In the interim...

If you're like me, knowing an editor requires a decent amount of time to review and respond to your submission has absolutely nothing to do with the number of times you check your mailbox -- or watch your washing machine go through its spin cycle!

It's a behaviour pattern I've never outgrown. But I have found a better way of coping; I now forge ahead with all those great ideas which threatened to hijack my last project. The laundry still gets done. I'm simply using my "spin" time more effectively by laying the groundwork for whatever's next.

For me, this preparation process has two major components: a detailed outline, often up to 30 pages long, which I do on the computer, and a series of random notes and character details which are handwritten (or scribbled as my husband would say) in a spiral-bound notebook with a black felt pen. I couldn't live without the former, but the latter does take me away from the pressure of the keyboard.

And, as my life often involves train travel these days, I enjoy the ease of writing longhand without that unending temptation, should I have my laptop with me, to check the news, or write and receive emails when I could be looking out the window, sipping on a coffee and letting my mind wander over the creative landscape while my eyes take in the one passing by my window.

But I digress. Which is exactly what happened last winter. I got so caught up in the research I was doing – I am delving into the Edwardian era with a particular interest in 1909 – that I literally forgot I was supposed to be writing a novel. So I switched tacks and checked out how other writers I admire, authors like Laurie R. King with her Mary Russell novels, and Diana Galbadon whose Outlander series kept me spellbound for weeks, strike a balance.

Both writers are extremely knowledgeable and their books well-researched but, as evidenced by their riveting storylines, they know how to stick to the script. In fact, I think I should take a leaf from Diana Galbadon's musings on research and remember that the books in my library are not required reading, they're for reference.

I've applied the same principle to the internet. I see a site I like, I add it to my list of favourites or print out a few pages, particularly if it's a newspaper article from the early 1900s, and then I put them in a – wait for it -- three-ring binder. I also use colour-coded folders for all those other articles I intend to write one day.

But when I do come across a piece of information which directly relates to my current project, I insert a note into the relevant section of my outline and move on. As the outline expands so too does my input; I begin to write snippets of dialogue, describe scenes in greater detail and enrich my character descriptions so that when I am ready to start on that all-important first draft, I can cut-and-paste to my heart's content.

Then again, I could always slip downstairs and put in another load of laundry.

f & f Anne

Here are the web links for the authors mentioned above:

www.laurierking.com
www.cco.caltech.edu/~gatti/galbadon/