When I write a story, specifically fiction, I’m writing a movie.  I assign actors I think could play my characters.  A movie plays in my head.  The chosen actors play the parts.  I watch.  I type what I see.  That’s all I do.  If a scene doesn’t work, I essentially yell “Cut!” and delete/backspace and retype. 

Next to me is the outline from step 1.  As I finish typing each scene/chapter, and each event from the a, b, c, etc, I cross it off with a simple line and move on to the next scene.  That’s all I do.

When I’m writing, I’ve really have already written it when I was outlining.  That outline allows me to have already gone through the “movie” at least once.  So the actually writing, the step 2, is really the second time I’m writing it, so it’s more of a second draft than a first draft.  That’s all I do. 

That’s why I say writing a story is easy.  It’s the other parts that are difficult.

Tomorrow, step 3: revising.  I hate it.