Few Changes in my Writing Life

From the past few months, I have seen several changes in my writing life. I was a big fan of writing long hand on sheets of paper. But, for this current WIP, I have forgotten how to write as I just open a word document and start typing. I am saving lots of time this way. And, its easier to go back and tweak something this way.

I had started my writing career by writing short stories. Its ages since I have written one now. I hope I have not forgotten how to write short stories.

I have also adopted the index card method. I am finding it a great tool to plot the book. I have just one regret. I wish I had discovered this method much earlier.

I am also adding lots of sensory details in my writing. Its something that my Crit Partner Mark Noce pointed out. Keeping Mark's feedback in mind, I am also writing shorter sentences and adding details which I have a tendency to overlook. Shorter sentences is making a huge difference to my writing.

I have also been reading a lot. I finished book 1 and 2 of the Millenium Trilogy by Steig Larsson. The books are simply awesome.

You all can see that there are several changes in my writing life. I hope they are all for the better. What are the changes in your writing life? Anything new and different you all are doing? We would love to hear all about it.

Using index cards to plot stories

I usually write a detailed plot outline, moving from one chapter to another chronologically, on paper. The plot outline for my last manuscript took me nearly four weeks.

 This time I decided to cut short that time as I am working on several projects and my crit partners have been asking about when am I going to send them my next story.

 My blog buddies have frequently mentioned index cards and white boards, that make plotting a novel easy. I decided to try them to see if it suits me. And believe me when I say that it works like a charm.

I tried to buy index cards from stationary shops near my house, but they weren’t available. Though I have yet to get a white board, I made index cards for myself. I cut paper I usually write in, to make rectangles of equal length.

On each piece of paper I have written a scene outline, just a few lines about the scene, what it highlights and the characters involved. It’s been fun visualizing the random scenes from the book. Half the index cards I have made are filled with scene outlines.

Though it’s the first time I am trying out the index card method, I feel its a wonderful tool to visualize the entire story. The major scenes are coming into focus. The characters are jumping out from the index cards to tell me their stories. The mood of each scene is also appearing.

Correct me if I am wrong, I feel that this way the extra words that usually plague our stories are minimized, as we know just what to put in each scene. I realized that there may be a problem trying to link the scenes, as they are not in a chronological order. But, I am sure I will surmount that small problem as I wade deeper into the story.

It’s also been fun to arrange the index cards in different ways to see what is going to work best for the story. As I am still plotting out the scenes, I haven’t given the index cards any numbers. As of now it’s just a collection of scenes.

How many of you use the index cards method to plot out your novels? For those of you who don’t use the index card method, how do you go about plotting your novels? Do you think index cards are the best way of plotting the stories and writing the different scenes? Please share your views with us.