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This Month’s Writing Tip: Enjoying the “Process”

June 4, 2021June 4, 2021 Kylie Fennell

I recently saw an interview with the cast of a Quentin Tarantino movie with the actors saying they celebrated regularly throughout the whole filmmaking process, and not just at the end. Apparently Tarantino subscribes to the belief that if you are involved in a creative pursuit, you should enjoy all of the process not just the “red carpet” bit at the end.

This resonated with me because as an author the “process” can be exhausting at times. Writing a book can take a long time. Editing a book can take a long time. And publishing a book can take…you guessed it, a long time. So, if you don’t enjoy the whole (or most of the) process, what’s the point?

I’ve found that there’s always some aspect or several aspects of writing that an author doesn’t enjoy. For some this may be marketing themselves. For others it might be asking for feedback. For me, I find structural edits a hard slog – some days it feels like you’ll never get the damn book finished, right?

While I think it should be expected that you won’t like everything about the job of writing, there are definitely some things you can do to make the hard parts, less hard.

Here are a few ideas:

Break big tasks into smaller achievable chunks.
Do the stuff you like the least, first up in the day – get it out of the way so you can move on to the things you do like.
Remind yourself that there will be an end to whatever stage or task you’re working on.
Focus on your end goal and how that will feel.
Talk to other writers who understand the “process” and can commiserate, cheer you on and even offer helpful advice.
Ask for help – if it’s something you don’t know how to do, then ask someone who does know.
Outsource to a professional – if it’s something that make sense to outsource, and you can afford to do so, delegate the task to a professional.
Have other projects on the go. If, for example, you don’t like the editing process and you know it will go for a while, have a side project where you’re working on something you do like. Perhaps, have a short story on the go, or start planning a new novel. Just be careful, though, not to fall victim to “shiny new object” syndrome.
Work to a favourite playlist. I have a bunch of playlists that I go to when I need extra motivation. I’ve found for instance it’s very difficult to hate what I’m doing if Salt ‘N’ Pepa is playing in the background – but maybe that’s just me : )
And most importantly, celebrate every step of the way! Share with your (writing) friends and family when you have completed a stage or task. Choose something meaningful to you to mark your achievement, whether it’s taking a long bath, reading a book – or treating yourself in some other way.

Writing, in my opinion, is the best job in the world, so why waste your time hating on the “process”?

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This Month’s Writing Tip: Pushing Through Writer’s Block

April 28, 2021April 28, 2021 Kylie Fennell

There comes a time in nearly every project when a writer encounters writer’s block. Writer’s block can feel crippling but the most important thing to know is that it is only a temporary state – unless of course you stop writing.

The other good news is that it is possible to conquer this dreaded condition. In fact there are loads of techniques you can use to push through writer’s block, here are just a few of my tips.

Write Your Way Through It

Easier said than done, I hear you say. The very nature of writer’s block is that you don’t know what to write next, but this doesn’t mean you have to stop writing.

You can write your way through a block without knowing what’s next. This often happens to me when I’m only a few chapters in on a new novel. I know what my big picture story is and what I’m aiming for but I can’t figure out how to get there.

After experiencing this on nearly every manuscript I discovered the best thing I can do is write through it. I write nonsensical partial sentences and random notes, such as, ‘big reveal’, ‘he says something witty’, ‘big fight scene’. I continue like this as long as it takes for some actual concrete ideas to form.

Get Yourself Some Prompts

A lot of the time I’ll find inspiration somewhere else – it might be a picture, a song, a movie, a news article or a Pinterest board – anything that prompts your imagination. If you haven’t even started your book or story yet, this is often a great way to get started.

Another idea is using actual ‘prompts’. Look online for writing prompts. Ask writer friends or even family to name some random items, settings or words that you have to use in a story. The more prompts (within reason) the better because we’re hard-wired to be more creative when we’re given more boundaries to deal with. As they say, necessity is the mother of invention. Even if you don’t end up using all the prompts, it’s often enough to get you started with an idea and help you push through writer’s block.

Pause.

Sometimes the best thing you can do when you get writer’s block is to take a break. I find going for a walk or even having a bath is enough to reset my brain. I’ve done some of my best thinking in the shower!

You may find you need even longer to let ideas manifest, which is fine. Pause your current project and try something else, or if you’re stuck on one particular section but have an idea how to tackle a different section, then move onto that. If there is a future chapter you can see clearly or you’re excited about, write that!

So what are you waiting for? Write through that block.

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This Month’s Writing Tip: Music to a Writer’s Ears

February 12, 2021February 12, 2021 Kylie Fennell

Writing fiction inevitably involves building a whole new world or setting for your characters and story.

Vivid world building of course is critical for genres like fantasy and sci-fi, but it’s just as important for stories set in contemporary, familiar or modern settings.

You want to create a setting and characters that a reader can clearly picture in their mind and invest in.

It’s the writer’s job to give just the right amount of details and little touches that make that world real and engaging. And this starts with the writer immersing themselves in the world they are creating.

One of the ways I like to get in the mind of my characters, and the time and place my story is set in is to use music.

I ask myself several questions:

What kind of music would my main character like and listen to?
What music is specific to the time period or place the story is set?
Are there particular songs that give a certain feeling or relate to a theme that is relevant to my story?

For my medieval fantasy series I was drawn to folk songs and dramatic orchestral songs like the theme to Game of Thrones.

Once I know what kind of songs are relevant to my story I look for or create relevant playlists in Spotify. You’d be surprised what playlists already exist. I typed ‘fantasy’ as a search term into Spotify and found a bunch of fantasy film and novel inspired playlists.

I usually end up with about half a dozen playlists that I then listen to whenever I am working on that particular book.

I find it a super easy way to connect myself to the world I am writing about and it might just work for you too.

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