Okay, I'm trying to get started a project I've had in development for some time now. The project is a writing one; all the characters, plot, subplots, twists, etc are mapped out. The problem is that when I actually go to start working on it, I run into two problems.

1. I have trouble not editing as I go, which prevents me from ever finishing a scene.

2. I'm rarely satisfied with what I *do* finish, even though I understand it's a rough draft.

Any suggestions or ideas to help me overcome these issues?

Go into a project assuming you're laying out the ground work for it. Design the general aspects of it first, and then get smaller and smaller. Depending on what game you're doing this in, this method takes on several different forms.

Lets say it's for JK:

Draw up basic level sketch.

Design general level layout in boxy form in JED.

Design 3DOs for this boxy version of the level. These 3DOs can be as elaborate or as inelaborate as you please with the idea that they will be redesigned for the final product, or CAN be if needed.

Now take one of those boxy rooms and start designing it in detail on paper, or in JED. Whichever works best for you.

EVEN if you aren't completely satisfied with this version of the room, always remember you can go back and redo it at any time.

Do this with several rooms, keeping each to it's own .JED file. Go back to older JED files and make additions that suit your needs.

Once you've got a generally finalized grouping of rooms for the level, start compiling them into a single level.

Texture.

Finalize with 3DO and weapon/item placement.

I'm generalizing these steps, and only trying to get you to understand what I mean by starting broad and working towards perfection. For me, I model the entire thing as quickly as I can. I showcase it. People give suggestions, and I of course have my own opinions to make it better. I redo the model, using a better planned approach for the model, knowing what it'll look like in the end. This way, the final product is based on the mistakes of the earlier project[s]. I end up redoing a model several times this way, but the final copy is always the most proficient, has the fewest surfaces, and looks the best in my opinion.

JediKirby

Thanks for the prompt response Kirbs. I think I may have thrown you by saying I had mapped out some stuff, but the project is actually a writing project rather than a map. =P

Sorry for the confusion. I know you've got some experience with the writing gig, any way to translate the JED stuff into writing suggestions?

You could always try the F. Scott Fitzgerald approach; write a rough draft, and then re-write it again and again until it's what you like. It may not work for you, but perhaps it's worth a shot.

Would work if I could manage to overcome the burning desire to edit as I go. Being a perfectionist when it comes to stuff like this kills my productivity. So, any suggestions as to how I can just start and shut out the inner critic temporarily?

Completely. It really applies to anything work oriented, but I can totally get more on the writing side.

Writing, especially pre-planned writing is difficult. Personally, I don't plan anything I write. I sit down, and write. If one of my current projects pops onto the page, then it does. Often times, I get a lot of raw writing resources I can work with, and I simply impliment those into the different places in my projects that it applies.

If you just do the 15 minutes of daily writing, you'll start to become a lot more fine-tuned as a writer. Every single day, sit down to either a pen/paper or the PC (Whichever you can do quicker) and write for 15-20 minutes. Don't stop writing at all. Don't think, just write. You can write whatever you want, as long as you don't stop. Disable spell check and all that crap: We're not writing for content. We're getting 15 minutes of pure thought flow. You don't pick up your pen/pause your fingertips. You don't hesitate, correct, or edit. If you absolutely have to, you use single line-thru's, and that's it. Also, don't stop yourself. If you're on a roll, you don't have to stop at 15 minutes. Don't repeatedly check the clock over and over again. Get the entirety of your ideas out, and once an idea dies, glance at a clock.

You don't do this in hopes you'll write masterpieces. About 1% of what I wrote in my first year of unprompted writing time is useful. The more you do it, however, the more useful writing comes out of it. That isn't why we do it, though. Once you become practiced at daily writing, when you sit down with intent, you find it easier to connect ideas, come up with ideas, and flesh out ideas. It's simply a method of creating a stronger connection from your brain to your paper.

Lets assume you already do daily writing. Good. Now you have to apply the same concept to your directive writing. You know you need to write about a character finding a place to live. Good. Maybe you know a few other key details about the section of writing. Lets say the place has a specific area, say an attic, that'll be important to the rest of the story. Good. Now sit down and write for 20 minutes. The exact same way you write in your daily writing, but this time, you'll have the prompt: Character finds a home.

Now you have a gigantic piece of raw untainted resource to chizzel and mold to your desires. Now it simply comes down to being an editor. You start general, and you get smaller. Same concept.

Kirby, I'm interested in this as well. So do you just suggest you sit there, and play out an entire debate right there on screen or paper, with just impulse thinking? Or just blog it and write about your opinions on what happened today? I know you said it doesn't really matter, but I may try this.

Gracias, senor.

A while ago, before I started the project I'm working on now, I managed to pump out about 100 pages (typed) of another project. The draft was complete, but the story sucked and there was really nothing worth salvaging in it.

I know that I'm capable of sitting down and producing - when I was working on that manuscript, I was able to pump out about at least a full scene a day, relatively easily. For some reason, though, getting this project off the ground (as far as words on the page go) is proving far more difficult. I just open a new document and kindof stare at it.

I've got notes galore, sketches, maps, outlines, write ups and briefs galore. Now I just need to mesh it all together in the actual writing.

No, blogging or journaling doesn't work. That's not WRITING. Daily writing requires that you're writing from a detached perspective. If you DO have to write from your own perspective, don't think about what happened TODAY. Think about what the importance of today was. Just keep writing, basically. Don't spoil the story with truth. You can borrow yourself as a character, but don't focus on anything and give yourself constraints. Train of thought writing is key.

To get INTO this sort of writing, I suggest you google "writing prompts" and use a few of those for your first few daily writings. After a while you shouldn't need them. Every once in a while, if I REALLY can't do daily writing, I'll use a prompt from a random website. They're amazingly helpful to get the creative juices flowing.

Also: READ. READ SOME MORE. Even bad writing is great for reading. I find older Hemingway books to get me the most inspired to write because he's so boring to read. He's a great writer in itself, but his stories are horrifyingly boring. I read a few chapters of "For Whom the Bell Tolls" and suddenly I can write a book myself. Reading sets the bar, and if the bar is low or high, it still convinces you to write yourself.

Mmmm...that was so much fun. I mean, it took a minute to just release my mind and find a single thought to build upon, but once I got that first sentence down it didn't stop. I suggest this to anyone and everyone, even if you aren't looking to become a better writer.

Absolutely. Freewriting is one way to keep your skill and creativity alive, fresh, and flowing with ideas, or it can just be a fun way to express your thoughts and get to know your mind better. Sometimes, seeing your thoughts on paper is a rather gratifying experience.