My process

I have finally got my new computer up and sorted.  It's a laptop (Lenovo Z580 if anyone is interested, cheap but lots of memory), but I'm using it hooked up to the TV in the office.  I've finally managed to get it to look exactly like my old computer (desktop, files etc) so it's like nothing's different!  Got to love that OCD....

Got a nice new keyboard too, really springy keys that let you know when you've hit them.

Anyway, today I thought I would talk a little about my process.  I am working on book 3 of The Chronicle of Benjamin Knight, started it at the beginning of the week and I've done the prologue and the first four scenes of chapter 1.  I know where book 3 is going (as I've said before, it finishes the story of Alexander and the war), and I know certain pivotal scenes that occur, but everything else is fluid.  I have been trying to organise the first couple of chapters today, so I sketched out a timeline of what will occur on each day, to try and help get the scenes in order.

As always, beware SPOILERS!!!! (That is if any of you are actually able to read my terrible writing!)

From the timeline, I can then see what scenes need to occur and try to organise them into the correct order, and I end up with something like this.

 



I've tried doing it on the computer, but it's just not the same.  I need to be able to scribble on it, cross bits out and draw arrows showing where things get moved too.  I'm sure there are programs that would let me do just that, but for now I'll stick to what I know.  Maybe when I write something else, I'll consider a different method. 

I feel a lot happier when I have it all set out, and I can then just sit at the computer and write 2-3 scenes a day (depending on length and free time), and then start the process all over again.  I tried planning a lot further ahead with book 2, but things changed in the process of writing the story so I ended up redoing a lot of it in the end.

Anyway, back to it, I have a very large battle scene to write....