I was talking to a normal friend (translate: not a writer) :laugh: last night, and she asked how the book was coming–obviously I have yet to train friends and family NOT to ask that question. Anyway, I told her I was at the fun part where I just wrote the dialogue. Her comment: That’s such a fascinating process that you go through and then come out with a book.

To me, the fascination lies in that each writer I know has her/his own unique process. You can borrow and beg, but never replicate, because the key is finding what works for YOU as a writer. Once I’m past the first couple of chapters my process is a bit like writing a screen play. Page after page after page of dialogue. Only the occasional tag. No beats. No sensory experiences. No introspection. No scene. No setting. I often write an entire chapter this way. The closer I am to the end of the book, the further I can glide along this way (sometimes two or even three chapters). Maybe it’s because I like to talk that the dialogue flows easiest for me–I don’t really know. I only know when I trying weaving it all together simultaneously that it seroiusly distracts me and impedes the flow.

Once the dialogue’s in place, I go back and start to layer in the parts that give the book texture and form. The analogy I carry in my head is that of a painter. She/he readies the canvas and then it becomes a process of brushstrokes, often layering one atop another, to create a story or simply evoke a mood. Within each scene, there are a number of *stills* or *frames* in my head that I’m translating to paper.

I know several writers who work best this way. Half the battle is finding the process that works for you. That said, the process often shifts from book to book. Neurotically, I used to need absolute silence to write. Now, I work best with music–and it’s pretty loud. It helps me focus–drowns out the other *noise* in my head, a bit like running with my MP3. I know writers who keep the television on for background noise or listen to the radio. No can do here. I find the chatter and dialogue distracting. Writing is often like stepping into quicksand–you think you’re cruising along on terra firma and all of a sudden you’re sinking. :confused: And sometimes when the process you know, isn’t working for you, mix it up. Try something different. And perhpas the bottom line is the method is really just a chimera.

Jen