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Linear writing vs non-linear writing
I am having a debate with a friend of mine. He writes chapter by chapter. 1, then 2, then 3, then 4 and so on. I did the same at the start of my novel, I wrote chapter 1, 2, then 3. Then I had an idea for a future scene, and it was writing itself in my head, so I wrote it, and the following couple of scenes as they came to me. These are scenes that will be in the last third of the story. My friend thinks that this will distract me from what will happen in chapter 4, 5, etc. He said that writing non-linearly (is that even a word, or did I make that up?) messes up the thought process. I argued that I wanted to get it written while it was so strong in my mind, and that I can go back to the bit I was working on when I'm ready, and cut and paste the new scenes in when I get there. This isn't a bad way to write, is it? I'm sure there are lots of linear writers, and lots of non-linear writers, and there are pros and cons to both.
Comments
I'm generally linear, though I might write out the basic bits of a later scene, once it's done I go back to where I was.
The rolling draft contains possible future scenes, some in note form, others quite developed, which may or may not appear in the finished work. Nothing is discarded because the ideas may well be useful in other projects, and the original draft will remain for the delight of future scholars at such time that my True Worth as a writer is finally recognised
Of course we're all different but I wrote 5000 words today across 4 different sections of my current project. If I was trying to write linearly I'd probably have managed about 500. Of course come my first rewrite I'll probably bin about half of them but that's writing!!
Previous books I wrote in linear fashion, only to change things radically over several rewrites.
Therefore I clearly have a flibbertigibbet mind and no set pattern of working.
Which doesn't help you at all. I think the answer is that there is no 'bad' way of writing - do what you feel comfortable with.
If something is making its presence so obvious, it's likely very important.
Once it's done you can go back to where you were- it may be that that scene will help you progress the story toward it.
I'm a firm believer in listening to what the creative part of your mind/brain is telling you. I've found that when I ignore it, I later find that was the mistake.
There is a scene that will definitely be happening in my novel, as it's the turning point around which the end hinges. The interaction between the protagonist and his wife after the scene started playing out in my head, so I wrote it down. I didn't want to ignore it, and wait until I reached that point in the novel, because I probably wouldn't have remembered it in the same way. This creativity is all new to me, but I'm loving it.