Overthinking the Writing Process (Patreon)

 It is time to write this kick-ass story, and you know what you want to write. This story is going to be better than everything you've done to date. You've got a plan. You have a plot. The characters have agency over the story. You have world building to support your setting and characters. You know who your characters are. You know what they want. You even know what they had for breakfast. Wait, what did they eat for dinner? Is that even important? And did you know if this passes the Bechdel test? What about the side characters? Maybe, if you change the scene order this will flow better. Wait, have you written any of this yet?

It is not that I wish to discount any of the things I just mentioned, they all have their place in shaping your story, but when you sit, down to write your first draft, sometimes you need to push these concerns to the side. It is you, a keyboard, and a blank page you will fill with words. If you put too much noise into your head, you may never get this story done.

Nor do I want to discount doing world building and conducting research. Both of these activities can be a lot of fun, and the more you know about the setting the easier it is to write it. There is though a gradually diminishing reward that eventually appears with doing too much of each. Sometimes you need to just stop and write the story. This point will be different for every author, but if it feels like you are doing just world building and research for the sake of doing those activities, maybe it is time to step back and write. 

There is a key point beginning writers don’t always realize: you can’t edit a blank page. If your self-critique of the work is getting in the way, you need to turn that off. First drafts always suck. They could be full of typos, the tense could change in the middle of them, and when you’re done, you’ll likely going to be unhappy with it. It’s now the vision you started with. And you know what? That’s okay. That happens for everyone. That’s not even something unique to writers either. Artists, musicians, hell even programmers, work iteratively. And you can’t start improving the thing you are creating until you’ve created it.

Also, the more you learn, the more you are going to have things you want to see your work do.  Experience will help you make good decisions for your work, but don’t let it be a trap either. You just need to find a way to let the words flow for you. You can then edit the work later, after you’ve had some time to let the story rest. One of the goals to push for as a writer, artist, musician, or creative individual is to find a process that works for you. One that lets you create the things you want to create in a way that doesn’t unduly stress you out. If you think you’ve overthinking what you are doing while drafting, step back and just try to do it without addressing your issues and concerns with the work. Then, after you’ve got something to go over, you can bring those back to the front of you mind.

Most importantly, find a process that works for you and don’t overthink it.