Discovering Your Writing Process

Hi all,

Lately, I've been reminiscing a lot on how I started writing and how my process has changed. This August will be the five year mark of when I created two Google Docs called "Ralvera Outline" and "Ralvera Book," both of which would come together to create The Oasis Stone and The Onyx Mask. (That's right, they used to be one book!)

Change happens slowly, but at some point in the last few years, my process solidified. I know when I can and can't write, and how to kickstart myself into writing if I really want or need to. Five years isn't a long time to be a writer in the grand scheme of things, but I hope two books and a handful of years can qualify me in some regard to talk about it.

If you're an aspiring writer, hopefully this is a fresh perspective that can help you sort some things out, from someone who was an aspiring writer not too long ago.

You Have to Find Your Unique Process

“The only way to improve at writing is by writing.” I don’t know if that’s a real quote but it feels like I’ve heard it everywhere. Luckily for you, it’s true! If you love to write, then you can get better at it just by doing it! That’s the secret: words on page = better writer.

There’s a catch, though. Even if you’re head-over-heels in love with writing, it’s still so annoyingly, frustratingly difficult to do sometimes. To me, it’s a hobby that requires my attention and my energy, and I don’t always have those in reserve.

That’s the catch. To get better writing, you have to put words on a page, and to get words on a page, you have to figure how to settle in and enter that special flow state. You have to figure out your process and what works uniquely for you. Everyone is different, and not everyone’s advice will fit.

Find your when and find your where. Once you’ve got those nailed down, it’s just a matter of finding the smaller details and preferences that will help you get going. Some people say that “consistency is key.” I say that knowing what helps you stay consistent is best.

For me, a free weekend is the best time to write, when I have a huge block of time in the morning with my coffee or in the afternoon after some errands (with a coffee). I also operate quite well after work, usually between 7 and 9 pm. Working is tiring, though, so sometimes I can only write from 7-8, or maybe even half an hour.

I can write on my tablet or on my desktop, but I can’t write away from home.

Music and a drink helps; hot chocolate in the winter, seltzer otherwise, or a glass of wine if there’s some in the house. My music is either my Ralvera playlist if I’ve writing fantasy, or a video game soundtrack that matches the tone of whatever else I’m trying to put on the page. Headphones with nothing playing is also a good option just to block out the world. My artist of choice for Substack articles is Vexento.

A good walk or snack every so often helps, and if it’s nice out, a longer jaunt through the woods nearby, just to put blood back in my legs. If I’m really struggling, doing a fast chore like the dishes can reset me. Sometimes nothing helps. Sometimes I’m just too tired after working all day, and that night is a wash. Go relax and try again on your next free night.

All of this works for me, but that doesn’t mean it works for you. What matters is that you understand your body, your mind, and your unique process for writing. Get words consistently on the page and you will improve, and you’ll have written sometime as you improve!

Things I've Formed Opinions on in the Last Five Years

The most important takeaway is to never take someone’s advice as the one true path Your writing process is going to be uniquely your own, built from a lot of trial and error. Do you need a writing group for accountability? Find a writing group. Is the writing group preventing you from getting words on a page? Ditch the writing group. Do you need an outline? Write one. No? Then don’t do that. Simple.

Here’s some different things that I’ve tried out since I picked up the pen that I’ve found work well and work don’t.

To Podcast or Not to Podcast

When I was just starting out, I was bigger on podcasts, but have since been weaned off them. There is a lot of value as a young writer in listening to one or two (specifically the ones where you can stomach whoever is talking), but you quickly see diminishing returns. If you’re curious, find one you like—there are a million out there—and just see what that writer talks about, and how they do their craft. See if there are ideas you can incorporate into your own process. If the ideas don’t fit, toss them out.

Once you find your process, and can get words on the page whenever you want, you’re well on your way to improving far faster than listening to a podcast will take you. Once I found my process and my voice, my podcast listening dropped away quickly.

My one caveat is podcasts for publishing news and advice. Publishing is a different beast than simply writing, and it changes all the time. Stay informed on the latest news, whether you traditionally publish or self-publish.

Planners vs Discovery Writers

You may have heard these terms before—every famous author has spoken about it to some extent. For those who don’t know, a planner has to outline their entire story scene by scene before they can start their book, and discovery writers simply find the story as they go.

It’s not a one versus the other scenario. There’s a spectrum from planner to discoverer, and it’s very very important to find where you fall. I’m somewhere in the middle—I need the story outlined from start to end, but the finished outline never quite matches the finished story. My outlines are vague, and I feel out a lot of the story as I go. There are lots of train stations, but I have to lay the track in front of the train as I travel between them.

Figuring out where you fall on the spectrum will help you immensely as you figure out your all-important writing process. Maybe this is a hot take, but I do consider outlining as pseudo-writing. It can’t replace the real practice of putting together prose, but it absolutely strains the creative part of your brain. That’s just as important as churning out actual prose. Just don’t get lost in the outline—remember that the real words have to happen at some point.

Tracking Your Word Count

Try to avoid doing this as much as possible until you figure out your writing process. If you’re not sure yet where you write best and when you write best, then your word count is just going to be a useless number that you’ll helplessly use to compare yourself to other people.

Some writers have truly staggering, ridiculous word counts. I don’t know how on earth they do it, and I’ll never try to match it. For transparency, if I can write about 750 words in an hour, I’m happy. Sometimes it’s 600, sometimes it’s 1000 depending on how much energy I have.

It’s helpful only as a fun metric to help finetune your writing process. Say I have a hot chocolate and write a thousand words, that’s good info to have. Perhaps I start writing at 10pm instead of 7pm and only get 500 words done. It’s great to know I probably shouldn’t write that late.

The takeaway is, don’t concern yourself with the numbers. Even a hundred words on a page is a million times better than not writing at all.

Can I use AI?

No. Absolutely not. Use your brain. It’s a muscle, and it will turn to soup if you don’t flex it. Even for the small things, like organizing an outline. You will understand your story better if you do it yourself. Think back to the whole point of this article—you need to put words on a page to improve. If the computer does it for you, you’re not improving.

Finally, Know Your Limits

Writing is tough. Your body and your brain don’t always respond, and you need to recognize when you can muscle through, play some tricks on yourself, or step aside and go relax. Burnout comes for us all, sometimes when we least expect it. Listen to yourself and find your limits, and be okay with a change of plan if the stars aren’t aligning.

Don’t worry. As with any hobby or job, once you find your process, you’ll find your voice, and everything will take off from there.

Thanks for reading and happy writing,

Jack