I think every writer develops tics - habits that don't (usually) affect the content of their writing, but become an integral part of the process. These become necessary ritual, prelude, part and parcel - a mental signal that writing is afoot. Here are some of mine:
Before starting a story, I have to choose a font. I have a group of maybe six fonts I use commonly, and which font I'll choose depends on the "feel" of a story. A Trebuchet MS story is not an Arial story. I've written some epistolary stories, and I used to insist on using Monotype Corsiva (it looks like good handwriting).
I always stop writing (and hence start writing) in the middle of a sentence. Yes, this means occasionally I come back to it and I don't know where I was going or decide the sentence should go in another direction.
It has to be blazingly bright. I don't like a dim space; I don't even like a semi-lit space. I have no fewer than three lamps around my desk, and at night, all of them are on.
I (almost) never close a story file while in progress. Word remains open all the time.
If I'm writing while multi-tasking (that is, during the day while working), I stop at set inches down the page to swap tasks.
This doesn't get into tics that actually affect the content, such as the fact that I generally won't start writing until I have a title.
So ... if you are a writer or know a writer, tell me about your / their tics.
I must write in chronological order. I can't skip ahead even if I get stuck. No one gets to look at my notebook. I usually don't talk about the story at all until it's finished. The biggest quirk of all, though is that I. It's write it all out by hand.
ReplyDeleteI'm not sure I have that many tics, though I do agree about liking plenty of light. I always write in Arial, and in a completely different layout from SMF, so have to reformat the whole thing. I can see it better that way.
ReplyDeleteIf I didn't start writing till I had a title, I'd never write anything. The title's quite often the very last thing I write (including revision).
Aaaah ... handwriting it all would kill me. Multiple times.
ReplyDeleteConversely, Nyki, if I don't start with a title, I either never find one or can't stand the one I do find. :-)
I wonder if anyone actually writes in SMF. It's a good layout for editing (though I don't like it for reading), but it doesn't strike as an easy layout for writing.
Cool to hear from both of you!
I also do the thing where the file stays open all the time, even novels. Although my wonky laptop sometimes decides it wants to close what it wants to close. However, I prefer to write with nothing but the glow of the screen. I like how my words stand out with the lack of light. Also, my eyes are very strong, so I think it helps not to have to many lights. One of my other quirks is that I prefer to be completely isolated when I write. If I'm not, then I completely shut everybody else out, and then minimize my work when I'm ready to return to them.
ReplyDeleteAugh, I hate computer intervention, my sympathies.
ReplyDeleteI'm that way about being alone, too. If someone's looking over my shoulder, the words dry up.