How Do You Write?

I've been wondering about this for a while now, but as you have noticed, I haven't been big on blogging recently. The main reason is my hours have been changed at work, so I'm working longer days, but on the flip side, I do get extra days off, so it's all swings and roundabouts. The other reason I haven't been here a lot, is that any spare time I do get, I'm spending on my Work In Progress (WIP).

I'm on the fourth draft now and it's really starting to take the shape of what I imagined it to be. I've added the pressure, by creating a self imposed deadline for finishing it. That deadline being the end of this month. Now you can see why I'm taking every opportunity I can to sit and work on it. It's no chore though, seeing it take shape is exciting and I can't get enough time with it.

As it's my first novel I've had to feel my way around the creative process and I've come up with a way of working that appears to be working for me. (Ask me if I still think that when I send my baby out!) It works, as in, it keeps my flow and focuses me.

I thought I'd share how I've worked this book. It's in drafted stages.

Draft one - Free write.

Draft two - Plotholes.

Draft three - Timeline.

Draft four - Character building and fact checking.

Draft five - Edit.

Each draft has come with it's own issues and frustrations, but setting myself a definite task of what I was working on during each current draft helped focus me on that and helped me complete what I set out to do. EG - Repair that massive gaping hole in the plot two thirds of the way in.

I'm on draft four. I'm rounding my characters and checking my facts and filling in the holes I left when I didn't know definitive facts. I'm so close, I can taste it!

How do you work when writing? Are you structured or do you just keep going through it until you feel it's right?

Knowsley Safari Park

Yesterday the family and I took a trip to Knowsley safari park. The kids are back at school next week so I took a days annual leave to make one last day trip of the holidays. It turned out to be a lovely sunny day and I loved it. I'm a big kid really.

Little man and I had the opportunity to hand feed a giraffe. I think it was good timing for us. We were on the viewing platform when the manager came out with a handful of leaves and started handing them out. I was as giddy as the children on there. The manager was handing out the leaves to the kids and little man had a few. I had to ask if it was ok for grown ups to do it! Giraffes are beautiful creatures.




Did you know giraffes have blue tongues?

We also drove through the monkey enclosure. Our car was covered in red bottomed baboons who thought it was great fun to pull on the windscreen wipers.





We had a close encounter with a camel who actually walked into the side if the car.





Just look at the colour of the sky!

The lion enclosure was amazing. Huge, sleek, powerful animals.









And for anyone interested in creepy crawlies, I leave you with a spider.