Sunday, January 15

I'm killing trees/The Giant Outline of Dread.

Confession time!

What does a writer/potential author do best?

Kill trees.

No matter what kind of writer you are, whether or not you write brilliant stories or crappy stories, you will have to kill trees. Well, indirectly. Words go on paper, paper comes from trees. End of flowchart.

I try to avoid printing as much as possible. Since two weeks ago, I'd done all my editing on the computer, but it had been very slow. I felt restricted, like I couldn't see the Bigger Picture. Then two weeks ago, I started printing out my manuscript at school, 10 pages each time I managed to get a computer. So far I've printed about 100 pages, and...you know. 100 pages. That's...a lot. Way more than enough to make me feel guilty.

*sigh* 100 pages. 200 more to go. *winces*

The reason for killing trees, however (at least for me) is to get ready to make the Giant Outline of Dread, or GOoD for short. GOoD will either drive me crazy or make my life considerably easier--or maybe even both. Or neither.

The point of GOoD is for organization purposes. So far I've been working on my WAP (Wikia Article Profiles--they're ideas/word building of my story based on the articles and format of Wikipedia), which also helps with the whole brainstorming ideas part of the organizing. But what I really need is GOoD:

story arcs > chapters > major events = post it notes
post it notes + more post it notes = GOoD

(^if that made any sense at all)

I hate to get all technical, but that up there is GOoD. It's time to stop spending hours trying to remember tiny details in my manuscript and start getting organized.

*sigh*

- E

4 comments:

  1. Seriously LQTM from this post. :D Genius idea using the Wikia layout!
    I suggest trying Scrivener. It's pretty expensive to buy, but there's a free 28 day trial. (And it's not 28 days from the time you get it. It's 28 days that you open it!) It took me a while to get used to, but once you get the hang of it, it saves Post-its!

    Best of luck with the Great Outline of Doom.

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  2. The Wikia layout is so detailed! I love it, even though Wikia's apparently unreliable and what not :P

    I think I will, thanks! Well, I've tried it once before on a different computer...drove me crazy, I was so confused. but, you know, second time's the charm. maybe.
    thanks :D I'll need it.

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    Replies
    1. How do you use wikia? Do you just use the layout, or you actually set up your own wikia, making it private or something?

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    2. I just use the layout. Well, hmm, I might set up an actual one (privately) in the future, like after I've finished everything, but for now I'm just basing all the world building profile-stuff off the layout of Wiki articles. So I have a bunch of hyperlinks in my word documents, and categories, and what not o.o

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