The Writer's Brain

 

I’ve been spending a lot of time in the writing cave lately, working on my eighth book, which is due to my publisher in October. As I plot and scheme and push my characters into sketchy situations, it occurred me that my process and the way I go about organizing my novel is segregated into left-brain/right-brain components.

According to the experts, the left part of our brain is responsible for thinking in words, sequencing, linear thinking, mathematics, facts, logic, reading, writing, and computation. Our right brains are responsible for feelings visualization, imagination, intuition, rhythm, holistic thinking, daydreaming (an essential quality for a writer), and nonverbal clues.

While I would immediately classify myself as a right-brain dominant person, there’s no doubt that writing a story (or a novel in my case) requires high functioning from both lobes of the brain. Since I’m a confirmed plotter, I spend the initial part of the process developing my characters, giving them enough flaws, misbeliefs, and insecurities to drive the conflict. After that, I map out a timeline of events (linear thinking) sequencing each dramatic scene with the appropriate content (mathematics) to form a cohesive plot and hit my word count.

Once that part of the process is finished, I have a written memorialization of everything that’s going to happen in my story. I know who goes where and who does what and when they do it. My left brain as provided me a story skeleton. If I’m lucky, the pieces are in the right place and cohesively connected. If not, no big deal as I can always fix things when I edit. Once that part of the process is complete, I let my right brain flow (imagination and daydreaming) and imbue my story skeleton with the literary equivalent of flesh and blood. Since I know what’s going to happen and – goddess willing – my plot problems were solved during my left brain work, I can focus on the feelings, rhythm, cadence and non-verbal clues in my story, all right-brain functions.

Writing this blog post has given me a new respect for the discovery writers, those who sit down at their desks and write beautiful prose without an outline, to wit, using both lobes of their brain contemporaneously. Dear discovery writers, I applaud you!

So while we creatives are often classified as right-brain dominant, I would argue that it’s all about balance. We need both sides of our brain in equal measure. Writing is truly a complete brain activity!

How about you? Are you left-brain or right-brain dominant?

Until next time.

Terry

My Over and Overs.

I love discovering new authors, I really do. There’s nothing better than finding a great book which sweeps me away. And if I’m really lucky, my newly discovered favorite author has a backlist that I can voraciously consume. Trends in fiction change, so it’s important we writers read widely, read outside our comfort zone, and be mindful of the fiction market in general. 

But we all have our favorites, the books I like to call my mac-and-cheese/comfort food reads, or my “over and overs.” These are the books I can re-read or re-listen – as I mostly listen to my books these days – and discover something new about the characters or plot or some new technique that I missed in previous readings. It’s my pleasure to share this list with you. In turn, I hope you will comment and tell me your favorite books and why you like them.

The Thirteenth Tale. This gothic favorite landed in my to be read pile by accident, but I was captivated at page one and am still amazed by the beauty of this book today. Written by Diane Setterfield, The Thirteenth Tale is an amazing story told through the eyes of book lover and biographer, Margaret Lea. When the reclusive yet famous writer, Vida Winter, calls on Margaret to write her biography, Margaret is thrust into a world of secrets which need to be laid to rest. Margaret Lea writes Vida Winter’s story through the lens of her own childhood pain in this richly woven story. 

A Discovery of Witches/The All Souls Trilogy. 

A Discovery of Witches takes the “forbidden love” trope often seen in vampire stories and uses it to draw attention to human short comings by exploring racism and the way humans are damaging their own environment. The story is superbly researched and beautifully written. The audio version is really good and is currently at the top of my over and over pile. 

The Clock Strikes Twelve. Make no mistake about it, I love a good British mystery, which is my go-to genre. Although Agatha Christie is one of my favorite authors, I also have a soft spot for Patricia Wentworth, whose Miss Silver Mysteries are every bit as clever and well written as Agatha Christie’s Jane Marple series. The Clock Strikes Twelve is a quick and easy read. If you prefer audio books, you won’t be disappointed. All of the Miss Silver books are narrated by Diana Bishop, who does a superior job at bringing the story to life. These books are a series, but can be read out of order.

The 4:50 from Paddington. The first Jane Marple book, this is one of my all-time favorite Agathas. The cover shown here is a stunner. 

Save the Cat Writes a Novel. I have a lot of how-to-write books. Every year I pull them out and reread them with an eye towards giving my skillset an intensive tune-up. Save the Cat Writes A Novel by Jessica Brody has totally changed my writing game. The book takes the screenwriting ethos made famous in Blake Snyder’s best-selling book on screenwriting and adapts the methodology for novelists. This book breaks the novel writing process down into easy steps. Jessica Brody provides beat sheets, discusses genre, and helps writers make decisions about their story that will clarify the process. I have this book in paperback and audio. When I’m getting ready to start a new novel, I relisten to it a couple of times. It has really helped me and I can’t recommend it highly enough. If you're interested in this fabulous book, you can find out more about it here. 

So what do you think? Tell me about the books you read over and over in the comment section. 

Happy writing!