Honestly Andy, I actually do both. My arthritis hurts bad enough after lying still for four hours that it wakes me up.
I'm normally in bed at 9pm and up no later than 2am. Take some pain medication, stretch out the kinks , and then usually go to my computer. By 6am I usually go back to bed until 10am.
If I had a choice, l would sleep in for sure. Getting older sucks in some ways.
Skiing, water or snow?
Sorry Sunil, time for you to move along.
A night sky so clear that you can see all the stars in the heaven and it will testify to your belief in the beauty of the world.
In this case beauty before age.
What are you two arguing about? I would like some piece and quiet back here please. Oh, you did not notice me; that is quite alright.
The view is so nice back here.
Welcome my new friend. Thank you for keeping my place warm.
You are reclining. I am reclaiming, my place in the back.
I always build up a 'world environment', very in depth character profiles, a general description of the overall story, and a good outline of plot points to reach my intended ending.
Probably about a third of my writing goes into this process. At that point I put the characters in the situation I have built and let them work their way through it.
Now I just write want the characters do, like I am watching a TV show or movie. It goes very quickly.
I find that working everything out ahead of time helps me to 'see' the complete story. It makes it very easy to make changes in any part of the story and then making sure how that change affects everything else.
Sorry, my dear, but I am right behind you.
I think the way I deal with characters is crazy, but it is the only way I have ever been able to create believable and unique characters. It also makes the writing process slow for me.
I think of my characters as real people. I will figure out a complete personality profile for any character. The more important the character is the more extensive the profile.
I work up their history, family, childhood, their physical characteristics and abilities, their mental processes including their general ideas of life, and their emotional make-up. I try to make a character that I can give 15-25 labels to.
After I make this character as much of a person as I feel I need, then I write the story. As the story move along, the characters are placed in various situations. How would this person react to this situation? What would they do? That is how the story will progress.
I think my characters are realistic and easy to empathize with is because I make them as real as possible then make the story fit them and not make the characters fit the story.
I know it sounds strange , but I talk with my characters (mentally, not out loud) and let them tell me what they will do. I think it is because I grew up playing role playing games. (Yes D&D was a big part of that. I actually played with the creators of the game. The Gygaxs. Name dropping can be fun.)
Does anyone else do characters this way?
I have to say, this is an interesting thread. I enjoyed reading everyone's answers.
I have not posted a story I did not like. I have worked on a couple of dozen things that never panned out, but I would not post them. Maybe someday I might think of a way to make them worthwhile.
I am super critical of my own writing. I keep changing it again and again trying to get it just right, but at some point I have to stop when I'm not making helpful changes. It is common for me to do 5-10 rewrites of a piece before I submit it.
Even then I still notice every single little bit that I feel is not just right. A word grouping, phasing, or word choice that I feel could be better. Organizing the story's flow and pace, especially in my Sci-Fi stories.
I often find it difficult to go back and read some of my work because I see the possible potential I did not quite reach.
I think my stories are good and a few very good, but I have not written the story yet that everything fell into place. A story that people read and go WOW. I may never, but I think I can if I keep getting better.
The people on Stories Space have made me such a much better writer with their advise and examples. I look at my earliest few stories compared to what I do now, and I can only thank all my friends for their help and support.
You would never bite me, so I will hug you and push you forward.
A great tongue in cheek comedy 'Airplane' (1980)
"Whatever happened to chivalry? Does it only exist in 80's movies? I want John Cusack holding a boombox outside my window. I wanna ride off on a lawnmower with Patrick Dempsey. I want Jake from Sixteen Candles waiting outside the church for me. I want Judd Nelson thrusting his fist into the air because he knows he got me. Just once I want my life to be like an 80's movie, preferably one with a really awesome musical number for no apparent reason. But no, no, John Hughes did not direct my life."
A big hug and a night of dancing.
There are a few people in my heart, but lately one has been on my mind all the time.
I would like to do them both at once. I have seen bungee jumping from balloons. If I have to choice balloon.
swimming pool or hot tub?
