The three Rs
Recently I've been introduced to the real three Rs that apply to most writers. Rewrite, Reuse, Recycle.
Thinking about the Rs in my experience of writing my PhD I think one thing I've learned is that whenever I write something I also have to rewrite a lot. Sometimes even from the ground up and discard the prior version entirely. I've found that sometimes discarding and starting with a clean page is actually faster that trying to rework sections or a whole 10-20,000 word chapter. The most recent version I have to rewrite a number of introductory sections to chapters and sub-sections. I have found these introductions a bit tricky as they have both a linking function and setting up of what follows.
Some people, however, can plan a chapter or a plot, often with incredible detail, and then simply sit down and write it. Moreover, these lucky bastards can pretty much write close to the final version on the first go. I've decided, after talking to many PhD students, many academics and some fiction writers, that these sorts of writers are a rarity. The rest of us have to work really hard to get anything good.
Reusing is another invaluable method that all writers both use and need to take advantage of. Sometimes I have been able to reuse a section of a chapter, sometimes a paragraph, and sometimes only a sentence. Sometimes it has been from a previous draft, sometimes it has been from something I scribbled down as a note in my diary or on the back of a napkin. Ultimately, given enough time, a lot of what anyone writes might be able to be placed somewhere else.
The other aspect of reusing is what we all have available immediately to us as people. Most writers reuse their experiences, memories and stories that they have heard. Blogging is a lot like this. No-one, because we are not alone in the world and are constantly bombarded with stories, starts with nothing. I'll also warn, that I have seen incredibly gifted people who might be great writers claim that they 'need to get more life experience' or that because they have not experienced something they can't write about it. This is not true. People can write about anything as we all have an amazing capacity to make things up. All written work is an 'artifact' and created by someone. No writing, is pure experience. Although some writing comes as close as you can get. We cannot necessarily describe reality better because we have seen it or experienced it. In fact in some instances this is actually a barrier for people creating a coherent story.
Recycling is another powerful principle that I need to learn how to use far more effectively. I'd say that ability to recycle, or scavenge like a vulture, is vital for surviving as either an academic or as a writer of any sort. Recycling tends to be pejoratively used is the same as reproducing the same thing. But recycling is being able to use something old in a new way, or put a slightly different spin on an old story that gives it new life. It can also be part of saving old stories that you are unsure of how to tell in the present. When I saw Neil Gaiman speak last year he said that he originally started The Graveyard book when he was much younger (in his late twenties from memory). But what he produced back then was not good enough, so he set it aside for many years and came back to it later (in his late forties). So it does make good sense to write things down as you go, as some of those might actually be recycled to make a great story, plot or source for a non-fiction book.
Thinking about the Rs in my experience of writing my PhD I think one thing I've learned is that whenever I write something I also have to rewrite a lot. Sometimes even from the ground up and discard the prior version entirely. I've found that sometimes discarding and starting with a clean page is actually faster that trying to rework sections or a whole 10-20,000 word chapter. The most recent version I have to rewrite a number of introductory sections to chapters and sub-sections. I have found these introductions a bit tricky as they have both a linking function and setting up of what follows.
Some people, however, can plan a chapter or a plot, often with incredible detail, and then simply sit down and write it. Moreover, these lucky bastards can pretty much write close to the final version on the first go. I've decided, after talking to many PhD students, many academics and some fiction writers, that these sorts of writers are a rarity. The rest of us have to work really hard to get anything good.
Reusing is another invaluable method that all writers both use and need to take advantage of. Sometimes I have been able to reuse a section of a chapter, sometimes a paragraph, and sometimes only a sentence. Sometimes it has been from a previous draft, sometimes it has been from something I scribbled down as a note in my diary or on the back of a napkin. Ultimately, given enough time, a lot of what anyone writes might be able to be placed somewhere else.
The other aspect of reusing is what we all have available immediately to us as people. Most writers reuse their experiences, memories and stories that they have heard. Blogging is a lot like this. No-one, because we are not alone in the world and are constantly bombarded with stories, starts with nothing. I'll also warn, that I have seen incredibly gifted people who might be great writers claim that they 'need to get more life experience' or that because they have not experienced something they can't write about it. This is not true. People can write about anything as we all have an amazing capacity to make things up. All written work is an 'artifact' and created by someone. No writing, is pure experience. Although some writing comes as close as you can get. We cannot necessarily describe reality better because we have seen it or experienced it. In fact in some instances this is actually a barrier for people creating a coherent story.
Recycling is another powerful principle that I need to learn how to use far more effectively. I'd say that ability to recycle, or scavenge like a vulture, is vital for surviving as either an academic or as a writer of any sort. Recycling tends to be pejoratively used is the same as reproducing the same thing. But recycling is being able to use something old in a new way, or put a slightly different spin on an old story that gives it new life. It can also be part of saving old stories that you are unsure of how to tell in the present. When I saw Neil Gaiman speak last year he said that he originally started The Graveyard book when he was much younger (in his late twenties from memory). But what he produced back then was not good enough, so he set it aside for many years and came back to it later (in his late forties). So it does make good sense to write things down as you go, as some of those might actually be recycled to make a great story, plot or source for a non-fiction book.
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