Whether you have plenty of free time in which to get your thoughts down or you have only a few minutes here and there, an important consideration is this… How are you going to get your thoughts down? Your amount of free time will help you with this decision. It is one of many variables.
For the first option, I will present what might be considered the most obvious: paper. Now, with paper, you are also supplied with many sub-options. One such option is notebooks. These you can carry around with you. This is my preferred method. Yet, even if you decide you want to use notebooks, there is still the decision of size. I need to get my thoughts down the moment they come to me, because the first moment is usually when I have my best view of it, until, of course, I go back and revise. I opt for regular, ruled, school notebooks. Sometimes, I think a more compact notebook would be beneficial because I don’t always want to carry a big bag with me, but the downside is that they fill up much too fast.
Some people suggest having a different notebook for each year. In “Writing Down the Bones” the author suggests writing in themed notebooks, so that when you are searching for a particular writing, you can remember “Right. I was writing in the notebook with – – – – – design on it.” That is a fun idea. However, here are some alternatives. Use stickers. Glue down a piece of paper you decorated. Make a collage. If you are minimalistic, use labels. This is about your own unique choice. One more thing to consider when making this decision is, if you wait until the back to school sales, you can usually obtain many, basic, school notebooks for the price you would usually spend on one. You can stock up and have them when you need them.
When on the run, paper gives the benefit of allowing you to fold up sheets of loose-leaf paper and sticking them in your pocket. I use these for character letters, and my worldbuilding, as well as my outlining, so that I can accomplish these in bits and pieces as I come to them. However, in order to keep them organized when I am finished writing them, I must either write them into a notebook or type them out onto the computer.
Writing in the notebook can be safe for a long time while it is filled. All the pieces are together and protected. Not so with the loose-leaf. I have had incidences where the loose-leaf pages have begun to split into four parts where I folded them while I filled them in my few spare moments. Therefore, they must be transferred ASAP.
The second consideration for paper is this; What will you write with? Will you write with pencil or pen? If you write with pen, what pen would you use? Choose a reliable pen that does not smear and gives you good flow, stability, and feel. I prefer to write with mechanical pencils, when I am writing in a notebook because they do not need to be sharpened regularly, and I can erase if I need to rather than having to cross out pen writing. The downfall of pencil is that the pencil marks tend to fade after a while of sitting around.
The term ‘writing’ is no longer restricted to the physical act of putting pen or pencil to paper. Using a recording device can be helpful in more than one way. You can record your thoughts at any moment. You can look for different features based on your desires. There are mp3 player/ voice recorder options. These are pleasant for me because when I’m not using the voice recorder, I can listen to my music. This is a good thing for when I am using a notebook because I have a few writing playlists on the Mp3 player.
When using a voice recorder, you can get your thoughts down faster. You can take on the persona of your characters, which can help you to improve your dialogue as they talk to each other and interact in that moment, allowing you to delve into their emotions at the time, making for a quicker, more free flow of ideas, rather than giving you extra time for your inner critic to attempt a full edit before you even get the idea down. Yet, there is a downside. Of the recorders I have dealt with, those that are digital require you to make a new audio clip for every new recording session. If you only have a few minutes here and there during which to record, this will make for many small audio clips that you must piece together. The only option I know of to remedy that situation is to use a tape recorder. This will allow you to pick up where you left off, but you must have another tape if you want to record another subject, and it is not practical to carry around several tapes. This can be disruptive to anything but a chronological flow. Also, with any voice recording, you must be able to transfer the audio to text on the computer if you are going to edit. You will want to get adept at taking dictation.
There is the option of typing directly to a computer. Laptops are portable, but not as portable as notebooks. However, this would put the text onto the computer first thing out, and you would not have to concern yourself with changing the written text or audio into typed text.
These are some basic options along with some of their pros and cons. If there are some considerations you feel I have overlooked, go ahead and leave a comment below or send me an email.
While you are considering your options for getting your thoughts and, therefore, your story, written and permanent, remember to enjoy the wonder.