Tools

Whether on paper or a spreadsheet, or on specialized software, keeping track of when, where, and how much you write can help you spot when your writing sweet spots are, and are useful tools for estimating how long a draft will take.

One of the best pieces of advice I've ever gotten was if you want to get good at something, keep your tools with you all the time.

Thought-time is the sum of the mental energy put into a piece of artwork. Along with craft-time and distance-time it helps determine the "value" of the work.

What is the actual order of the events, as the point of view character witnesses them?

What specifically happened in that particular time when light fell through those particular leaves.

Professional writers will tell you that they find exercise helpful, not just in counteracting the sedentary lifestyle, but in finding the "Flow" state most useful for writing.

These two books tell you exactly what bullet points to list, how many you'll need, and what actually needs to happen in the middle of your novel. Best of all, both of these books feature free online resources you can use right now.

Consider the best pattern for your story might not be a “narrative arc” or five act structure. Stories can also expand or collapse in spirals, meander through multiple plots or points of view, or be loosely associated narratives with a single root point.

Today we are going to steal a tool from the visual artist’s cabinets and see if we can bang it into shape that works for writers. It’s called a Master Study, and it’s part copying, part analysis, and all hands-on learning.

Clark gives us the language to describe what is often seen as indescribable, the unique voice of each writer.