Sharing Writing Ideas – First Drafts

Today’s topic is “Writing Methods.”

Readers, have you ever wondered how a story grew from someone’s imagination into a novel?

Writers, won’t you share your secrets with us? How did your novel take shape?

I know there are all kinds of odd writing habits that produce a novel. Why not share what you do? I’ll start by sharing an odd writing habit that worked for me.

When I began to write the first draft of Julia’s Violinist, I happened to be in Mexico. I bought a couple of Mexican school exercise books – the kind we usually call scribblers, although that name always bothered me (my mother always told me to write neatly, not scribble). I took my beach mat and a pen and notebook to a quiet spot on the beach and, with the sound of the waves swishing in the background, I began to write. Heidi and Harry, an elderly German couple who rented a bungalow next to ours were also at the beach. When it got too hot to write, I went for a dip in the ocean. Treading water next to Heidi, I asked her all kinds of questions about what life was like for her in the days  before, during, and after WWII. Some of what she told me became part of my novel, Julia’s Violinist, and it’s because of her help that one of my characters is named Heidi.

After writing a chapter or a scene in my notebook, I took my beach gear back to the bungalow and turned on my laptop. As I transferred the “scribblings” into my Word program, I was able to add, delete, and change the text to fatten up the story.

Day after day, I did this, and gradually the novel took shape.

Please share your thoughts in the comment section. No answer is wrong. All input is appreciated.

Don’t be shy. Tell us what you think and share your ideas.