Doodles for writing?

[dangoball]

Hello, Escapists!

During my time browsing the Escapist forums I noticed there's quite a bit of creatively inclined people. I consider myself a budding writer and I would like to ask other writers on this site a question:

How do you doodle?

To explain - doodles are something visual artists do, some random scribbles when your mind is elsewhere. But doodles serve as practice and practice is a way to improvement. One can doodle while listening to a lecture, during a family gathering and so on.
The thing is, can we, as writers, even do some form of writing practice on this half-conscious level? Sure, I can write a haiku during a lecture, but doing so eats away at my attention for the lecturer. What I did so far is to observe the world around me because it's beautiful and varied. This leaves me with motives and inspiration, but if I want to improve I have to sit down and do nothing but write for three hours to crunch out something resembling a part of a story.
So is there a way to practice my craft while otherwise occupied or is that something reserved for the pencil-drawing master race?

 

[thesilentman]

How do I do it? I just work on drawing/doodling whenever I feel like it I guess. If I was busy, I use it as a refresher. If I wasn't, I launch into using said doodle to write or something. It's just me drawing when I have time, nothing too complicated.

 

[Chairman Miaow]

Surely short stories and poetry are a a good way to just write quick practice?

 

[shrekfan246]

Stream of consciousness.

The thing is, doodling tends to be a distraction as well. The way my artist friend puts it, it was something he always did during school classes when he wasn't quite interested in the subject matter, and now it's something he does during quiet moments while he's at work. It's not really something he does while other things are actively happening, and writing is very similar.

Taking down stream of consciousness writing is a way to keep your mind flowing in short bursts; just bear in mind that it's largely going to be nonsense and thus probably "not very good". Another thing is to just write down ideas or lines you get when inspiration strikes. You don't even have to use it in anything, but if a paragraph suddenly pops into your head about some dusty cop who desperately wants to clean up the streets of his broken city as it falls apart around him, then write it down.

Otherwise, I try to be mindful of the writing used while I'm playing a game or watching a film or show or reading a comic, and pay attention to the way people talk in all aspects of life. If you want a phenomenal example of incredibly clunky and poor dialogue, look at Bill Willingham and Matthew Sturges' run on the Justice Society comics in 2009.

 

[Muspelheim]

I just write. I always try to push out at least one page per day. Some days I work on a longer texts, some days I just write down a little something. Even if the day's worth turns out shite, it's still exorcise.

Basically, I'm trying to learn how to write at a decent level and at a good pace even if I don't 'feel' like it. I imagine that is what makes a professional; being able to produce something even if you don't particularly want to right then. Or rather, being able to work yourself up into that mood on demand, rather than only being able to work when you're already in the mood.

It's individual, of course. It's neccessary in my case, since I'm bone idle, and wouldn't produce anything worth two shits if I left myself entirely to wind and wave.

Even if the day's batch doesn't turn out very good, you can always slaughter it for parts to later texts.

 

[Zen Bard]

One can doodle while listening to a lecture, during a family gathering and so on.
The thing is, can we, as writers, even do some form of writing practice on this half-conscious level?

Sure. Recently, I was at a lecture where the speaker had a phenomenal gift for language. He used these very colorful phrases and expressions. During his talk, he said something that just struck me. So I immediately wrote it down and began structuring some song lyrics around it during the dull spots of the lecture (usually when someone else asked question).

Conversely, another lecture was so dull that I zoned out and stared at the carpet pattern in the conference room. It reminded me of a strange alien life form. So I began jotting down little story notes around this alien. Where did it come from? What were its people like? What happened when it first encountered humanity?

So maybe you do that. Grab some cues from the environment, visual or aural, and see where they take you.

But keep in mind, you're not really "somewhere else" when you're doing it. You're just dividing your attention between the two activities and switching back and forth.

 

[Queen Michael]

Dialogue. I really like writing dialogue.

 

[dangoball]

Thanks everyone so far. I'll definitely try some of what has been said. Streams of consciousness and story notes look quite fruitful in particular. I'm already trying to punch out 500 words a week even if it's utter trash, but so far I'm struggling even with that.

 

[Fox12]

Surely short stories and poetry are a a good way to just write quick practice?

Weirdly enough, poetry and short stories are even harder : P

I'd argue that you just write some stream of consciousness. Just write and write whatever comes to your head, or whatever your thinking, no matter how stupid. Most of it will be garbage, but you can get some gems out of it. It's the writing equivalent of a doodle.

 

[Chairman Miaow]

Surely short stories and poetry are a a good way to just write quick practice?

Weirdly enough, poetry and short stories are even harder : P

I'd argue that you just write some stream of consciousness. Just write and write whatever comes to your head, or whatever your thinking, no matter how stupid. Most of it will be garbage, but you can get some gems out of it. It's the writing equivalent of a doodle.

That's very curious, care to explain why if you can? I'm not a writer nor do I aspire to be, but i do find this kind of thing interesting.

 

[Fox12]

Surely short stories and poetry are a a good way to just write quick practice?

Weirdly enough, poetry and short stories are even harder : P

I'd argue that you just write some stream of consciousness. Just write and write whatever comes to your head, or whatever your thinking, no matter how stupid. Most of it will be garbage, but you can get some gems out of it. It's the writing equivalent of a doodle.

That's very curious, care to explain why if you can? I'm not a writer nor do I aspire to be, but i do find this kind of thing interesting.

Well, in poetry every word has to count. If there's a rhyme scheme then that adds another layer of difficulty. As a result it takes a lot longer to write a line of poetry then it does to write a page in the book (and a poem can be harder then chapter in a book). It's kind of like how 5(x)=10 is harder to solve then 100+100+100+100, even though the first equation is shorter. You have to put more though into a smaller number of lines.

As for short stories, they're good for teaching you how to plot out a story before you write it. A book can be as long as you want it to be, so it's easier to develop a story and characters. In a short story you have to create a good story and likeable characters in just a few pages. In other words, it's easier to make a likeable character in 200 pages then in 5.

I learned this the hard way when i started writing seriously, haha. They're all fun, though, so I'm basically a huge geek for writing.

 

[Redlin5_v1legacy]

Dialogue. I really like writing dialogue.

Glad someone does. Dialogue is the work part in my writing. <.>

OT: When I'm bored or want to quickly capture emotions I jot down a poem but it is something that could take my attention away from work/education/whathaveyou. Which is usually the point.

 

[Queen Michael]

Dialogue. I really like writing dialogue.

Glad someone does. Dialogue is the work part in my writing. <.>

Really? I don't get that. Why?

 

[dangoball]

Dialogue. I really like writing dialogue.

Glad someone does. Dialogue is the work part in my writing. <.>

Really? I don't get that. Why?

I do. While I dialogue I also like internal consistency so I always think "would this person really say this? Is this how she/he would say it? What else would she/he say? What does she/he have to say?" and so on. I enjoy writing dialogue but it can be a struggle sometimes because every word a person says is a bit of exposition about that character and I want it to not only be consistent but also mean something.

 

[Redlin5_v1legacy]

Dialogue. I really like writing dialogue.

Glad someone does. Dialogue is the work part in my writing. <.>

Really? I don't get that. Why?

In screenplay writing it is a hassle working through conversations, especially if it starts to involve a good number of characters. There's also the fear of being too 'on the nose' with how you write people's words.

I do enjoy writing someone's internal thoughts because you can be quite explicit that way but for scripts, you just don't get that luxury. I far more enjoy creating depth in the setting of both the immediate environment, the universe as a whole, creating the narrative structure and then describing all the details in-between.[footnote]like politics behind the story that may be hinted as a driving force, the way certain technology works, society in a magical kingdom, etc[/footnote]

I'm relatively new to screenplay writing (I'm in editing hell for my first good one) but even when it comes to novelization I've always struggled with dialogue. It's usually the bit I keep editing over and over again even before I hand it off to someone for feedback.

 

[Redlin5_v1legacy]

I do. While I dialogue I also like internal consistency so I always think "would this person really say this? Is this how she/he would say it? What else would she/he say? What does she/he have to say?" and so on. I enjoy writing dialogue but it can be a struggle sometimes because every word a person says is a bit of exposition about that character and I want it to not only be consistent but also mean something.

There's also this note that every writing teacher I've had who I've cared about has brought up.

In real life people typically do not say what they mean.

The hidden meaning in the way a person changes the subject or never addresses their problem head on is difficult to get right. I struggle to keep myself from insulting the reader (or the audience in film) by being too explicit but on the other hand I've been given notes back that describe the dialogue as too subtle for my friend to pick up on the line of thought a character is going through. You can't blindside the audience too much with action in the following scene when they fail to pick up the clues beforehand but you can't telegraph the scene too much without making it boring.

In short, I spend more hours with dialogue than anything else. It just doesn't come easy. >.<

 

[dangoball]

I do. While I dialogue I also like internal consistency so I always think "would this person really say this? Is this how she/he would say it? What else would she/he say? What does she/he have to say?" and so on. I enjoy writing dialogue but it can be a struggle sometimes because every word a person says is a bit of exposition about that character and I want it to not only be consistent but also mean something.

There's also this note that every writing teacher I've had who I've cared about has brought up.

In real life people typically do not say what they mean.

The hidden meaning in the way a person changes the subject or never addresses their problem head on is difficult to get right. I struggle to keep myself from insulting the reader (or the audience in film) by being too explicit but on the other hand I've been given notes back that describe the dialogue as too subtle for my friend to pick up on the line of thought a character is going through. You can't blindside the audience too much with action in the following scene when they fail to pick up the clues beforehand but you can't telegraph the scene too much without making it boring.

In short, I spend more hours with dialogue than anything else. It just doesn't come easy. >.<

That's a great point, I'll have to remember that!
I never had a writing teacher and since I don't plan to make a living of my writing I don't really see a need to, but I still want to improve even if it's just a past-time.

 

[NewClassic_v1legacy]

So is there a way to practice my craft while otherwise occupied or is that something reserved for the pencil-drawing master race?

In my experience, there's no way to ever practice a craft without applying attention to it.

When most artists doodle, they're doing so from an existing set of experiences. While professional artists may be able to output drawings with good framing, excellent technical skill, and beautiful resulting, they're anything but thoughtless. Behind that doodle are years and years of developing experience with each element of that piece, experimenting with tone and style, and doing drawing after drawing of pieces in order to develop that shorthand of style, sequence, line weight, framing, and style.

Same with professional writers. All of the quick snippets, vignettes, short stories, and 500-word narratives are also informed by years writing, learning, experimenting, working, and assembling their craft over many years of execution, work, and linguistic learning. While everyone has a variable level of technical skill, the true precision for any creative work comes from a sizable and very practiced base of knowledge. People may have good eye-to-paper coordination, but the knowledge of how to fiddle with line weight, composition, and technique can only come from learning and practice.

So, what you're asking is "How can I practice my craft without having to put in the history of practicing my craft?"

Unfortunately, there's no real way to do that. There are plenty of ways to experiment with words and creative work, but very few ways to simply will the requisite knowledge into your mind without having to work to get it there. There are a lot of ways to learn to write, so there's no one-size-fits-all method, but finding which ones you like (and thusly can focus more on) should be your first step. (That said, still try all of these, and occasionally go and do the ones you don't really enjoy anyway, so you can have that experience.)

1) Work from prompts. There are countless lists, tumblrs, challenges, and subreddits for finding a way to write creatively outside of your usual bounds. Simply jump on an idea and run with it, creating however long or short pieces you'd like from prompts that aren't of your creation. If you normally write sci-fi, do something weird and go for modern romance. If you normally write medieval fantasy, go with hard science fiction. If you're normally a supernatural romance writer, do experimental post-modern stream-of-consciousness. Find prompts that push you to apply the talents you have in ways you wouldn't otherwise. Every experience you gain in life is one you can better apply next time, so nothing can replace good old butt-in-chair-and-write time. Practice, practice, practice.

2) Read a lot. Read Soviet-era science fiction. Read modern American nonfiction. Read Tolkien and Dickens and Poe and Fleming. Read articles about video games, and articles about science. Read Buzzfeed and Wired and White House Press Releases. Read ancient Japanese haikus, greek and middle eastern Epics, and native American folklore. Read everything you hit on StumbleUpon, even on subjects you don't find interesting. Read XKCD's What If? and Michio Kaku's Physics of the Future. Read forum posts and fanfiction and scholarly essays and conspiracy theories. If it's in print and available when you have time, read it. Every single word, phrase, sentence, paragraph, page, chapter, book, trilogy, and series you take in is a million new ways your mind can learn to apply language. Every turn of phrase, every bit of information, every new thing you read is a hundred different things you learned. As a writer, the only thing that stands equal with butt-in-chair time is time you spent learning something new for use in tomorrow's set of words.

3) Hand over your work. For every piece of work you write, coddle, and love, you must also hand it over to be looked over. Your mind is a million crashing neurons exploding into vibrant life, joy, and experience translated into words and committed to paper. For you, these things are reflex, innate. For others, these are your best effort at translating your mind into simple English, and for as many million thoughts as you have, so too could there be a million thoughts you get wrong. That's why peer readers, editors, friends, and strangers are all instrumental in learning to take the words you love, and turning them into words everyone can love. For your best efforts, there's no way you can fully, 100% translate those into magic. The magic is made in learning the countless hours of practice and skill I discussed above, running them through readers, and applying what you learn from those readers into your next set of words. Being judged, and often being judged completely honestly, is one of the best ways you can take your craft up to a greater level in skill. Always have people reading, offering observations and advice, and listen to every word. Even if you don't plan on changing your work based on their observations, still listen to them. If you hear a piece of criticism repeating across multiple people, or find a lot of criticisms follow a common trend, that tells you something about your writing that you might have been unable to discover. Readers are your audience, learn what about your writing is hard for them to love, and figure out how to make them love it.

4) Write well outside of your comfort zone. I covered this briefly in the Prompts advice, but also write outside of your sphere of influence. If you're a fiction writer, try writing nonfiction news reports. If you're a journalist, write slam poetry. If you normally write short fiction, challenge yourself to make a novella. If you can't usually bring yourself to cut words down, try writing a story in a single tweet. The more you task yourself to break up your expectations and learn outside of your comfort zones, the better you'll be at writing in general in addition to writing your specific craft.

5) Write simple. No matter how complex or involved your idea is, learn your basics and learn to apply them well. Every bit of experience you have de-fluffing a story is one better way you can learn to fluff later.

6) Practice with brief, complex ideas. If you only have time to write during lectures or on plane rides, learn how to write one sentence or one paragraph stories. Figure out the best way you can be evocative with words. Play around with what one word can mean. Write six word stories about any subject you can rationalize. Write a tweet-long narrative about the last thing your professor said. Spin a solid tale with only 26 words, each starting with a successive letter of the alphabet.

But ultimately, no matter what you do, nothing will ever be able to take the place of good butt-in-chair time. The harder you work at learning everything about writing you can, the better you'll be at the end of it. Never stop reading, never stop writing, and never, ever, ever assume that there's nothing you can learn from any piece of writing. Everything from fortune cookie slips to 50 Shades of Gray has something to teach you about writing, so keep reading, keep writing, keep learning.

 

[das_n00b]

With drawing, I usually use references. The less critically engaging part for me is the inking. That's when I don't think as much about line quality and just kind of focus on the groundwork that I've already set. I personally find it difficult to draw without actively thinking about the subject and taking care to lay down the proper lines, so I've always been skeptical of the whole "stream of consciousness thing".

The closest thing I can think of when it comes to that, is playing an instrument. But the thing with that is that I'm self thought, so I'm sure that if I actually knew some music theory and reading I would feel the same way about it as I do about drawing: all intentional with very few chances taken.