You Can Have My Writing Notes When You Pry Them From My Cold Dead Hands

Put your notes away before you begin a draft. What you remember is probably what should be remembered; what you forget is probably what should be forgotten. No matter; you’ll have a chance to go back to your notes after the draft is completed. What is important is to achieve a draft which allows the writing to flow.

DONALD M. MURRAY

via AdviceToWriters – Home – Put Your Notes Away.

 

I usually post quotes that I, you know, agree with.  But this? No freaking way.

I almost spend too much time making notes; I’ll give him that one.  Sometimes it’s a procrastination tool.  Sometimes, you do just need to sit your behind down and write.  And, maybe, for some people, the above is true.  They don’t need notes! They have memory and imagination and they bask in the story like a cat in the sun.

I’m not that person. I have a notebook for each project that I work on.  I have character bios (not forms, but freehand bios written in character voice), I have house plans, I have pics of cities and rooms and people to model the characters after.

I guess my point is this: writing is deeply, deeply personal and whatever it takes to get you to that sweet spot, that’s what you do.

Image: Felixco, Inc. | FreeDigitalPhotos.net

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