Last Updated on: December 1st, 2019
The Writing Process Blog Hop is a great way for others to learn about the writing processes of authors, bloggers, and writers.
I actually have three different processes, depending on what I am writing! Today I am going to reveal them to you.
I am doing this for two reasons. The first is because I think this is an interesting topic. The second is because I have been asked to participate in a Writing Process Blog Hop. Actually, if truth be told, I volunteered! 😉
Writers are a great bunch of people, and I’ve met many online during the past year, including Robert Price, Robert is a poet and a storyteller. He’s got a way with words and with painting pictures in your head with his poetry. His blog, From a Clogged Mind, is where he shares his writing.
I’m not sure who started the Writing Process Blog Hop, but I can tell you that I like the “inside scoop” that is being shared by many across the web! Through our sharing, we can learn new tips from one another, from our individual experiences. I think that’s just great!
The Writing Process Blog Hop Rules
There are some rules to the Writing Process Blog Hop, which are:
1/ I must answer the four questions below.
2/ I must link back to the person who invited me to this Blog Hop.
3/ I must name four writers who will continue this Blog Hop and notify them. The questions are:
- What are you working on?
- How does your work differ from others of its genre?
- Why do you write what you do?
- How does your writing process work?
*For aesthetic purposes, although I am complying with all of these rules, I am completing them out of order, and will answer the four questions in the latter portion of this post.
*I also want to remind you that you can still grab a copy of my free ebook, 20 Blog Post Must-Haves!
The four writers who I would like to continue the Writing Process Blog Hop are:
1. Debra Maudlin, from Mama Bear Musings, who is participating in the A to Z blogging challenge this month, along with over 1500 other bloggers, including me! (I entered Poetry Perfected, my other blog, in this challenge!)
2. Jen J. Danna, whom I interviewed and will be interviewing again!
3. Melissa Bowersock, an all-around awesome lady, author of more than a dozen books (in different genres), and an Indie author who shares everything she knows about self-publishing. (Update: You can read about her writing process here.)
4. Sophie Bowns – who writes fiction and claims to be an aspiring novelist, and whom I don’t really know too well, but whose blog I found as a result of my participation in the blogging challenge this month.
A shout out to other participants in the Writing Process Blog Hop!
Other authors/blog-hoppers/writers that have shared information about their writing process include:
A. K. Andrews
My Answers to the Writing Process Blog Hop Questions
1. What are you working on?
I am currently working on two books: my memoirs, and “Letters to Julian.” I have completed my book of short stories.
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At some point, I would like to write the fictional story I planned while participating in NaNoWriWee 2013. As a result of my participation in this event, I ended up with a notebook of characters, a plot, and a mystery that I’d love to read! I even wrote a few chapters and the blurb for the back cover, which is often the hardest part for writers to do (or so I hear). Each time I read the notes I made, all of my thoughts about this story come rushing back, so, in my head, the book is planned. All I have to do now is find the time to write it!
2. How does your work differ from others of its genre?
With respect to my memoirs (and many of my personal blog posts), I think the fact that I have overcome many obstacles and odds makes me stand out from others.
I write with complete honesty.
This scares most people.
Often the truth hurts and, because I have experienced so many negative things in my life, like rape, drug abuse, and emotional abuse (to name a few), the openness with which I share things often shocks others.
3. Why do you write what you do?
In general, I write as a form of therapy. I also write to help and inspire others.
4. How does your writing process work?
My answer to this question is threefold, as I am going to relate my writing process for my autobiographical/memoir book, blog posts, and poetry. (I told you at the beginning of this post that I had three processes, and now you know why!) 😉
First of all, with respect to my memoirs, which are not yet finished, I can only speak to the process I have followed thus far. I am writing about my life in a chronological order, basically beginning with the fact that I was raped when I was 14 by a man more than twice my age. I generally write a chapter at a time and work from two outlines I have created. Outlines are really helpful. They keep me focused and provide direction. I also work from a timeline chart I created, which lists the major events in my life, how old I was at the time, what year it was, etc. Each chapter flows into the next, often containing an element of suspense, as I want readers to react by thinking, “Ooh! I wonder what happens next?”
I am actually thinking about making my book about my life a series of books, too!
When writing anything, I am a bit of an editorial perfectionist, as I generally don’t make typos. After something is written, I will go back to it and edit it, checking that proper grammar and punctuation are used. At a later time, I re-read each chapter and ensure that continuity is evident and the writing is error-free.
Secondly, when it comes to blog posts, I tend to first write my ideas down on paper. I have a small, blank, lined, spiral notebook I use for my “To Do” lists, and have a page devoted to blog post ideas. When everything is crossed off my list, I simply pull the page from the notebook and discard it. Each post I write basically follows this process:
- I outline the main points of the post.
- I fill in each section with the “meat and potatoes” of the posts.
- I constantly hit “save as a draft” when I am writing in my WordPress dashboard. If I am writing in Word, things are saved automatically (a nice feature that wasn’t always there!).
- I don’t always write my blog posts in one sitting. I tend to work on them at different times, on different days. (I actually like having several different posts on the go, because I can pick and choose what I am going to work on!)
- Once the post is complete, I edit it.
- I add images to my post either at the end if I am using public domain images, but add my own images while I am writing it.
- If I need to highlight text within my post, I use the code from my highlighting tutorial.
- I always preview the post on my site so that I can see how it will look to others when it is published (and to catch any other small errors I may have missed).
- Once I am confident that my post is perfect, I either save it or schedule it for publication.
Finally, when it comes to writing poetry, I generally write from start to finish. I like the sense of satisfaction I get when I complete a poem. 🙂 I also tend to tell a story of some sort in my poetry, or offer advice. Two examples that demonstrate these points are two poems that are found in the collection of 14 poems I wrote: The Key To Happiness, which I wrote for my cousin as part of her wedding gift, and When Life Has Got You Down, which I wrote for my son, Julian.
My graduation from university poem, On This Day, was written for my mom. It is the first poem in the collection of 4 poems that I wrote for family members.
I’ve not yet shared all of my poetry with the world, but I’ve shared some of them.
My absolute BEST and FAVORITE POEM is In One’s Eyes. Everyone can relate to this one!
Clearly, you can see that, depending on what I am working on, my writing process differs greatly. I think this is true for most people who have multiple writing interests and are working on several writing projects. Wouldn’t you agree?
Your Turn:
What are you currently working on?
Would you like to be a part of this blog hop?
What is your writing process like?
Share your answers to any (or all) of these questions in the comments, please!
Really writing is just not an easy task. It is the big game of words. You need to satisfy your readers every time. Thanks for these tips; I will try incorporating your tips into my writing.
Allison Wilson recently posted…12 Best WordPress Education Themes For High Schools & Colleges
Allison, I wish you much luck!
You are so brave Lorraine, I think anyone who commits to something like a blog hop is.
As you know I do love blogging and I still get yelled at when I claim I’m not a writer. In my mind I don’t see myself like that so I’ll just leave it at that.
I wouldn’t have the time to participate in something like that mainly because I just have so much going on right now. I think it’s good though for meeting new people and experiencing some challenging things at times. I applaud you for what you’re accomplishing and I have no doubt both books will be good ones.
Continue on and I wish you the best Lorraine.
~Adrienne
Adrienne recently posted…The Perfect Posting Schedule Revealed
I don’t think I could find the time to participate in a blogop. I am running a business and my blog supports my business. I try to come up with ideas that relate back to marketing. My challenge is that I do not write for a living, I am basically a salesperson. The social media is so overwhelming and rewarding at the same time.
Arleen recently posted…A Sweet Way to Stand Out and Get Noticed!
So now you have everyone anticipating what will come of that notebook of characters, a plot, and a mystery, you are going to have to write it. Nothing like good old accountability 🙂
Becc recently posted…Writing crisis
Yeah, maybe I shouldn’t have shared all that just yet. 😉 I wish I could type faster; I’d have a dozen books written by now!
Hi Lorraine,
So, is this how your writing process goes?
That’s nice, Lorraine 🙂
My writing process is to learn something from other articles and make it into an article that will make me become more familiar with the knowledge. Well, I make writing as a place to read and learn more 🙂
Thanks for sharing this with us, Lorraine.
Hope you have a wonderful weekend!
Nanda
Nanda Rahmanius recently posted…6 Ways To Avoid Your Website From Google Algorithmic Penalty
Thanks for your comment, Nanda. (I love your name.)
Writing and revising go hand-in-hand. It’s nice that you like learning, too. 🙂
If I want to be a success person, I must learn a lot, right? 🙂
Thanks very much, Lorraine.
I love your name too 🙂
Nanda Rahmanius recently posted…4 Ways To Protect Yourself From the ‘Heartbleed’ Bug
Hi Lorraine thanks for sharing. Sorry I’m so late to reading your post. I don’t know where the time goes, I get so far behind on things, but I do have to sleep sometimes.
I really enjoyed learning about your plans and how you accomplish so much. I am impressed.
donnajeanmcdunn recently posted…The Future of Fiction–From Tiny to Titanic, How to Claim Your Niche
Donna, I know the feeling! I’ve been participating in the blogging challenge (as you know) and so I know that there are not enough hours in the day to do everything!
Funny you should make that last comment; I have been feeling that I have not been accomplishing all that much lately. Perhaps it’s because I have such high expectations of myself. Anyway, I’m glad you stopped by.
How does your writing process work? Are you still planning/writing another novel?
While we’ve all participated in the #bloghop series, every post is so unique, like yours Lorraine. I can imagine writing is therapeutic. In that sense for me, when I have a terrific (or bad) shopping, or networking, or sales or whatever experience, it is amazing how much more clarity I can get from writing about it.
Thanks for being in the series.
Patricia Weber recently posted…5 Scripts to Help Introverts Survive – and Even ENJOY a Networking Event – Part 1
Patricia, I think that it’s great to get others’ insights on the writing process, as we can always learn a new trick or tip along the way!
I’m happy to be a part of this, and I thank you for your comment. Come again!
Hi Lorraine! It’s great getting to know more about you and your writing process. You’re a busy lady! I had no idea you had been through so much in your life. Wow! Well, all your experiences made you who you are and you’re a terrific person. I’m intrigued by you memoirs and it’s usually not my type of read. I wish you all the best my friend. 😀
~ Vashti
Vashti Quiroz-Vega recently posted…Book Reading / Signing
Vashti, as writers and bloggers, part of our goal is to be helpful to others, right? That’s why I share so much about myself, plus I think it’s a good thing to mention my memoirs here and there over time, so that when my book is released, people will buy it! It’s nice to know that you are interested in it, too. 🙂 That’s a nice compliment, coming from someone who doesn’t normally read that type of a book.
Because of your comment, I am going to ask you this now: Would you like to be a beta reader for it?
I’m with Max, only I KNOW I don’t put enough time into my writing process. Most of the time I’m thrilled to just have something written in time for the next post. I’d like to get back to where I used to be, which was having multiple blogs written and scheduled. I think part of the challenge is that I write for work all day, but then so do you. How do you manage the editing work, the blog writing and visits, the social media stuff and then have the mental energy for independent writing?
Debra Yearwood recently posted…Anticipation
Debra, don’t you know that I am a robot who never sleeps? 😉
I forgot to mention that I tend to work in spurts. I can write a few blog posts in one day (or at least start them), and I have found a good work-life balance that I adhere to. Basically, it boils down to doing what you love. I love reading, writing, editing, spending time with my family, and watching certain programs on TV, so that’s what I do. Every week. Without fail. It’s as simple as that. Of course, when I need a break, I take it. I have learned to be more relaxed and less stressed as a result of the many different things I’ve been through, including my operations, and I now try to always focus on the positive. Being a positive person helps tremendously! That is the secret to my success.
hi lorraine; thanks for sharing so much about your writing process. After reading this post, I feel like I don’t put enough effort into my own posts. I actually thought about inviting you to take part when I did the blog hop last week, but we had just done that amazing interview post; and also I wanted to feature some other blind bloggers. thanks for mentioning me again. I never get tired of hearing my name in print, and the back links are wonderful for my traffic. You must have had something to do with my site breaking records last month in visitors, visits, and page loads. thanks again for being so open with us. I am looking forward to the launch party for your book of short stories. Take care my friend, Max
maxwell ivey recently posted…Wednesday night meet up recap April 2, 2014
Max, I wanted to include as many people as possible in this blog hop and I was happy to include you. I’m glad your site is doing so well, too. It might have something to do with the SEO optimization I did for you; it’s tough to say. Either way, it’s always nice to break records AND see your name and/or site in a link. I have over 400 sites that have linked to one of the posts I wrote, and I always love getting those notifications!
I haven’t planned a launch party yet, but I will, and I will include you in it. For sure. 🙂 I can use all the support I can get! 😉
Have a great day, Max.
By the way, you did the right thing by featuring other blind bloggers in your post. It’s important for their voices to be heard, and networking for them is harder than for the average sighted person, so please be proud of yourself for having such a big heart!