Q&A with John R. Fultz discussion

Hey, John! Some writer friends and I were talking about which part of the writing process we enjoy more: the first draft, or the drafts after that (revision). Admittedly, they both have their joys and frustrations. Where do you stand on this? Is it more fun to shape a story on the blank screen, or is it more fun to hone and improve that story?

I'd have to say the first draft is the most enjoyable part of the writing process. The thrill of inspiration meets the mad joy of creation when I'm "becoming one with the keyboard." I call it going into the "zone"--when I begin putting words on the page and cranking out the words by the thousands. It's thrilling and can be extremely draining, but it's my favorite part of the process--when I turn Nothing into Something. Of course, doing revisions is absolutely essential...but it's not as fun, or as full of wild creative energy.

Thanks! It's good to hear a solid defense and celebration of first-draft writing! The consensus among the three or four of us who were talking about it was that we all like revision slightly more (though everything you said about the first draft is quite true!). In the revision stage, you still get some of the thrill of creating new scenes (at least I do--I nearly always have to add some scenes that aren't there in the rough draft), but you also have a solid foundation that you're building on, the excitement of a book that's almost done, that you can't wait to send out into the world, and you're making it better and better.

Again, I love both phases of the process! It would be interesting if more writers would weigh in on this issue!

Thanks, Fred! Your new site looks totally bitchin'...

Thank you, John! I've been working on it a lot lately!

Hello, writers! I am interested in a discussion of the writing processes for short stories and for novels. What are the similarities in and differences between the processes?

This is a very good question! John, this is your Q&A, so I won't hog the microphone!

Good question indeed...

Short stories are quick bursts of inspiration and hard work...novels are long-term commitments.

Someone once said writing a short story was like balancing on a wire, and writing a novel was like balancing on SEVERAL wires.

That seems like a good analogy to me! With the novel, the wire runs from tower to tower to tower, and the more distant ones are hidden in mist. At times it clears a little, and you can see them looming, and you get a vague sense of how far away they are before they're obscured again. And yes, often it's not just one strand: mirror-images of you, the writer, are inching along several wires toward the same goal.

There's a little platform on each of the towers when you can step off the wires for a moment, catch your breath, and sometimes wave across the gulf to another you who is resting on another platform. You can assess something of how the whole operation is going, but you don't really know until all the walkers get to the goal safely.

I like that model because a novel is made up of a whole lot of scenes. Each scene is its own tightrope. But they're all part of a vast, interconnected web. Still, the real work is just one finite task at a time . . . reaching the next tower.

The short-story wire stretches from the beginning to the end. Once you know those two posts, it's just a few days of intense concentration and keeping your balance as you walk straight there.

At least, that's more or less how it is for me . . .

Thanks to both of you! Yes, that really sheds some light on the process as you experience it. Remember that terrible old chicken-crossing-the-road joke? There really is something fundamental about "getting to the other side." There is a lure, a draw, an urge to see what's over there. And you won't really know unless you make the effort to go to that other place.

Heh, heh! Me again, John. (It's like some friends have invaded your living room and are talking away. But we are here to support your Q&A! Feel free to jump in anytime, John -- got anything in your fridge?) :-)

So the short story is one straight step, and the novel is a lot of straight steps along many winding paths.

But Dorothy also asked what the similarities were. With both the novel and the short story, I think you want to start the thing as close as you can to the climax. The short story just goes right there, but the novel needs a lot of smaller payoffs along the way (the climax is farther away), so instead of one arc that rises to the end, it has many arcs, many rises and falls, but a steadily mounting feeling, always rising toward that overall climax.

Before I figured out that a novel needs such an up-and-down rhythm, I would be trying to write one, and I'd have a state of extreme tension that went on for pages and pages. The reader would be exhausted by the end -- pulverized. I thought I was doing a great job! But that's different from maintaining suspense and keeping the reader turning pages. Even in highly suspenseful books, the reader has moments to rest. A state of "climax" that goes on and on isn't suspense!

Very interesting! I can see the correlation with the longer pieces of music I write. One cannot stay at double forte and high intensity for the duration of the work; one must have rises and falls. Otherwise, the listener might be overwhelmed and stop listening or even caring.

At our writers' group this evening, someone brought up a quotation from someone who said "Writing a short story is like trying to shove an angry bear into a paper bag without tearing the bag." Isn't that great? It's a delicate form that has to contain so much power and intensity!

I never thought of it like that--very picturesque!

Hey! Sorry I haven't posted sooner--it's been crazy busy this month!

Fred, your analogy with the towers and the wires and the mist...it's perfect. You have blown my mind, sir.

Dorothy: It's very much like music! I'm also a musician, as are many, many writers. And there is a lot to be said for the translation of musical composition into fiction composition. A novel is a symphony--composed of various movements. A short story is more like a single song. Having a "natural feel" for storytelling is sort of like having a "natural feel" for music. I think writing music (of any kind) is a great way to improve your storytelling skills.