I Should Be Writing [ISBW] Spreadsheets, Ghosts, and the Art of Outlining with James L. Sutter
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Jul 22, 2024 James L. Sutter, co-creator of the Pathfinder and Starfinder RPGs and author of 'The Ghost of Us', dives into the art of outlining and editing. He shares insights on using spreadsheets to enhance productivity and discusses his unique approach to character-driven narratives. The conversation highlights his YA supernatural romance, featuring a Cyrano-like fake-dating twist that complicates emotions. Sutter also stresses the importance of understanding characters’ feelings on every page and offers advice on handling beta reader feedback.
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Track Work With A Simple Spreadsheet
- Track daily writing and work in a simple spreadsheet to measure real productivity and plan deadlines accurately.
- Use historic data to set realistic workloads and remember to log vacation and non-writing tasks too.
Measure The Right Thing
- Whatever metric you measure becomes what you optimize for, so choose metrics that reflect real progress, not vanity numbers.
- Switch from word counts to time worked or a binary 'did you write today?' if counts make revision days feel like failure.
Use Outlines For Discovery Writing
- Build a long, thorough outline as your primary discovery tool to minimize major rewrites later.
- Treat outlining as the place to do discovery writing so first drafts need fewer structural changes.
