Morning all! I'm from NSW, Australia, and currently in the process of writing crime fiction. I'm looking forward to interacting on this forum and getting to know a bunch of you And in particular linking up with fellow crime writers.
Hi Mike, I'm Chrissie, I'm new too! How far along in your writing journey are you? I read a lot of crime fiction but am yet to attempt to write any. I do have a killer idea though (no pun intended), that I might sit on for a few more years...
Why wait? As one book on writing uses as a title, "write the damn book already" other wise you are killing your killer idea.
Hey Chrissie I guess I'm about ten years in. I've self-published one that took around 6 years to write. I swore I wouldn't procrastinate so much and let that happen again. Book #2 is about 3-4 years in. I think I'm marginally getting quicker. And I'm not rushing the process, just trying to learn to let the shackles off and just write. On that note, I highly, highly recommend just starting with your idea! Write a few lines. Before you know it, you'll have a page. Then you'll think of more characters. Then another idea will come. And so on... Is there a particular reason you want to sit on it for so long?
@Mike_W_S @w. bogart - Hi both! The reason I have not done it yet is because I am finishing another book at the moment, which has been a long time in the making. This killer idea is quite a departure for me and it needs my full attention but I have this current book that needs finishing before I can focus on anything else and, well - as you know and said Mike, the procrastination is the real killer The idea was spawned from a writing exercise I did at a writing group and I immediately knew it would make an awesome book, but it seemed badly timed! I do like your 'kick up the arse' attitude @w. bogart - if you're one of the rare ones that laughs in the face of procrastination, then please tell me your secret! I have given myself a deadline of October 15th to finish this first draft. It's looming!!! And today I deadheaded all my petunia plants with some nail scissors. You get the idea. Steven Pressfield's War of Art is great though, I need to read that cover to cover again. On that note, I'm opening my draft now... (Mike what is your self published book called? May I look it up? I love crime...)
The way your original post sounded, I thought you were simply procrastinating. Not finishing something else first. When writing I follow James Bell's advice, estimate how many words you can do a day, then add 10%. Currently I am in that purgatory know as editing. I break things up based on my schedule with the day job. If I am not writing I am thinking about the story so the writing days are more productive. But doing something everyday to move the project forward.
