There are so many aspects to creating a long-standing writing regiment. You need space and time, and of course the right materials. But what are those things? Let's take a mini tour around my writing space to talk about some of my writing must-haves, and hopefully, you'll get an idea or two for your own space.
A Writing Spot
The number one thing that I need is a place in my living space that inspires my desire to work, and for me, that is an old desk that I found and repurposed. I painted it white and founds some lovely contact paper for the top of the desk to give it a little flavor aesthetically.
Why is this important? Because I'm not going to be productive if I go and try to work on my writing in my bed. My bed is the place my brain associates with playing on my phone and sleeping. It's not a workspace. If you take the time to set aside a productive space, it will be much easier to work when it's time to work.
The Right Equipment
The right tools can take on a lot of different looks depending on what kind of writer you may be, as well as which draft you're working on. For example, if you're working on a rewrite, you may want to print off your entire manuscript and color-code your revision ideas, whereas if you're working on your first draft, you may only need some index cards for storyboarding and a laptop. Here are my all-time favorites for those first and second drafts:
Draft One:
- A laptop-for all that writing, of course!
- Scrivner-this just so happens to be my favorite writing software because it keeps everything so lovely and organized.
- Poster boards-for jotting down all my minor characters as I go because this is the only way that I can keep track of them over the course of a whole novel.
- Post-its-All the post-its! I use these to jot down next chapter ideas, name ideas, place ideas, basically all the ideas as I go so that I don't forget any.
- A Notebook-for jotting descriptions down and sketching out my characters/creatures.
- Index Cards-so that I can see how my chapters build up over the entire novel (I jot down the chapter number and a sentence-length description of the main thing that happens in that chapter). Then I pop them up on the wall with some tape and move them around if needed while I rewrite.
- A Laptop- because I'm not a handwritten novel kind of gal. Plus, it's easier to keep track of the draft I'm on and save all my hard work.
- More Post-its-to jot down my revision ideas and general writing notes as I retackle a story.
4 comments:
Post Its!! All the Post Its in all the colors - a different color for each character/type of scene to organize at a glance. I wish I could learn Scriver but as someone who learned on a manual typewriter, it's just to daunting.
Love all the details you include, April. A lot of people LOVE Scrivner. I tried it. I guess the learning curve was too much for this old dog. LOL Too used to Word. I do print out the manuscript when it's time to revise. I like the idea of using different colored highlighters. Never tried that. I will next time. I'll print out the final version to proof, then I use Post-It notes, the long skinny ones, to indicate changes.
I'm still trying to learn to love Scrivner- getting there. Still use Word for the most part. I must have my laptop! I have a desk where I write, but move around with my laptop. My other must haves- time and quiet helps, but I can write through a lot, lol.
I must have a leather journal for my stories, and I LOVE post-its! Great post and tips, April.
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