On Writing to a Word Count and What Makes a "Real Story"

[rsadelle]

I've always said I don’t like the write X words per day method of writing because writing is fun, not something I have to make myself do. And here I've been writing to a word count for months and months.

Since I was a naysayer, let's talk about the downsides. Writing to a word count definitely makes writing feel like work. The things I'm writing with a word count aren't things I look forward to working on. Because I'm treating them like work, I only do what I have to - which means I stop when I hit my word count, even if I have the time to write more. And because they're the things I'm "supposed" to do, I end up not doing much of anything else because I'm not allowing myself to work on other things until I hit my word count. This isn't to say I don't do other things, but I don't do anything else productive because I'm "supposed" to be using my productive time/energy for the word count items.

But it's not all bad. Writing to a word count does keep me on track with (a) writing a significant amount every day and (b) finishing projects. I think the style of writing is different too. The stuff I'm writing to a word count seems more complete, I suppose - and that's with only reading over the few sentences before where I am to orient myself. An interesting example: I wrote the parts I loved of "You Can't Kiss A Movie" before I even signed up for big bang, and then I wrote the rest of it a couple hundred words a day. When I was done with my draft, I went back and read through the whole thing and was pleasantly surprised by how well it hung together as a story. I'm now somewhat excited by the prospect of reading through my novel when I finish it to see how well it hangs together.

This weekend, I wrote a bit in response to an anon_lovefest prompt from last week. It was so much fun. I wasn't writing to a word count (and I hadn't even written my word count for the day yet); I just wrote a couple of scenes that were in my head. But now I keep reading it with a more critical eye. There are places where it could be expanded. I could fill in all the parts in the middle between the first scene and the last scene. It could be more of a "real story" (whatever that actually means). But then I think that it doesn't have to be. Part of what makes fandom fun is that we can write things that are just the few key scenes we want to write and have them be understandable and readable and enjoyable. Is my five-scene, thousand-word fic that has only a modicum of plot good enough to post? What about my two thousand-word space AU with a mostly handwaved plot that's really just an excuse for one moment at the beginning and the last scene? What makes something a "real story" - and when we're talking fandom, does it really matter or does the sharing of the image trump the need to write a "real story"?

Comments

[megyal]

Well... wow, that's a good question. A real story in relation to fandom, to me, is what you said. The community already has most of the story in its collective head, even with AUs, and so a real story is not necessarily a full story in the proper meaning of the word in the framework of fiction; this is also explained through the mindmeld that fandom has. In addition, if you ask certain authors, fanfiction isn't real writing anyway, but let's not go there.

Sometimes I'm really afraid to try writing original stuff, because I already have a problem with keeping details in my own head that betas are forever trying to drag out and have me explain, so how much information must I give for original work? 80% of it? 60% of it? ALL OF IT?

But I also like writing original stuff, because I AM afraid of it.

I had tried your word-count method, and it really worked well for me, even though I was distracted by the quantity itself (did I get to it? Ah crap, 50 more words.) I don't know if I told you I tried a time-factor method: 45 minutes of writing, and 15 minutes break. I was kind of surprised at how that worked, because I always feel that I don't have the focus to go more than 30 minutes. But once I turn off the TV and lock my room-door.... Ruth this is going to sound crazy, but it's like someone else takes over and I'm out of there.

I don't know what I would do if I couldn't write.

[rsadelle]

I really like your idea that the community already has most of the story in its collective head - that's so true!

Original fic is hard! You do have to tell more than you do with fan fic because the story is all coming from your head to the writing to the reader - none of this half the story in the reader's head stuff. I find the biggest thing I haven't learned from fan fic is physical description, and it's something I struggle with now in fan fic as well as original fic.

I get distracted by the quantity too. I have this habit of hitting Ctrl+S (save) and then immediately hitting Ctrl+/ (word count in the program I'm using), and since I'm in the habit of saving often, that means I'm looking at the word count ALL THE TIME.

That's awesome that a time limit works for you. I know that if I just sit and do my writing, I can write 500 words in half an hour or so, but if I set myself a specific time period, I often end up staring off into space for some of it. The only time I really sit down and just do my writing at the time I've decided I'm going to, without much in the way of goofing off, is Sunday mornings. I don't know why it works so much better then - maybe because I don't have any responsibilities other than writing and listening for the timer to let me know when I need to change the wash.

I do know what you're talking about - that state of flow where it just happens. I can get there really easily with things I'm writing just for fun, but it's a lot harder with my word count projects. I think part of the problem is that my daily word count is actually too low - if my word count is 200 words, then I'm just starting to get into that place when I hit the word count and then stop. (Because I have other things I also want to do, and because I'm treating it like work, I stop when I don't have to do it anymore.) I'm kind of looking forward to focusing on just one project (my novel) with a higher word count once I finish my band girls bang story.

[lakeeffectgirl.livejournal.com]

I was like that, too - not subscribing to the "write a certain number of words per day" school of thought, even though I'm pretty sure it's been in every book on writing that I've ever read. However, I think it serves a dual purpose - 1) establishing a habit, and 2) curbing burnout by setting a limit (not necessarily followed, of course!).

At the same time, I agree with you - writing is fun for us, not work, and writing to a word count totally feels like work. But I've had the same experience that you recounted - since I started actually keeping track of my output, my stories are longer and more complete. And I'd say that our recent long-form works are complete in and of themselves, as opposed to something that makes little to no sense when viewed outside canon. I could read your recent long Gabe/Victoria stuff without knowing anything at all about Cobra Starship or bandom, and still understand and connect with the story.

Is there still a place in fandom for shorter things? I think there is, but I'll let someone else try to come up with a good reason why, since lately I won't really read anything shorter than two thousand words because just when I've really gotten into the story, it ends. :-(

[rsadelle]

I don't know about preventing burnout - I occasionally start to resent my word count. And my limits are lower limits - I keep thinking I "should" be writing more than my word count, but I never end up doing it.

It really makes for better stories in the end, which is a big reason that I haven't said "to hell with this" and given up on word count writing, even when I really want to spend some time writing just for fun. I may have to institute some kind of productive procrastination is okay rule for the weekends so I can do some fun writing as well as the word count items.

I think anon_lovefest is a definite place for short things! It's part of what I like about it. I am at the point where anything under 10,000 words seems short to me, but I also don't spend very much time reading fic during the week and I'm no good at reading part of a story and coming back to it on another day, so I do find it helpful to have short things to read in those small bits of time when I'm reading fic.

[lakeeffectgirl.livejournal.com]

Writing ~500 words a day over a period of time is less likely to cause a meltdown than writing without a limit - say, 3k a day for a few days in a row - I think? It's the fact that you're pacing yourself - slow and steady vs. flat-out running, I guess. We're obviously past that period that the advice is mostly aimed at, but some newbie author writing like crazy for a week is going to burn themselves out and then ditch their project.

Pushing through that resentment to make your word count goals is overcoming Resistance (fuck, I'm quoting Pressfield!), and your currently set word count seems to be the count that works best for you. It's not like you've set such a low goal that it's boring and you get no sense of accomplishment from it or, alternately, set something so high that it's a struggle every single day to reach.

[rsadelle]

Ah, I get what you're saying. Someone from my writing group is talking about doing something about the fourth chapter doldrums, so maybe that is a big thing.

It's kind of a struggle, but I guess more of a resistance struggle - I have to struggle to do it, not to write that much.

Also, back on the topic of space for smaller things in fandom, megyal has a good point above about how with fan fic, half the story is in the reader's head.