What are your opinions on having more than one novel in progress at once? (Not part of a series, and not featuring the same characters or settings.) I'm not going to let others' opinions change how I go about this, most likely, I'm just wondering what people's experiences have been. Does one of them end up getting neglected for a while, or do you keep on top of both of them?
I think it would depend upon the complexity of each novel. I'm having a hard time working with separate plot lines and trying to give situations / reasons to justify people acting in certain ways. So I think if I were to attempt to write two completely different novels at the same time it'd take me four times as long to get each done.
One novel at a time is plenty for me. But I do think that if you wrote two at once you would benefit from a synergistic effect that could make the both of them better.
My lovely insomnia and rampant imagination fed me tonight, and I now have material for a novellete-length story or at least something worth a few chapters. The plot could easily stand alone as something separate from my current novel, although I admit the length as I have it outlined out now would be an issue. However, certain parts are very compatible -- the main characters are both reporters, and both involve large-scale conspiracies. The current novel is a dystopia, but my new idea is definitely horror: however, it could be a horror with conspiracy/pre-dystopia elements, which could tie into the novel. Would it be a good move to try to merge them later? Stuff to keep in the back of my mind, I'm not trying to get anyone else to make my decisions for me, I'm not a moocher.
I am in process of trying to work on my trilogy concurrently - it may not work and I may stop, I am hoping it will prevent rewrites. It won't work past first draft as keeping different distinctive voices is the challenge.
I always have a dozen and one things on the go - I'm usually actively writing around 2-3 of them if I have a lot of spare time. At the moment I don't have much time, so I'm focussing on one, and just editing/adding tidbits to the others. Trouble is when it's first person, as Elg says - I had 2 stories I was writing at the same time, easily and one was 3rd and one was 1st person. I finished the 3rd person one, and started a new first person one -- and that totally overtook my other 1st person one. The narrators are pretty different personalities, in very different genres of fantasy, so I need to do a hard reboot between writing them. However, if I was doing 3rd person - and I have done this in the past - I can easily jump between 3-4 novels as an active project, simply because it's just a matter of waiting for ideas, and when I wake up and want to plug away at something, it's just a matter of "who do I feel like writing today?"
I'm actively working on two novels, one novella and four short stories due at the end of October. I used to stick to one project at a time, but found that working on more wasn't that difficult. Switching to another project when you get stuck is a good cure for frustration or a block.
I have two novels in the works, as well as a children's book that is almost complete and four short stories.
I have a novel, two novellas, and two short stories on the back burner. The front burner is crowded with two new novellas in the first-draft stage and two short stories in revision. I have really got to get those revisions done and those stories out.
i've always been able to work on multiple writing project simultaneously, as is the case with many seasoned writers... however, i wouldn't advise it for beginners...
I've been writing since I was 4, but I'm just starting to get serious about actually plotting lengthy novels thoroughly enough to finish them.
I'm currently reviewing and revising one novel and writing a first draft of another. I work on one or the other based on what I most feel I want to do at the moment.
For me, one of the novels wouldn't get finished. But, that's just the way I am. Maybe you wont become too interested in one and stop working on the other. I know that I would.
when I first started getting serious about writing, I had about five projects that I would jump back and forth on till I realized that none of them had any real substance. Now I've got my one idea and can't even imagine trying a seperate project.
I have a couple of things on my plate that I could say that I am actively working on, but I tend to only focus on one at a time. Though I like to have a short story to work on when my novel begins to make my head hurt.
Mallory, I was working on my main novel, the one that I just finished this past sunday. In June, I got this great idea. This wonderful, fantastic idea, and because I didn't want to let it sit, I started writing them both at the same time. It was feasible, and for a good chunk of time I was actively working on both evenly, and could have continued to do so, but I decided to put the newer one away until the old was finished, just because I didn't want to get distracted, or take any attention away from either work. Now that my fantasy is finished, I'm happily back to work on my dungeon crawl, which didn't suffer much in the interim. I would focus on one project. Keep yourself excited for the other, so that when you finish you'll have something else to jump to, to keep yourself writing. But if it works for you, it works. I'm writing a play, but I think that only works because they're radically different formats of writing, and that keeps me thinking. I have no idea how to end these rambling posts. Awkward sign off, away!
