Posted on 2012-Sep-21
Traditional Privacy
The writing process is known to be a private session when you lock yourself in a room with the intention of creating imaginary settings. Characterization might be based purely on the extraterrestrial, supernatural entities or four-legged living creatures. What if anyone gets in the way of your writing? Will you ban them from showing their faces near you for a day or so? Showing your first draft to the world might never be part of your strategy, since it could publicize typos and empty whitespace.
Bare It All
Think again. A fantasy author at The Naked Writer Project did something pretty daunting to tell a brave journey that requires the readers boarding the same boat. Readers witness firsthand what it took for the writer to squeeze every tidbit of ideas and creativity on Google Docs. The result shows that 50% of the readers do not care about the potentially offensive content as long as the writer gets on with the story. The writer shares a link to a notable website and allows the readers to watch as they type their novels word by word. Although the first draft might leave an unimpressive aftertaste like an unseasoned hors d’oeuvre, readers can visualize how the dish is cooked with so much passion. The very action when they start mixing characters (raw materials) with events (ingredients) matters.
Heed What Readers Say
The author exudes so much energy into pressing the keyboard relentlessly based on the predetermined concept somewhere in their head. Most of them know what they want to say to their target readers. If not, this Infographics survey might serve as preliminary guidance on how to shape your story. Perhaps a writer’s self-revelation can encourage them to effectively compose the first chapter with the reader’s observation and validation in their mind.
Be Organized
Fantasy author, Silvia Hartmann, exposes her writer’s persona to the world and so far the fourth chapter has been developed on Google Docs. Having outlined most of her unfinished novel, she has already produced an organized ToC. Also, those hyperlinks will work as bookmarks for her to come back to amend or expand ideas in the subsequent chapters. She makes great use of Facebook and Twitter to keep the reader updated about her next writing session.
Reader Involvement
Hartmann is not the first pioneer who introduces this method to the reader. Willy Chyr, Kimberly Pauley, and many others have attempted this earlier. Although feedback varies, the notification from Google Docs at the top of her document states clearly: “There are too many people accessing this file right now”, which indicated that there is significant reader interest. As a novelist, what is the best environment for you to work in your best capacity? Are you under a lot of pressure if you get spied on by somebody else? Are you comfortable with sharing your manuscript as it develops in real time?
Label: Marketing
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