Full Boil or Slow Simmer?
By Guest | February 6, 2011 |
Therese here. Today’s guest is debut author Liz Michalski, whose novel, Evenfall, just released. It’s “a story of strong women, young and old, looking for acceptance and redemption in their own distinct versions of home,” says Booklist. It’s also a suspenseful ghost story about a man who loved and chose wrong, and lived his life with another, and died, but who tries to affect the next generation from the great beyond. Author Ann Hood said of Evenfall, “One of those books you will not be able to put down until its last beautiful pages.” And Romantic Times gave Evenfall a four-star rating, saying, “Michalski’s excellent debut is a touching tale of regret and treasured memories.”
I love a ghost on a mission. And I’m thrilled Liz is here with us today to talk about something that affects a lot of us: When life doesn’t allow you to write fast, how can you still turn out a great book? Take it away, Liz.
Full Boil or Slow Simmer?
I’m pretty handy with a deadline. In the twenty or so years I’ve been writing professionally, I’ve never turned in a late assignment. Fiction, though, is a different matter. With fiction, I’m a dawdler. A foot-dragger. I never write fiction at a full boil — it’s more of a slow simmer.
When I started Evenfall I was working full time and running a 10-acre horse farm. The last thing I wanted to do was take on more work. So I deliberately kept my fiction writing low-key — if I missed a day or two, it was no big deal. This was supposed to be fun, a joyful experience, after all.
Then I had my first child, and my time for doing anything that wasn’t directly related to the baby, my job, or the farm shrank considerably. I put the manuscript aside for a very. long. time. Ironically, it was the birth of my second child that made me pick it up again. He gave up napping at the ripe old age of nine months, and since I’d counted on those two-hour, twice-a-day naps to get my freelance work done, I was effectively screwed. I took a temporary hiatus from the work force, but my brain was unhappy. So whenever I had a spare fifteen minutes, I pulled out my manuscript and played with it. It wasn’t every day — it wasn’t even every week — but it was often enough for me to eventually finish it.
The slow writing habit has stuck with me. I have a little more time these days, but I still don’t write fiction every day — or even every week. I feel a little guilty when I read articles suggesting that serious writers make time for their craft every day, but mostly I’m over it. Instead, I use these techniques to keep my writing muscles in shape (think of it as cross training):
I ponder. Pondering is the weight-lifting of my writing career. I may not write every day, but I do think about my WIP just about every day. Last summer, I had the golden opportunity of a whole hour to myself almost every morning for a month. I could either write, or I could run. I chose to run, but I used that time to tell myself the story of the first chapter of my next book – over and over again. When September came, I knew exactly what to write.
I take notes. I have a small notebook I carry with me most of the time. Whenever I come up with a line of dialogue, a plot point, or even a background detail, I write it down. That way it’s there and ready when I am.
I cheat. I use music as an emotional shorthand. Every character usually winds up with a song that ‘belongs’ to them. When I do have time to write, I play that song to focus me on that character’s point of view.
I revise. If I haven’t touched my manuscript in a few weeks, I go back to the nearest beginning — either of the last chapter or the last section — and work from there. Doing so helps me catch problems and makes the final revision easier.
I elaborate. Taking time off sporadically let’s me see what I might not have noticed in the last go-round, because I was too close to the work. In Evenfall, for example, I realized after taking time off that the story was subtly built around the four elements — air, earth, water, and fire. In later chapters, I was able to tease out these threads a bit more, making a richer tapestry for my story-telling.
I practice. I may not be writing my novel every day, but it’s rare for a day to go by where I don’t write something – a newspaper article, a marketing letter, a report or even a blog post. By exercising my writing muscles, I’m a stronger writer when I do pick up my fiction.
Do you write at a simmer, a boil, or somewhere in-between?
Thanks for a great post, Liz! Readers, you can learn more about Liz and her debut novel, Evenfall, on her website and her blog, and read a excerpt of her book HERE. (Psst, if you purchase a copy of Liz’s book and email her a jpg of the two of you cozied up together (info@lizmichalski.com), she’ll send you a code to unlock extra content on her website.) Write on!
Photo courtesy Flickr’s Girl Interrupted Eating
Many thanks to today’s guest.
You can read more WU guest posts by visiting this link.
I love your “cross training” ideas. I wrote my first book in a similar way — I started it, then put it down for a “very. long. time” and then picked it up again after the birth of my second child (though she was, thankfully, still napping!). Slowly, and without much thought that I was actually “writing a novel” I finished it, to my own surprise.
The second book is turning out to be more of a struggle. Now that I’ve decided that I am a “writer” and that “writers write” I seem to be stuck. Big time. In trying to push myself to write at a boiling pace, I’ve ended up afraid to jump in at all. I’m going to use your post as a life preserver, wade back in and take my time. Simmer, definitely. Thanks!
“Taking time off sporadically let’s me see what I might not have noticed in the last go-round, because I was too close to the work,” I love this, Liz, and I can’t wait to pick up your book! I have declared myself a daily writer over and over again, and I do get up at 5:30 and use that time to write…or not. Last year, I submitted a multiple POV manuscript to an agent who gave me some very wise advice. She was so encouraging, telling me she knew I could do this, she had a good feeling for the characters, but the story itself was not completely there. She gave me other ideas as well. I saw them as my marching orders. I got right back to her. She told me to stop…and NOT to get this back to her any time soon. Her advice was to let it marinate, the equivalent to your simmering metaphor. I’m taking copious notes, writing chapters, researching to find the real pin-point details. And now? I really think (HOPE)…I’m starting to get somewhere! (The best part of all…my multiple POV plan has finally dissolved, and now, thankfully, I’m telling it only from one.) Thank you for validating the alternative route to getting it down on the page! In the end, it’s only the story, not the process, that matters.
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There’s a lot to be said for taking time with fiction, and you put it well under “I elaborate.” When I take time off from a work of fiction, I come back to it to find themes I didn’t know where there that I can expand upon, or patterns in the characters I can use. I wish there were a way to compress that!
I’m somewhere in between. Now that I’ve quit my job to pursue writing full-time, I plan to write daily, but despite the pressures from others (mom, boyfriend, well-meaning friends) to “crank it out,” I know I’m going to go at the same steady pace. (Just the same pace more often! :)) I am neither tortoise nor hare, and I’ve stopped beating myself up about it. Which is a hard thing to do! So thanks for the reminder that it’s okay to be slow. Or fast. Or anything in between. :)
LOVE, LOVE, LOVE this post! I’ve finally settled into the fact that I’m a slow writer, too. I find that as long as I have small and reasonable daily goals (I do 2 pages now) then I don’t wander too far from the story (in my mind, at least). I’m 100% with you on squeezing in 15 minutes here and there between dealing with the kids and the rest of life.
Looking forward to reading Evenfall. It’s officially on the TBR list now.
Nina
Great ideas! I think I’m more of a simmer-er. I like getting things right as I go along, which know is impossible, but I still try the best I can. Which can slow things down in the first draft, but will hopefully help once I get to editing.
Sarah Allen
(my creative writing blog)
I’m definitely a full boil type. Fast and furious until it’s all on the page. Then I stew over the revisions for what seems like (comparatively) FOR-EV-AH!
Liz, I love reading how others do it. And I can’t wait to get your book in my hands!
A slow-book movement born in the Eastern States. I love it. :)
We all have such different processes, and since mine isn’t full worked out, I wouldn’t dream of sharing it. I do think the practice of keeping the story alive is key, though. I let mine go for a while because I mistook my slow progress as being a sign of the book being doomed. It wasn’t, but reclaiming the voices and tone has been a difficult task. I appreciate the ideas about keeping the warming oven on!
Slow simmer here, with the water cooking out and scorching now and then.
Great post! I would have to say that I’ve been writing at uneven temperatures. Some days, the ideas and the words are just there and I write at a boil, but most days are definitely a simmer. Overall, I’m just trying for steady progress over time. For now, I’m trying to write at least 3 to 4 days a week after I get my kids off to school and before I head to work. So far, so good!
Also, I love the idea of “writing” while running. Sometimes it’s hard to fit everything in and that sounds like a great way to kill 2 birds with 1 stone.
Best wishes with your book, Liz! It sounds very interesting and I’ve added it to my TBR list on Goodreads.
Great post… it’s wonderful seeing someone else’s perspective on writing. I’m a simmering writer, but only because I have four children. Given the choice I write better with a deadline and on serious boil. But so long as I’m moving forward, I guess…
Thanks so much, everyone. I’m glad you liked the post!
For my current WIP I did a 10 year simmer finding the right plot and characters then went full boil and got a clean-draft off to the editor in 4 months…
Love the idea of the slow simmer. Having kids definitely forces one to find another way around doing the daily of writing. First article I ever had published I wrote in twenty-five minutes. In bed. With my husband giving the kids breakfast. But I had been “writing” it in my head during three weeks of carpool runs. Best thing to keep in mind is that every writer has his/her way and the right way is what’s right for each one of us. Even if it means scorching a pot every now and then (Been there, Kelly!) Congratulations, Liz and thank you for a wonderfully thought-provoking post.
Debra Darvick’s latest blog ….
I always used to pass off my writing habit of “slow simmer” to being a slow thinker. Of course it runs a bit deeper then that, but it was always just too complicated to try and explain my process. But now here you are, Liz, putting definition (and quite beautifully!) to all those things that run – or rather, walk – through my head :-)
Congratulations on your shiny new book. It sounds wonderful and I look forward to diving in.
Excellent, thoughtful post. Good insight into the mind of a writer, especially for those of us who spend lotsa time there :)
I’ll be sharing a link to this post with my readers at http://www.writer-in-progress.com this week in my post on Twitter–I appreciate you sharing!
Beth
Great post — put me in the “simmer” category! I need a lot of time to take in material and let it cook a while.
It’s been very interesting for me to read about the different speeds at which everyone writes — and whether those speeds are because of internal or external factors. Thank you very much for sharing your thoughts.
And thank you Beth for sharing this post!
For me, I always, always start at a full boil when I first come up with an idea (the first few weeks are absolutely the most productive), but shortly thereafter fall into a slow boil. Thanks for this post — it’s nice to get permission to write at my own pace.
Your post really resonated with me. Thanks for sharing your writing process. I’m still trying to find my rhythm and find it comforting that you allowed yourself to be OK with the pace and style that suits you best.
Teralyn and Melissa,
I’ve learned the hard way that beating myself up because I can’t write more isn’t productive. You have to do what works for you and for your life at this moment.
I think I’m a combination of both. I write in full sprints, but it takes me a while to warm up. So I’ll alternate between weeks of pondering and note-taking, and then I’ll have months where I wake up extra early every day to get it down on paper.