Tutorial - Collaborative Writing
So, being the community slut polygraphicous, I thought I might entertain you with a few of my thoughts on collaborative writing. What it is, why you should do it and a few pointers on the mechanics (for mikes_grrl especially. And I'm only mentioning that so I can make the Mikey's Mechanics joke here!)
Okay. Moving swiftly on…
1. What?
Quite simply put, collaborative writing is where you and another author write different bits of the same fic and present it as co-authors. How much each of you writes is a tricky question. Does your beta, who helped you over an important plot point or gave you a completely different way of phrasing a conversation, deserve a co-credit? That's for you to answer - the line between beta and collaborator can be very grey, but as a rule of thumb my regular fic-writing partner, darthfi, and I have agreed a 5% line on word count, plotting doesn't (necessarily) count. But everyone is different. It is worth setting general guidelines if you are going to regularly write together. Just to avoid disappointment.
2. Why?
So, why collaborate? Perhaps you're not that good (or confident) about writing a hot sex scene that just has to be there.
A slight digression into a true story here - the shower scene from A Certain Fic originally faded to black after the big revelation for Chris. But cuvalwen, when betaing it, was adamant that it couldn't fade out there. I couldn't write it (I don't write hot sex or, at least, I didn't at the time) so she dictated the sex scene to me whilst drinking tea. Both were very hot!
Or perhaps it's a crossover you have to write and you don't particularly know the other fandom very well (this was one of the reasons for darthfi and I's first collaboration) or it just seems like fun ( round robins at meet-ups are always vastly amusing. Especially when there's a battle between the various OTP supporters!)
Whatever the reason, a collaboration, if it goes well, has the potential to be much greater than the sum of the parties of the first and second part. Or sicker, to be honest, looking at one or two of jantalaimon and I's more interesting efforts.
3. Who?
So, you've got a plan and you know you want to share the workload. The question is who are you going to work with? It's not normally a question of seeing a writer you admire and saying "Hey Loz, how about us making sweet, sweet fic together?" (Though, come to mention it, Hey Loz, how about us making sweet, sweet fic together sometime?) Generally, the possibility of collaboration would grow out of a conversation between you and a friend (or even a fan on a comm) where one would say 'I'm not sure I'm up to writing all of this, but if you fancy pitching in…' And next thing you know, you've taken over the world! Mhahahahahah!
*cough*
Well, may be not exactly, but the general principle is the same.
Of course, nothing is stopping you from asking someone else: as long as the enthusiasm for the concept is there, fic will happen. However you do need to be prepared for the collaboration to fail. I know this is pessimistic, but you have to be realistic because finishing the fic is now dependent on two person's work/school schedules. It is also now twice as vulnerable to crises of various flavours. So, be prepared to either ditch a fic or write the rest yourself if your partner has to give up for whatever reason.
4. How?
So, you have agreed to write something with someone else. How do you go about it? It's a good question, and it's one that is very dependent on proximity to the other writer and the regime. There's also many different ways of writing collaboratively. The three below are the ones I've experience with, but if any of you want to share your experiences in the comments, I'll link to them from here.
Collaboration methods also grow organically out of the partnership. So even if these methods don't sound like working with you and your partner, there is nothing to say that you won't find your own way of making it work for you.
A: jantalaimon - the 'separated at birth and by a bloody big ocean' method
Plainly put, the problem is that there's four thousand miles and five hours time difference between us. So it's a little difficult to meet up at the local hostelry or, for that matter, on Instant Messaging (though the latter is possible with rigorous scheduling).
The other issues are both writing styles and writing regimes. While jantalaimon is more a 'point at the end of the fic and go!' girl, I tend to hop about a lot, filling in bits as they occur to me (which is why, at this moment in time, I've got most of the headlines done, half of sections one and two and "About the Author". I'll fill in the rest later. Hopefully.) Our styles are also wildly different, so our method is the 'backwards and forwards' method: each working on the next substantial chunk independently which is linear enough for jantalaimon and bouncing around enough for me.
As we may be working on the same fic at the same time, we use Google Docs, which allows us to share, in real time, the same fic without worrying about different versions bouncing around and getting in the way. Formatting can go a little screwy with the programme and its auditing function can be a little hit and miss, but in the main it is very useful for any kind of collaborative writing, especially if the writing process is fairly linear.
This kind of large-block writing can be very useful where there are very different writing styles, although it can detract from the fic if it is done clumsily. An example of a very well done book done in this method is Come Together by Emilyn Rees and Josie Lloyd, in which each chapter alternated between the two characters point of view, each writer taking one of the characters.
TRUE FACT: The PsychoSamatic Cycle developed from a comment on jantalaimon's brilliant fic Straw. We wrote the first one batting the story between us both in the comments, which I still think is a terrible thing to do to a good fic.
B: darthfi - the 'separated by birth and by taste in beer' method
Now, advantage fiandyfic: both of us do live in the same city. So we can meet up for plotting sessions. Or beer. Sometimes even both. Our writing regimes are also fairly similar, both us bounce around the story filling in the bits that have occurred to us already (and leaving the difficult or boring bits for the other to complete!). We tend to be heavy plotters, face to face meetings always end in lots of scribbled notes of What Happens Next for one of us to transcribe next morning (always assuming the handwriting hasn't deteriorated to 'medical doctor' levels by that point.)
We also tend to conduct conversations around the fics by email, some transcripts of which are up on our journals. Here's one about choosing the name of one of the Hookerverse fics to give you a flavour of the interaction.
As we tend to bounce around the fic, we prefer to use Word and email each other the current version of the fic. Once we've set up the frame for the fic, we can drop in the bits we've done, colour coded, so as to tell who has done what, as we complete them. As we have similar writing styles, there is minimal effort in pulling the different bits together. And if we suddenly get writers block, there is always a cure for that around the corner.
While this works very well for this pairing, it is definitely dependent on having similar writing styles, or, at least, a willingness to write every section several times until the piece is consistent.
TRUE FACT: One of the Hookerverse fics, No Sweeping Exits was supposed to be a collaboration. We both had worked on the background and plot extensively. Only, when it came to it, I couldn't get my head round it. So poor old darthfi had to write the entire thing.
Also, I did mention she's evil one, yes?
C: cuvalwen - the 'joined at the hip' method
Advantage again, cuvalwen and I live in the same part of the same city. We're also very good friends. As we spend a lot of time together anyway, we favour the 'sit round the computer and type' method, one writing directly in to a word processing package, the other dictating. This method is very proximity-dependent, and I wouldn't necessarily recommend it for long fic. But because cuvalwen and I's writing styles are very different, but complimentary, both of us being involved in every sentence means that it is a lot easier to get a consistent joint writing style.
Obviously this really can't be replicated where there's substantial distance between the two collaborators, although Instant Messenger and the telephone can help.
TRUE FACT: While tidying up the sex scenes in The Games We Play, a practical demonstration was required to ensure that all angles were covered. As we're both female, however, it was necessary that we arm ourselves with fake penises. This is why, officer, when C's flatmate walked into the front room he was confronted by two women waving vibrators around and making wild statements like 'I can reach it better if you bend your knees slightly'.
Right. That endeth the lesson for today. Any questions? Comments? Cookies? Flames?
About the Author
m31andy has been writing in the fandom for over two years and has been a in a long-term fic-writing partnership with darthfi for almost the same length of time, co-writing such fic as The Hookerverse and That's Life on Cars. She has also collaborated with jantalaimon and cuvalwen on seriously brain-breaking fic. But that's an entirely different story…
Okay. Moving swiftly on…
1. What?
Quite simply put, collaborative writing is where you and another author write different bits of the same fic and present it as co-authors. How much each of you writes is a tricky question. Does your beta, who helped you over an important plot point or gave you a completely different way of phrasing a conversation, deserve a co-credit? That's for you to answer - the line between beta and collaborator can be very grey, but as a rule of thumb my regular fic-writing partner, darthfi, and I have agreed a 5% line on word count, plotting doesn't (necessarily) count. But everyone is different. It is worth setting general guidelines if you are going to regularly write together. Just to avoid disappointment.
2. Why?
So, why collaborate? Perhaps you're not that good (or confident) about writing a hot sex scene that just has to be there.
A slight digression into a true story here - the shower scene from A Certain Fic originally faded to black after the big revelation for Chris. But cuvalwen, when betaing it, was adamant that it couldn't fade out there. I couldn't write it (I don't write hot sex or, at least, I didn't at the time) so she dictated the sex scene to me whilst drinking tea. Both were very hot!
Or perhaps it's a crossover you have to write and you don't particularly know the other fandom very well (this was one of the reasons for darthfi and I's first collaboration) or it just seems like fun ( round robins at meet-ups are always vastly amusing. Especially when there's a battle between the various OTP supporters!)
Whatever the reason, a collaboration, if it goes well, has the potential to be much greater than the sum of the parties of the first and second part. Or sicker, to be honest, looking at one or two of jantalaimon and I's more interesting efforts.
3. Who?
So, you've got a plan and you know you want to share the workload. The question is who are you going to work with? It's not normally a question of seeing a writer you admire and saying "Hey Loz, how about us making sweet, sweet fic together?" (Though, come to mention it, Hey Loz, how about us making sweet, sweet fic together sometime?) Generally, the possibility of collaboration would grow out of a conversation between you and a friend (or even a fan on a comm) where one would say 'I'm not sure I'm up to writing all of this, but if you fancy pitching in…' And next thing you know, you've taken over the world! Mhahahahahah!
*cough*
Well, may be not exactly, but the general principle is the same.
Of course, nothing is stopping you from asking someone else: as long as the enthusiasm for the concept is there, fic will happen. However you do need to be prepared for the collaboration to fail. I know this is pessimistic, but you have to be realistic because finishing the fic is now dependent on two person's work/school schedules. It is also now twice as vulnerable to crises of various flavours. So, be prepared to either ditch a fic or write the rest yourself if your partner has to give up for whatever reason.
4. How?
So, you have agreed to write something with someone else. How do you go about it? It's a good question, and it's one that is very dependent on proximity to the other writer and the regime. There's also many different ways of writing collaboratively. The three below are the ones I've experience with, but if any of you want to share your experiences in the comments, I'll link to them from here.
Collaboration methods also grow organically out of the partnership. So even if these methods don't sound like working with you and your partner, there is nothing to say that you won't find your own way of making it work for you.
A: jantalaimon - the 'separated at birth and by a bloody big ocean' method
Plainly put, the problem is that there's four thousand miles and five hours time difference between us. So it's a little difficult to meet up at the local hostelry or, for that matter, on Instant Messaging (though the latter is possible with rigorous scheduling).
The other issues are both writing styles and writing regimes. While jantalaimon is more a 'point at the end of the fic and go!' girl, I tend to hop about a lot, filling in bits as they occur to me (which is why, at this moment in time, I've got most of the headlines done, half of sections one and two and "About the Author". I'll fill in the rest later. Hopefully.) Our styles are also wildly different, so our method is the 'backwards and forwards' method: each working on the next substantial chunk independently which is linear enough for jantalaimon and bouncing around enough for me.
As we may be working on the same fic at the same time, we use Google Docs, which allows us to share, in real time, the same fic without worrying about different versions bouncing around and getting in the way. Formatting can go a little screwy with the programme and its auditing function can be a little hit and miss, but in the main it is very useful for any kind of collaborative writing, especially if the writing process is fairly linear.
This kind of large-block writing can be very useful where there are very different writing styles, although it can detract from the fic if it is done clumsily. An example of a very well done book done in this method is Come Together by Emilyn Rees and Josie Lloyd, in which each chapter alternated between the two characters point of view, each writer taking one of the characters.
TRUE FACT: The PsychoSamatic Cycle developed from a comment on jantalaimon's brilliant fic Straw. We wrote the first one batting the story between us both in the comments, which I still think is a terrible thing to do to a good fic.
B: darthfi - the 'separated by birth and by taste in beer' method
Now, advantage fiandyfic: both of us do live in the same city. So we can meet up for plotting sessions. Or beer. Sometimes even both. Our writing regimes are also fairly similar, both us bounce around the story filling in the bits that have occurred to us already (and leaving the difficult or boring bits for the other to complete!). We tend to be heavy plotters, face to face meetings always end in lots of scribbled notes of What Happens Next for one of us to transcribe next morning (always assuming the handwriting hasn't deteriorated to 'medical doctor' levels by that point.)
We also tend to conduct conversations around the fics by email, some transcripts of which are up on our journals. Here's one about choosing the name of one of the Hookerverse fics to give you a flavour of the interaction.
As we tend to bounce around the fic, we prefer to use Word and email each other the current version of the fic. Once we've set up the frame for the fic, we can drop in the bits we've done, colour coded, so as to tell who has done what, as we complete them. As we have similar writing styles, there is minimal effort in pulling the different bits together. And if we suddenly get writers block, there is always a cure for that around the corner.
While this works very well for this pairing, it is definitely dependent on having similar writing styles, or, at least, a willingness to write every section several times until the piece is consistent.
TRUE FACT: One of the Hookerverse fics, No Sweeping Exits was supposed to be a collaboration. We both had worked on the background and plot extensively. Only, when it came to it, I couldn't get my head round it. So poor old darthfi had to write the entire thing.
Also, I did mention she's evil one, yes?
C: cuvalwen - the 'joined at the hip' method
Advantage again, cuvalwen and I live in the same part of the same city. We're also very good friends. As we spend a lot of time together anyway, we favour the 'sit round the computer and type' method, one writing directly in to a word processing package, the other dictating. This method is very proximity-dependent, and I wouldn't necessarily recommend it for long fic. But because cuvalwen and I's writing styles are very different, but complimentary, both of us being involved in every sentence means that it is a lot easier to get a consistent joint writing style.
Obviously this really can't be replicated where there's substantial distance between the two collaborators, although Instant Messenger and the telephone can help.
TRUE FACT: While tidying up the sex scenes in The Games We Play, a practical demonstration was required to ensure that all angles were covered. As we're both female, however, it was necessary that we arm ourselves with fake penises. This is why, officer, when C's flatmate walked into the front room he was confronted by two women waving vibrators around and making wild statements like 'I can reach it better if you bend your knees slightly'.
Right. That endeth the lesson for today. Any questions? Comments? Cookies? Flames?
About the Author
m31andy has been writing in the fandom for over two years and has been a in a long-term fic-writing partnership with darthfi for almost the same length of time, co-writing such fic as The Hookerverse and That's Life on Cars. She has also collaborated with jantalaimon and cuvalwen on seriously brain-breaking fic. But that's an entirely different story…