What can i say. I have problems writing. I have many kick ass ideas but when i go to write them down, they come out all wrong. Maybe it's my lacking english skills or maybe an undiagnosed case of ADD. I really want to create something but how can i create if i can't even get it down on paper? Does anyone else suffer from this problem?
Problems Writing
- Thread starter gooberman
- Start date
Goob,
Eventually you'll have to write them down, but If you are having trouble articulating them, then maybe pick up on some condensed story scenarios and overviews kind of (What I loosely call set-ups or devices) to help round things off kind of.
For example (As I was doing the other day with Wheat) communicate in more generalized broad strokes of story, like I might say "It's a 'Through The Looking Glass ' device, and the chick does an 'Ugly Duckling'."
I REALLY mean, a character (Female) goes through maybe a portal or something and travels (Enters in) to a new realm or reality, but also - she is very plain here in our realm (Or feels she isn't pretty or popular or something), but in the other realm she is a beautiful and beloved Princess (A swan), or learns beauty is in the eye of the beholder or only skin deep or something.
I might in other instances say "It's a 'It's a Wonder Life' kind of thing", or "It's 'Romeo and Juliet' with biker gang parents." or "It's a Wiz of Oz device" or who knows what?
Bottom line, maybe look around and make a list of how you can also condense story elements or types or directions, and see if it can help you get a handle on or communicate or put into words (of at least overview) some of your ideas, so that you might tame them a bit and contain them a bit, and take a little fight out of the way they elude you.
Doing this can help you in a few ways:
1. To communicate story... Like I said "Romeo and Juilet with biker gang parents.", someone reading that might instantly see and know a whole story possibility of what I mean, via just 7 words.
2. It can help you to some extent understand or gain some loose perspective on some movies and stories, like informally allowing you to look under the hood at their internal workings, then you will begin to realize you already kind of always knew some of these mechanical story operations, and can better feel out how to replicate them in your own form.
Once you begin this kind of thought voyage, you might flip on the Disney Channel, take one look and recognize the Ugly Duckling set-up, then sit there and watch how they do it, and how they tweek it and how they give it a new twist, but how at it's core... it's the same old thing that you can, they can, and I can communicate in just two words.
-Thanks-
Eventually you'll have to write them down, but If you are having trouble articulating them, then maybe pick up on some condensed story scenarios and overviews kind of (What I loosely call set-ups or devices) to help round things off kind of.
For example (As I was doing the other day with Wheat) communicate in more generalized broad strokes of story, like I might say "It's a 'Through The Looking Glass ' device, and the chick does an 'Ugly Duckling'."
I REALLY mean, a character (Female) goes through maybe a portal or something and travels (Enters in) to a new realm or reality, but also - she is very plain here in our realm (Or feels she isn't pretty or popular or something), but in the other realm she is a beautiful and beloved Princess (A swan), or learns beauty is in the eye of the beholder or only skin deep or something.
I might in other instances say "It's a 'It's a Wonder Life' kind of thing", or "It's 'Romeo and Juliet' with biker gang parents." or "It's a Wiz of Oz device" or who knows what?
Bottom line, maybe look around and make a list of how you can also condense story elements or types or directions, and see if it can help you get a handle on or communicate or put into words (of at least overview) some of your ideas, so that you might tame them a bit and contain them a bit, and take a little fight out of the way they elude you.
Doing this can help you in a few ways:
1. To communicate story... Like I said "Romeo and Juilet with biker gang parents.", someone reading that might instantly see and know a whole story possibility of what I mean, via just 7 words.
2. It can help you to some extent understand or gain some loose perspective on some movies and stories, like informally allowing you to look under the hood at their internal workings, then you will begin to realize you already kind of always knew some of these mechanical story operations, and can better feel out how to replicate them in your own form.
Once you begin this kind of thought voyage, you might flip on the Disney Channel, take one look and recognize the Ugly Duckling set-up, then sit there and watch how they do it, and how they tweek it and how they give it a new twist, but how at it's core... it's the same old thing that you can, they can, and I can communicate in just two words.
-Thanks-
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That is an awesome idea that i will have to try. my main problem is when i write something down and then go back and read it again, Its different than i originally thought it. Then i get frustrated and quit writing all together. Iv had this idea in my head about a door that takes you to a different place when you walk through. A portal or maybe time travel. I haven't decided yet. I love the idea of time travel but all the rules and paradoxes gives me a headache.
Goob,
Sometimes (Or always) look at the problem or limitation for a solution.
At times you might find that you can't elaborate on the solution to something effectivly, but the way you describe the problem is dead on, and sometimes (Not always) made of gold, like the Paradox gives you a headache.
What if that happened in the story? Time Travel gives you splitting headaches as a side effect, because the mind is subconsciously processing paradox as a protection mechanisim?
This scientist dude is spending half of his time addicted to pain killers, and the other half drilling into his head to relieve the paradox pressure.
-Thanks-
Sometimes (Or always) look at the problem or limitation for a solution.
At times you might find that you can't elaborate on the solution to something effectivly, but the way you describe the problem is dead on, and sometimes (Not always) made of gold, like the Paradox gives you a headache.
What if that happened in the story? Time Travel gives you splitting headaches as a side effect, because the mind is subconsciously processing paradox as a protection mechanisim?
This scientist dude is spending half of his time addicted to pain killers, and the other half drilling into his head to relieve the paradox pressure.
-Thanks-
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Goob,
It depends. I wouldn’t (Not that anyone can’t or I can’t or anyone shouldn’t) just sit down and go really, I would do some pre-writing 1st. I would have a logline and a title and know the concept and even write a tagline, and know the ending, and have an idea on the main character’s arc, and theme ideas. I would do as much up front as I could to build a “skeleton” to add flesh to later, so that down the road when I know I need to write an arm, I’m not trying to write a leg so to speak, but to get to that point is the same old same old, just sit there in from of the blank screen and one way or another conjure something into existence. I personally use word association once I have some notion of what I want to say.
I will tell you what. It never hurts to simply ask yourself “What the hell do I mean?!”.
I've found (For me personally) that I will (sometimes) when doing notes (Or writing) do the whole blow it all out in 1st draft approach, only to realize while editing and cutting whole lines out and deleting whole paragraphs, that all I am really doing is digging through the nonsense that I piled on until I come to that one sentence that is basically what I meant to say in teh 1st damn place. Time and time again I will arrive at what I would have written down if only I had stopped and asked myself to write down in one sentence what I mean.
-Thanks-
It depends. I wouldn’t (Not that anyone can’t or I can’t or anyone shouldn’t) just sit down and go really, I would do some pre-writing 1st. I would have a logline and a title and know the concept and even write a tagline, and know the ending, and have an idea on the main character’s arc, and theme ideas. I would do as much up front as I could to build a “skeleton” to add flesh to later, so that down the road when I know I need to write an arm, I’m not trying to write a leg so to speak, but to get to that point is the same old same old, just sit there in from of the blank screen and one way or another conjure something into existence. I personally use word association once I have some notion of what I want to say.
I will tell you what. It never hurts to simply ask yourself “What the hell do I mean?!”.
I've found (For me personally) that I will (sometimes) when doing notes (Or writing) do the whole blow it all out in 1st draft approach, only to realize while editing and cutting whole lines out and deleting whole paragraphs, that all I am really doing is digging through the nonsense that I piled on until I come to that one sentence that is basically what I meant to say in teh 1st damn place. Time and time again I will arrive at what I would have written down if only I had stopped and asked myself to write down in one sentence what I mean.
-Thanks-
I used to have that problem, but it becomes less frequent with more years of writing.
I like Klaus' idea though.
I like Klaus' idea though.
I write starting with a single event, picture, concept, line of dialog, whatever and then working outward from that... just a rough outline, then the settings and character actions, then the dialog as a very last thing.
Start with "Once upon a time" if it gets you moving, we're not working in stone and chisel here, it's a word processor and you can change it once it's written. Don't stress so much about having a perfect first draft... one of the writing exercises I used to do was just to physically put the pen on the paper and start it moving... eventually going from circles and squiggles to random letters and words, then whatever would come out would start to be more cohesive -- from there, I'd use the cohesive bits as a starting point and replace the squiggles with something else if necessary.
Just Write! Once it's out of your head, you can switch it around all you want... 10-20 full edit passes on a short script isn't unusual (and if it is, it shouldn't be).
Start with "Once upon a time" if it gets you moving, we're not working in stone and chisel here, it's a word processor and you can change it once it's written. Don't stress so much about having a perfect first draft... one of the writing exercises I used to do was just to physically put the pen on the paper and start it moving... eventually going from circles and squiggles to random letters and words, then whatever would come out would start to be more cohesive -- from there, I'd use the cohesive bits as a starting point and replace the squiggles with something else if necessary.
Just Write! Once it's out of your head, you can switch it around all you want... 10-20 full edit passes on a short script isn't unusual (and if it is, it shouldn't be).
goob, sometimes I don't write anything complete.. just snap shots..
I get a pile of 3x5 cards and write down one thing I want in this film... "boy shooting machine gun" for example..
That leads to me thinking why is he shooting the machine gun?.. next card "boy gets crazy phone call"
which leads to : whats he shooting at? Answer: "girl with sniper rifle"
which fed back to .. oh he gets shot .. next 3x5 card = "sniper shots at boy"
which leads too.. etc..
what works about this is I have a bunch of story elements that I can arrange in any order I want, in other words I develop the "plot" though moving the cards around..
Then I just start filling out the details on the cards.. for the six bravo nine nine thing, thats all I did.. there is no script.. just a stack of cards...
I get a pile of 3x5 cards and write down one thing I want in this film... "boy shooting machine gun" for example..
That leads to me thinking why is he shooting the machine gun?.. next card "boy gets crazy phone call"
which leads to : whats he shooting at? Answer: "girl with sniper rifle"
which fed back to .. oh he gets shot .. next 3x5 card = "sniper shots at boy"
which leads too.. etc..
what works about this is I have a bunch of story elements that I can arrange in any order I want, in other words I develop the "plot" though moving the cards around..
Then I just start filling out the details on the cards.. for the six bravo nine nine thing, thats all I did.. there is no script.. just a stack of cards...
I have ADD. I am seriously dyslexic. I can't spell. I'm
not exaggerating, I can't spell. When I leave the "check
spelling while typing" option on my word processor I get
stopped every 5 to 8 words. It takes me several minutes
to correct the spelling of every page I write - most of the
time that's longer than it takes me to write the page.
But I have a great desire to be a writer so I will not let
all that slow me down. I know it takes me considerably
longer to write and I know it's much harder and more
challenging then it is for some people. But I'm me and
can only do what works for me.
I suspect when your ideas come out all wrong you stop
and think of your lack of english skills and your ADD. I
know I used to do that. For me there was only one way
to move forward; I write every day.
Now I don't know what you're interested in or what you
are good at, but you got good at whatever it is because
you do it a lot, right? You do what you're into as often as
you can, right? And you get better because you do it all
the time.
So write. Set aside one hour every day and write. If it
doesn't come out right, write it again. And then again. And
then ten more times. You can let your difficulties slow you
down, you can let your difficulties stop you or you can
overcome them. Which do you want to do?
Here is the best advice I can give for writing, as written by George Orwell......1. Never use a metaphor, simile, or
other figure of speech which you are used to seeing in print.
This sounds easy, but in practice is incredibly difficult. Phrases such as toe the line, ride roughshod over, stand
shoulder to shoulder with, play into the hands of, an axe to grind, Achilles’ heel, swan song, and hotbed come to
mind quickly and feel comforting and melodic.
For this exact reason they must be avoided. Common phrases have become so comfortable that they create no
emotional response. Take the time to invent fresh, powerful images.
2. Never use a long word where a short one will do.
Long words don’t make you sound intelligent unless used skillfully. In the wrong situation they’ll have the opposite
effect, making you sound pretentious and arrogant. They’re also less likely to be understood and more awkward
to read.
When Hemingway was criticized by Faulkner for his limited word choice he replied:
Poor Faulkner. Does he really think big emotions come from big words? He thinks I don’t know the ten-dollar
words. I know them all right. But there are older and simpler and better words, and those are the ones I use.
3. If it is possible to cut a word out, always cut it out.
Great literature is simply language charged with meaning to the utmost possible degree (Ezra Pound).
Accordingly, any words that don’t contribute meaning to a passage dilute its power. Less is always better. Always.
4. Never use the passive where you can use the active.
This one is frequently broken, probably because many people don’t know the difference between active and
passive verbs. I didn’t myself until a few months ago. Here is an example that makes it easy to understand:
The man was bitten by the dog. (passive)The dog bit the man. (active).The active is better because it’s shorter
and more forceful.
5. Never use a foreign phrase, a scientific word, or a jargon word if you can think of an everyday English
equivalent.
6. Break any of these rules sooner than saying anything outright barbarous.
This is a condensed list I found of an essay by Orwell. Hope you enjoy.