Snagged from
johncwright. Because when I'm sitting here NOT writing (*snarls*), meme-age is the way to go!
1. Do you outline?
Nope. I make notes of certain things I want to happen during the story, but no formal outlining.
2. Do you write straight through, or do you sometimes tackle the scenes out of order?
Straight though. I write by the seat of my pants, and I can't skip a scene because what's next would follow that scene, and if I don't know what happens in the previous scene, then I can't write the one after it.
3. Do you prefer writing with a pen or using a computer?
Computer. My hand cramps and my fingernails dig into my palms when I write longhand.
4. Do you prefer writing in first person or third?
Either-or. Depends on what the story demands.
5. Do you listen to music while you write?
Talk radio, usually. But at the same time, I usually tune it out.
6. How do you come up with the perfect names for your characters?
"The Character Naming Sourcebook" is an excellent resource. I also have a commencement program with a bunch of graduates' names, which I mine from.
7. When you're writing, do you ever imagine your story as a television show or movie?
Frequently. In fact, this is a habit I picked up from writing fanfiction for TV shows.
8. Have you ever had a character insist on doing something you really didn't want him/her to do?
Oh, gawd, yes. I've had the reverse happen as well, where the character basically said "No, dude, I won't do that," when I sort of needed him to.
9. Do you know how a story is going to end when you start it?
Sometimes I have an end scene in mind; sometimes I don't and just see where it takes me.
10. Where do you write?
On the couch in the family room, most of the time. Sometimes in the front room, and sometimes at Starbucks after my Writing Buddy leaves. Now that the weather's turned nice, I may move my business outdoors on occasion.
11. What do you do when you get writer's block?
Move. A change of scenery does wonders. I whine a lot. Bounce ideas with other people.
12. What size increments do you write in (either in terms of wordcount, or as a percentage of the fic as a whole)?
If I get 500 words done in a day, I'm happy. This...doesn't happen often.
13. How many different drafts did you write for your last project?
Oh, I don't know. I don't really "draft," I just sort of rewrite and rephrase stuff until I'm happy with it, and I edit as I go.
14. Have you ever changed a character's name midway through a draft?
I think I did, once, because more than one character's name ended with an "s" and I wasn't happy with that.
15. Do you let anyone read your story while you're working on it, or do you wait until you've completed a draft before letting someone else see it?
No one sees it until I've beaten it into as much submission as possible.
16. What do you do to celebrate when you finish a draft?
Chair-dance! And squish the Hubby, if he's home. I bounce a lot.
17. One project at a time, or multiple projects at once?
I like to have one "in progress," and one "in editing."
18. Do your stories grow or shrink in revision?
Grow. I suck at description, and thus usually need to add things to flesh out the characters and settings.
19. Do you have any writing or critique partners?
Yes, several. The Hubby is my First Reader, usually.
snarking_boojum is an invaluable asset, and so is my LJ Concrit Group, and my (published) Mom. My writing would be far poorer without their suggestions.
20. Do you prefer drafting or revising?
I think I just "revise."