Oct 19, 2008 NOTE: The following is kind of a response to a thread on my now defunct forums. It grew too long to post there, and I felt that it might be of more general interest to other readers out there. So I’ve moved it here. I reference the boards…
I write every day, and I give myself wordcount goals. (Usually, it’s 2k min, or a certain page goal if revising). It varies though. 10 pages is often my goal. I usually hit it, and sometimes do much more. I write faster at the end of a book than the…
This is a very interesting question. I actually wrote the Mistborn trilogy straight through before releasing the first, so I have some experience doing it both that way, and releasing one book before the next is written. With Stormlight, I’m much more careful with my foreshadowing. Maybe to the point…
Dig deep rather than go wide. Having one or two cultures that play off of each other in an interesting way — where you’ve considered a lot of the ramifications — are going to be better than trying to create 30 different cultures. Try to keep focused on what’s going to be important…
Back when I was trying to break in, I spent many years writing books and not getting published. I was under the impression (it’s just one of my beliefs) that it would be easier for me to break in doing a lot of different standalone novels, or first books in…
I’d be happy to give you some pointers about writing characters. We often discuss characters in oue Writing Excuses podcast. For example some episodes from Season 1 that may be of use as you write your characters include: Episode 5: Heroes and Protagonists Episode 6: Flaws vs Handicaps Episode 7:…
There was a thread on reddit about this topic, and though I was hesitant to derail the conversation, I decided I did want to talk about this topic a little. There are two things going on here. One is the mistake I made with Jasnah in WORDS, which I’ve mentioned…
With as many novels as you’ve written, do you have an assistant or a system you use to remember everything? Yes I do. I use a personal wiki, just like Wikipedia, but on my own server. I use an open-source software called wikidpad. I have someone whose job it is…
I generally write in one of two places. I have an easy chair in my bedroom where I can sit back with my laptop and write in comfort. I also have a treadmill desk that I use when I want to be up and moving.
When it comes to crazy plot twist, fascinating characters, magic systems, humor, religion, etc. What do you feel, for you, is the hardest part to get on paper or come up with? I would say that the most difficult parts have to do with getting a character’s internal conflicts (if…