I start writing when I start. There\u2019s no specific time. But we are up early because of the dogs. And my wife is very disciplined and gets to her desk by 8 a.m.<\/p>\n
The office is a summer house at the bottom of the garden. Books and papers are piled everywhere. There\u2019s a chair each for the dogs, and it\u2019s got heating, too. Very cosy in winter.<\/p>\n
After drinking a second cup of coffee, I meander to my desk.<\/p>\n
Deadlines are vital for me. This is stems from my days as a journalist. Like Duke Ellington said, \u201cI don\u2019t need time, I need a deadline.\u201d That\u2019s me. Just like Duke.<\/p>\n
I write a novel in six months, from start to finish. For the first draft, which is quite messy, I have a weekly word target \u2013 8,000-10,000 a week.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
A weekly target is better than a daily one. If you miss your daily target, you feel irritated. But miss a day if you\u2019ve got a weekly target, and you can always catch up.<\/p>\n
Sometimes I\u2019ll write seven days a week, sometimes four \u2013 as long as I hit 8,000-10,000 words, it\u2019s fine. It\u2019s what weightlifters call auto-regulation. Go to the gym on Monday and you feel great \u2013 hit a max on your squat. Go in Wednesday, maybe you\u2019re tired, do fewer repetitions. You workout depending on how you feel. Just the same with writing. So long as you hit those targets.<\/p>\n
I work from an outline, the product of about a fortnight\u2019s work. As I say, I plough through the first draft. I write straight on the computer in Arial 14pt. The draft is ugly. Very rough. I write notes as I go along. I put \u201cblah blah blah\u201d if I can\u2019t think of anything to write, and just move on to the next scene.<\/p>\n
If I need to check something \u2013 like the make of a car or the name of a street \u2013 I\u2019ll just put \u201cxxxxxxxx\u201d in the manuscript where the make or the name should be.<\/p>\n
My day finishes when I feel like it. I\u2019ll try to do a decent amount of words, at least 1,000, but it\u2019s not essential when you\u2019ve got a weekly target. By lunchtime, I\u2019m done. I might squeeze a few more words out after eating, but to be honest, I\u2019m ready to do something else: read or watch TV, or take the dogs out.<\/p>\n
The first draft takes me eight-to-ten weeks. Then, I\u2019ll take a week out. Write something else maybe. Think about my first draft. Do some research. Check out those car makes and those street names.<\/p>\n
After that, I\u2019m ready to attack the manuscript. It\u2019s a job of honing, of sculpting, of chopping, of cutting, of adding. The Arial 14pt becomes Times New Roman 12pt. The mess is divided into chapters and the chapters are usually given titles, though when you\u2019ve got over 100 chapters that can become a challenge.<\/p>\n
Draft two for me is the most difficult part of writing a book, but the most honest part. It\u2019s where your story is unearthed, where you excavate it from the debris of draft one. I\u2019ve learned never to trust a first draft. The second draft is where you find your truths.<\/p>\n
Draft two can take up to eight weeks. I\u2019ll then spend a few weeks tidying it up, producing a third, perhaps a fourth draft.<\/p>\n
Then I take a week off before starting on the next book.<\/p>\n
I was a journalist for 20 years so I\u2019m used to deadlines. It can get tough, though, and I feel the pressure sometimes. But then I think, I\u2019m a writer not a refugee fleeing war and oppression or a surgeon carrying out life-saving operations \u2013 that\u2019s pressure.<\/em> And after all, writing is what I love doing.<\/p>\n People ask where I get my inspiration from, but to be honest I don\u2019t believe in inspiration. To me writing is a job. A trade or craft. A carpenter can\u2019t wait for inspiration. Neither can a plumber. And Philip Pullman\u2019s quote is pinned to the wall of our study:<\/p>\n An amateur thinks that to be a professional, one must wait for inspiration. A professional knows that if one waited for inspiration, one would be an amateur.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n That inspires me. It gets me to my desk. It makes me sit down and write even if I\u2019m not in the mood. You can always write something \u2013 even if it\u2019s \u201cblah blah blah\u201d. I think a lot of novice writers worry about their first draft. They try to polish the first page without ever getting to the end of it. They fret over things, over every word, the small stuff.<\/p>\n Well, forget the small stuff. Let it go. Just finish your draft. Get to the end and love the mess you\u2019ve created. Take a few days off before going back to it and then you can start to chisel and craft.<\/p>\n I love writing and telling stories \u2013 however, I love other people reading them more. Some people say, Even if no one ever published or read my stories, I\u2019d still write.<\/p>\n I\u2019m not convinced by that. The point of a story is to share it. You don\u2019t tell yourself a story. That\u2019s self-indulgent, surely. Storytelling is about readers (or listeners, maybe) as well as writers. Without readers\/listeners you don\u2019t have a story. I write to be read. I write to entertain. I love hearing from readers, and so far all the responses I\u2019ve had have been positive. Most of the reviews I\u2019ve received have been good.<\/p>\n I also like to share my writing process, and help other people, if I can. That\u2019s why I wrote How To Write A Novel In 6 Months<\/a>. Using some of the guidelines I mention in this article, I take you from blank page to book in 26 weeks. I would also be happy to come and talk to your writing group or creative writing class and run you through my ideas on how to finish your novel. Email me on thomasemson_info (at) yahoo (dot) co (dot) uk if you\u2019re interested, and we can talk terms.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" I start writing when I start. There\u2019s no specific time. But we are up early because of the dogs. And my wife is very disciplined and gets to her desk by 8 a.m. The office is a summer house at the bottom of the garden. Books and papers are piled everywhere. There\u2019s a chair each … <\/p>\n