long, intense period of editing? Or how do you mix it up when it's time to dig back into the meat of revising and polishing?

 

[Stephen Palmer]

Breaks are very important. You've got to go with the flow...

Steve's Novel Sabbatical - update.

 

[zmunkz]

I agree, breaks can be very important to keep you energized and keep your momentum up.

So what do you guys do to recharge your creative batteries after a long, intense period of editing? Or how do you mix it up when it's time to dig back into the meat of revising and polishing?

Change gears, write something new. I find the world-building process, the draft-1 writing process, and the revising process to be so different that I can move between projects in those different stages pretty easily. The more time I spend in one, the more recharged I feel when I go to another.

Maybe spend a couple weeks world-building for a brand new story, then come back to this.

 

[Vaz]

Breaks are important. It's good from time to time to just step away from writing and/or reading for a while.

For me, I like to recharge by stepping back from both. And doing something else creatively, like drawing or painting.

It's also good to dream up new ideas, but don't write them down, just let them simmer in your headspace and enjoy spending time there with new characters, worlds and villains.

Hope some of this is helpful.

Vaz

 

[Stephen Palmer]

Bertrand Russell advised prospective authors of novels to go lumberjacking for three months before the writing, ie to give the subconscious plenty of time to sort everything out. I think he had a point. Sometimes, the material is all ready and waiting...

 

[Brian W. Foster]

Some advice I read recently that has helped a lot with my productivity: A change is as good as a break.

Right now, my primary project is writing the rough draft of an epic fantasy novel. I write in sprints - 30 minutes chunks of time where I try to drown out all distractions and just write. If I tried to do one sprint after another, I'd get burned out. Instead, a switch to another project, which is still spending my limited writing time productively. When I get tired of it, I go back to doing another sprint.

Butt in chair. Words on page. I'm convinced that's the key to writing success

 

[zmunkz]

Butt in chair. Words on page. I'm convinced that's the key to writing success

Indeed -- here is the Writing Excuses podcast on the subject.

 

[NbDawn]

I try to stick to something writing related, whether it be editing or working on a new story. Sometimes, though, I just don't have it in me to write in any way whatsoever. Mostly it's because life gets in the way. So I do, on occasion, take a 2-4 day break. But I try not to let it last any longer than that. If the break is too long, I'm afraid I will lose my momentum and it will be another half-finished book sitting on the shelf (I have a few of those).

 

[Thomas Watson]

I've learned to follow the advice Mr. Foster cites, about a change being as good as a break. For me, it involves switching from whatever fiction I'm writing to something of a nonfictional nature, often an entry in my weblog. It's something like pausing to catch your breath before moving on.

 

[James118]

But for now, I'm actually writing an intriguing and (I hope) innovative little thing I came up with last year. Already got about 4 pages into it, added another 2 today for the first time in months, maybe a year or more. But yeah, right now I'm just throwing down action and dialogue and prose as they come to me, first draft, improv style, fast and fun.

So I was doing this last week. But now it's reached a very serious scene that I will need to plan properly and such, which was not the pace I was looking to change to. So I might switch again.

You're all very welcome for that vital update. But yeah, my advice to anyone else in the same situation is do what you feel you will enjoy, not what you think you should. This path of ours is much more worth it when we enjoy ourselves than when we push to do something we're not presently enjoying (but will again after a change of pace).

 

[TheWhompusKitty]

A friend who took a graduate class on creativity told me that the breaks are as important as the obvious effort. Personally, I imagine I'm letting my subconscious work on the material.

The mind is a garden, a project is like a living thing in that garden. I have an agro/horticultural work background, so maybe my analogy speaks to me more than others but I'll offer it just the same.

Plants need air and space in addition to nutrients and water, but different species need different amounts. Some plants thrive in poor soil, others need sandy soil, yet others have very specific nutritional requirements. Sometimes the soil gets compacted and needs aeration. Sometimes new organic material is needed. Some plants wilt with too much attention, and just want to be left alone for awhile. And some are what I like to call "hysterical plants."

In my experience, when you start working with a new species, you have to get to know that particular species. What worked with one won't necessarily work with another. And every species has pests that attack and illnesses it is prone to.

Take any or all of that or leave it. (Take it or leaf it. Is it too early for puns?)

Trust your instincts, you've clearly worked with the material a long time.

 

[Thomas Watson]

A friend who took a graduate class on creativity told me that the breaks are as important as the obvious effort. Personally, I imagine I'm letting my subconscious work on the material.

The mind is a garden, a project is like a living thing in that garden. I have an agro/horticultural work background, so maybe my analogy speaks to me more than others but I'll offer it just the same.

Plants need air and space in addition to nutrients and water, but different species need different amounts. Some plants thrive in poor soil, others need sandy soil, yet others have very specific nutritional requirements. Sometimes the soil gets compacted and needs aeration. Sometimes new organic material is needed. Some plants wilt with too much attention, and just want to be left alone for awhile. And some are what I like to call "hysterical plants."

In my experience, when you start working with a new species, you have to get to know that particular species. What worked with one won't necessarily work with another. And every species has pests that attack and illnesses it is prone to.

Take any or all of that or leave it. (Take it or leaf it. Is it too early for puns?)

Trust your instincts, you've clearly worked with the material a long time.

I'm a glorified botanist (B.S. in plant biology from the University of Arizona) and a gardener. I get your analogy loud and clear!

 

[Steven Sorrels]

Take any or all of that or leave it. (Take it or leaf it. Is it too early for puns?)

It's never too early for puns!

 

[CWScott]

I've taken weeks, and even months off away from writing. Especially if I get stuck. Editing is harder and really drains me. But I push through. I rely on my editor to catch sentence structure and overall mechanics. So I only need to focus on consistency, developmental stuff, descriptions etc. But it still fries my brain.