My writing is top secret. When I am generating a story, I don't want a soul to know what the story is about. I don't even want them to know that I'm writing at all, for land sakes. If people knew, then they'd ask me about it. And for me to say, "It's a fairytale retelling," or "It's about a girl," is too revealing for my taste.
Sound weird to you? Or maybe you're like, "Yep, that's me."
I know writers who want to tell me their whole plot, brainstorm ideas, and share their manuscript as they work on it. Maybe this works really well. If you gain insight and ideas along the way, perhaps you don't have to do as much revision. Perhaps it helps you make deadlines if other people know. I don't know, because I've never really tried writing that way.
Personally, I have to own my story, at least until the first draft is finished. Somehow it helps me "suspend disbelief." If I were writing a novel, and people asked me, "How's the story going?" or "Where are your characters now?" I would probably feel a light sense of panic and crawl in a cave to finish writing. (Well, maybe that's a little extreme.)
What is your writing style--public or private? What are some of the pros and cons of doing it that way? I'd love to find out!
20.7.11
