Co-writing part 3

This week, in our Co-writing Part 3, we would like to take a few minutes to describe our crazy method of writing together.  During the past few years since we have begun writing together, our situations have changed, we have both moved several times.  But our co-writing style has developed during this time to a point where we feel we have a method that works pretty well for us.     Our little system keeps us organized. Because, lets face it, emailing something back and forth while adding more to it could get a little messy and confusing. We always start with a brainstorming session where we write down notes.  This is when we formulate the basic plot line and begin to develop our characters.  This is done together, either in person if we get the chance, over the phone, email, or Skype. Once the bulk of it is down in notes one of us will take a piece and start putting it in story format.  Anything that we add we put in colored font so that when the WIP is passed to the next person their attention is immediately drawn to anything that is newly added and needs to be edited.  Upon receiving the WIP from the other, we will edit the new material, expand on or complete any added ideas.  Any colored text is then changed to black, or is left colored if we feel it needs more consideration or needs to be changed in any way. Then we add our new material (in a colored text different from the previous) and pass it on for another go-around.  We also take time to sit down while on skype or the phone and read through sections together and edit.  When one of us has a new idea to add to the plot, or a new character, we will talk it over together before putting it into the WIP.   Maybe this only makes sense to us :) but it seems to work well.  We build on each other's strengths and make up for weaknesses.  One of us is better at expanding ideas, while the other is a really good editor.  A really good story would be really confusing without indentations and punctuation in the right place, while all the good grammar in the world can't make a story by itself.  We feel it makes us a good team.     When we write our blog posts, we use a condensed version of this system.  Most of the time we use e-mail to send back and forth while on the phone so we can write somewhat simultaneously, helping each other build on an idea.  Occasionally, one of us will write the bulk of the post with the other doing minor editing.     As Mishmashed as this method may seem it has worked really well for us.  What are some of your methods of writing and keeping organized?      

Co-writing week 2

We talked a little bit about some of the perks of co-writing in our Co-writing part 1. Writing together with your sister and best friend is definitely a perk! We love our writing sessions. Like we mentioned in Part 1, when we get on the phone/computer, we don't just talk about our WIP or current blog post, we talk about EVERYTHING! And we love it. Any stay-at-home mom could attest to that feeling of joy when you get have conversation with another adult. Even if most of what we talk about is our kids!

Perk: Idea swapping.

Unlike solo writers, our brainstorming sessions bounce back and forth as we throw out ideas. It is really fun because then we not only have our own beginning ideas, but the other person's ideas, PLUS new ideas that we come up with based on our thoughts from our counterpart. It is great! So coming up with a list of possible solutions to a problem in our writing becomes easier and faster with many more options to chose from.

Perk: Writer's Block...Detours...Short Cuts!

Being able to have a co-writer to turn to when you get stuck is definitely a benefit to our writing! Often times, in our WIP, one of us will write on a section for a while, then when we get stuck or run out of ideas, we pass it on to the other to continue. Using each others ideas, once again, helps us to get passed our block, revise, or continue on with the story fresh and energized.

Perk: Editing.

As we pass the story back and forth, we need to read what the other has written before we can continue. As we read through, it gives us the opportunity to edit and revise. This not only helps minimize grammatical and punctuation errors, but it also allows us to catch inconsistencies in the story, plot, or characters.

Perk: Confidence!

It builds our confidence to hear from our writing partner, "Oh, I like that idea!" "You are brilliant!" "That works better, let's do that." And other similar comments as we toss around ideas. With confidence comes the courage to keep going and build our self esteem.

Perk: Staying on Track.

Having a partner to be accountable to helps to keep us from sidelining the project when life gets hectic. We know we have someone that is counting on us, and will keep reminding us to get in there and write.

Perk: It's uplifting.

When life can get you down, husbands are out of town, or life seems kind of bleak, its nice to know there is someone to turn to, an activity to share in and pull ourselves up from the blues.

Perk: Somehow we are always on the same page!

Our ideas mesh and flow and become one. It just works. We aren't writing two completely different stories with the same characters, it is one story coming together from two different minds.

We feel that the old saying "two heads are better than one" definitely applies to our situation. We feel that together we are whole, we make a complete writer. It is an amazing journey and we are enjoying every minute of it!

Co-writing

For the next few weeks we decided to give you an inside look into how we write together. We never really considered ourselves what you might call writers before this experience. The decision to write was somewhat sudden and out of the blue. After having the initial idea to write a book we just jumped in without much planning or knowing what we were really doing. It has definitely been a learning process writing together. We have found that writing as a team comes with its own set of challenges. We've been able to make our way through, learning as we go.

One of our biggest challenges is scheduling. We have to find time when we can both sit down and work. That has been harder the last while with kids being in preschool and running here and there. A lot of the time we will just call each other and talk while we do other things. As of late we have tried to set aside a two hour block of time that we can sit at our computers and "Skype 'n write." This has worked out great so far. However, those little challenges still creep in.

Distractions are another challenge, this probably applies to all writers. We can sit down and get our creative juices flowing only to be distracted by a phone call, one of our children needing something, a dog needing to go outside...the list could go on and on. Not all distractions are unpleasant or unwelcome. We are probably our own biggest distraction. As we write and talk about our WIP we also end up talking about everything else. Seriously, EVERYTHING. We talk about what we did the other day, who we've talked to, what our kids have been doing, recipes we've tried. It's really nice. :) This has turned out to be one of the biggest perks of writing with your sister. We believe that these tangent conversations benefit our writing. Not only do we get some of our best ideas from the things we talk about, but it gives our brain a break so we can get back into the story fresh and new.

Another one of the challenges we face is not being experienced or schooled in writing. Neither of us has what you might call a diverse vocabulary. While we both struggle with this it brings out one of the benefits of writing together. It seems like when one of us gets hung up on a word the other can usually find the solution. Very much the whole "two brains are better than one."

The next challenge is the fact that we are so green. When we got started we had no idea about word count, writing conferences, or even HOW to publish a book. We had no idea what a WIP was, or a beta reader, or even a query letter. There are still many things we know nothing about in this great big world of writing. We hope to learn from all of you readers. (Feel free to comment and teach!)

You might think that the biggest challenge we face is confrontation or disagreements with our ideas. However, we feel we have been very blessed on this journey because we have yet to have any disagreements or conflicts, and we started our idea almost 4 years ago. Things have run rather smoothly, all things considered. This has definitely been a team effort. When we stumble in our progress we stumble together and can help pull each other up. That's not to say we haven't had our fair share of difficulties, as we've just shared a few, but when it comes to working together we seem to have always been on the same page. *har har* This above all is why we feel it's so important to keep pushing through and meet our goal.

Our Big Debut

We are so excited to be a part of the Mormon Mommy Blog!

Yes, you read that correctly, WE. 

We are sisters and co writers.  Our names are Ashley and Jessica. We are originally from SLC, UT but now live on opposite ends of the country. 

A few years ago, about 2008, we had this really fun idea.  It was a story, an intense murder-mystery-thriller.  It was an idea we toyed with for a bit until we really started getting some concrete ideas. It was just going to be something "for the fun of it."  But the more we thought about this book the more we realized this story wasn't turning out to be the sort of things we wanted our children to read.  And the second realization: Why would we want to write a book we wouldn't want our children to read?  Then the real epiphany came.  We should write a book for our children and make it the kind of book we felt comfortable letting them read.  And then more and more ideas kept coming.   

 Back then we had no idea that there was a whole  community of writers that felt the same way we did.  In fact it has only been recently that we discovered this.  Needless to say, we are a bit green.  This has been a long process.  We've both moved quite a bit, been pregnant, had babies, and had young rambunctious children.  All these things made it hard to find the time to sit down and write together, but we've done it, bit by bit, for one significant/essential reason.  It's important to us.  

All along our goal has been to create something that would benefit the world, not bring it down.  There are enough problems out there, too much negativity, too many things bringing down not just the youth but all of us.  We wanted no part in that. 

We hope to learn so much from all of you readers and gain not only information and experience in writing but also in being able to share as mothers, writers, and Mormons.  We feel like we have so much to gain.