: Re: How can I cut my prep work to get to writing more quickly? When it comes to fiction writing, I love creating characters and watching them run with the story under my pen. I spend a lot

@Radia543

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I think the problem is that writing is work. The stuff you call 'prep work' is essentially daydreaming.

All the usual suggestions will apply here, I think. Set a daily or weekly goal for yourself - an hour a day of writing, or five thousand words a week, or whatever seems challenging but achievable. If you have nothing to say, you can sit there and write about how you have nothing to say, but you absolutely have to get the words out. Join a writers' group where you're expected to share your work. Find a writing buddy who can nag you when you don't produce and praise you when you do. Don't let yourself make excuses. If you're serious about being a writer, you have to write.

In terms of what the bare basics are before you start writing - that's going to be something you have to figure out on your own. There are people who sit down with nothing and write full novels. There are others who outline exhaustively. I think it depends a bit on genre: you can probably 'pants' a Romance, but you probably need an outline for a mystery or an intricate spy thriller.

Maybe you should start with some short works so you won't feel the need for so much prep and will be able to achieve a first draft in a short period of time. Then find someone to share the work with; getting feedback is huge motivation, at least for me.

ETA: Based on your ETA I'm going to amplify my suggestion that you write something short and then get it out there for feedback. You sound like a very collaborative person, so I think you may be struggling with the solitude of traditional novel writing. If you absolutely want to write novels right away, maybe you could find a community where you could post chapter-by-chapter to get feedback and encouragement. I'm not too collaborative at all, and I still benefit from having a small online community with whom I share my work as I go. A novel takes a LONG time to finish, and it's really hard to put all that work in without getting any reward.

Alternatively, you could try co-writing something, but I think you'll have better luck getting a quality co-author if you have at least a few short stories to show that you're worth working with.

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