10 February 2007

To Plot or Not to Plot

Unlike everyone else on this list (I think), I write with a partner, Marisa. She lives about 2 hours north of me, and we manage to get together once every other month or so. Mostly we rack up long distance phone bills (ok, we have a total phone package deal but it doesn’t sound the same) and email each other like a pair of stalkers.

Usually, we outline a story, get the first few chapters finished together, then divide the rest of it up. Once our latest section is sent off to the other, we tweak that part then I add it into the story as a whole. Depending on things, and if we like the way we’re actually progressing, a story will take us about 5-6 months. But then we both have full-time jobs and outside interests that suck up our time. Plus we tend to go back and self-edit quite a bit. Our goal for this year is to cut that time in half.

So my for everyone out there: Forgetting for a moment Work, Family, Non-Writing-Commitments, and most importantly Life (and how it has that annoying little habit of getting in the way of writing) how do you plan a story out and, assuming all goes well, about how long does it take you to finish it?