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Is it better to...?

CarolCarol
edited June 2011 in - Writing Problems
Now I'm currently concentrating on my novella and I've got a basic synopsis, a chapter by chapter outline and character sheets. And basically the whole story is in my head ready to write.

At the draft stage, is it better to keep the chapters as separate documents or have one file ongoing- so each chapter goes on the same document?
Or only put all the chapters in one document later?

Comments

  • boredrobotsboredrobots
    My WIP is one huge document.

    I think it makes it easier for scanning for continuity errors and info that I need to progress the book.
    Plus I'm never sure when I'll want to quickly jump back and throw bits around from chapter to chapter.
    I just find it easier to work on it as if I'm sculpting a statue. I find it easier to work on the piece as a whole than stitch it together later.

    But that’s just me...
  • DaisyDaisy
    I'd have just the one file - but that's just me. Are there advantages to having the chapters as separate documents? How exciting to have a whole new story ready to write - good luck with it, Carol :)
  • SilentTonySilentTony
    I'm assuming you mean in Word? As other writing software automatically saves in chapters.

    I do both. I write as one whole document and shift to clean page to start a new chapter. However I also copy and paste the finished chapter onto a new blank page and save that with the chapter heading. Best of both worlds.
  • doradora
    Phew. Your title was a bit worrying Carol.
  • Phots MollPhots Moll
    I use one big file (actually even a whole novel isn't a big file compared with images) now. When I started my first one, I had a file per chapter, but that got very confusing. When I wanted to change the order of events, or check where I'd included a piece of information, or wanted to change a character's name I had to look in each file seperately which took ages and it was all too easy to miss one or two.
  • CarolCarol
    That's interesting, thank you all.

    Previously on my longer stuff I've always done separate chapter documents, but wasn't sure if it had any advantages to doing it as one continuos document of chapters...
    Everything that's written is being saved to My Documents in a named folder (so I don't have issues finding the one I want) and also onto the memory stick.

    I think I'm going to give the one whole document a try with this project. If I can't get on with it then I can always copy and paste into separate documents until they need to be in one.
  • PiperPiper
    I tend to write my novels in separate chapter documents, then merge it all into one to get a word count total, and to see how it flows on from one another.
  • pbwpbw
    I use M/S Word.

    When I began I wrote each chapter as a separate document, then I found that too unwieldy, so now I just write and keep going till the Muse stops for a cuppa. I find Chapters tend to have their own natural end.

    These days I keep adding to the WIP. I have Document Map ticked (in the View tab) so I can jump from Chapter to Chapter and I use the Find/Replace function a lot to find a place I'm looking for.

    If I'm reviewing, I select the 'Two Pages' view and I can check the chapter lengths, how each page looks, and do cutting and pasting if I need to.

    It'll depend on what you find works for you, Carol.
  • Jay MandalJay Mandal
    To have loved and lost?
  • AmandaAmanda
    than to have never eaten fish and chips at all? (not that i'm hungry or anything!)
  • SilentTonySilentTony
    [quote=paperbackwriter]These days I keep adding to the WIP. I have Document Map ticked (in the View tab) so I can jump from Chapter to Chapter and I use the Find/Replace function a lot to find a place I'm looking for.[/quote]

    A great utility that's really useful.

    [quote=paperbackwriter]I find Chapters tend to have their own natural end.[/quote]

    That's the best reason for keeping it as one long document. It becomes an organic object rather than bits ready to be stuck together.
  • CarolCarol
    I've never had a problem with chapter ends, I've always written to those points naturally- not sure how but I always know where it is right to end.

    Can you elaborate on the Document Map utility?
  • Lou TreleavenLou Treleaven
    I keep it all in one document but create an automatic table of contents at the start which hyperlinks to each chapter heading.
  • Jenthom72Jenthom72
    I use one file, but when I'm working on updating chapters I seperate in another document and then add it back in when it's edited.

    I do know some people who have one doc per chapter and work like that, but that ruins the flow for me.
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