By Melodie Campbell
To the elderly man in the khaki sweater who lifted his reading glasses to stare open-mouthed…
To the unknown person who gasped and knocked over a chair behind me…
To the woman with the stroller who stared in horror, and then wheeled her toddler frantically away toward the exit…
False Alarm Alert: The two middle-aged women whispering about murder in the Orangeville library were not fiendishly plotting how to do away with a tedious husband.
They were writing a murder mystery!
I’m perhaps best known for writing the screwball mob caper series, The Goddaughter. But I also write classic whodunits with my close friend Cynthia St-Pierre. Our first book, A Purse to Die For, was great fun to write. Our second with Imagin Books, A Killer Necklace, came out before Christmas.
Thing is, I live in Oakville and Cindy lives two hours away in Newmarket.
WRITING WITH A CO-WRITER
So many people have told me, “I could never write a book with another person.” I think they find it hard to imagine finding someone they could be compatible with. Here’s what I’ve found to be important:
THE FIRST HURDLE: DISTANCE
I’m not talking about a husband and wife team here. Most co-writers don’t have the advantage of living in the same house. Cindy and I don’t even live in the same city.
Much of what we do is by email and Skype. But every few months we like to get together to hash out plot problems in person. This means meeting somewhere in between. And where better, than at the place we feel most comfortable, that hallowed home for books, a library? (With apologies to the patrons we might have alarmed.)
It helps to pick a co-writer who lives close enough that you can meet with them every few months. But there are more important things than distance.
THE ESSENTIAL: STYLE
Step one is to find someone with a writing style close to yours.
Cindy and I met at a crime writing conference (I know. How cliché.) We were seated side by side at the dinner where awards were presented. She cheered for me when I won a small short story award. And that got us talking, and planning to meet again. A friendship was born that day.
Over the next year, we discovered we enjoyed each other’s fiction. Both Cindy and I write lean. We also have a love for quirky humour. And we both like to read and write light mysteries.
The trick with co-writing is to make your work seem seamless to the reader. No one should be able to detect where your writing ended and your co-writer’s began. This means making compromises. You both will be making compromises on writing style. Sometimes it’s just little things, like how to write and punctuate thoughts.
Ask yourself: are you the sort of person who can tolerate making compromises to your style for the sake of the team?
Obviously, choosing a partner whose writing you like is essential. If the partnership is a success, your styles will start to blend.
THE INTANGIBLES
Yes, you need someone creative. That’s a given. But there’s more:
I’m Canadian. We recently had a federal election up here which toppled a long-serving government. After the votes were tallied, I heard journalists talking hopefully about the country returning to the ‘traditional Canadian values of kindness, inclusion and collaboration.’
I can’t think of better qualities to look for in a co-writer.
TRUST
How many people in your life do you trust completely? How many outside of your immediate family?
Put that way, I can see a lot of readers immediately rethinking the whole co-writing thing. But believe me, if you are going to share the writing of a novel, you are going to need to have a great deal of trust in your partner.
I have complete trust in my co-writer I trust her financially. She would never cheat me out of shared royalties, not even a penny.
I trust her with our ideas. She wouldn’t run off with them, and use them for her own writing.
And most important (it may not seem that way, but believe me, it is) I trust Cindy to respect my writing. To not disparage it in any way.
Of course we have discussions on what needs to be added or changed in each other’s writing for our books. Sometimes, you may disagree. But the key word here is respect.
You must respect each other as equal writers from the start.
PACE
One thing I highly recommend: from the start, establish with your co-writer how fast you are prepared to work on the project.
Cindy and I write about 2000 words, and then hand off to the other. I’ll write one week. I’ll send the updated manuscript to her by email, and she’ll write the next week. So I’m writing on our project every other week. At busy times in our lives, there may be two weeks between handoffs, or even three.
This pace is something we’ve fallen into, and it wasn’t a problem for us. But I could see it being a problem in a situation where one person is still working a day job, and the other is retired. Or where one person is extremely keen because this is their only writing project at the moment, and the other has a deadline for another series looming. One writing team I know has admitted to me that this is a frustration.
Try to establish at the beginning of your partnership, how quickly you expect the other person to write their section.
EASY-GOING
I was trying to think of a different subtitle for this section. Basically, I am talking here about picking someone who is not married to their ideas.
One of the delights of writing with a co-writer is the fresh ideas that will come from the other person. You may have a plot in mind. You may even have a detailed outline in your head, or on paper. Start from there, certainly.
BUT:
Part of the success of co-writing is being open to new ideas that come to your partner, when you are already into the writing of the book. In both our co-written ‘whodunits’, we have changed the ‘who’ part way through, when one of us came up with an even better villain, one with deliciously satisfying motivation.
So don’t pick a co-writer who ‘must stick to the outline.’ As well, don’t even think of attempting to co-write a book if you aren’t willing to veer from the original plan yourself.
BEYOND THE WRITING
MARKETING
I put it this way to my college Crafting a Novel students: When you publish a book, you become two people: a writer AND an author.
The writer writes the darn thing.
The author is so much more. Social media marketing, book store signings, guest blogs, panels at conventions…an author is a face that is out there, in public. Like it or not, you’re going to be a minor celebrity, or at least you need to act like one.
Nobody buys a book they don’t know about. No longer can writers simply hide behind a computer screen (if they ever could.) And traditional publishers haven’t a lot of money to invest in marketing your book, I’m afraid.
So the point (get to the point, Mel) is that if you are co-writing a book, BOTH of you are going to have to get out there and do a whole lot of marketing.
Make sure you both agree to the amount of energy you are willing to invest in marketing. It’s easy to feel resentful if one party is a) spending a lot more time online doing promo and b) spending a lot more of their own money traveling to make personal appearances.
Part two of this: Also have a clear idea of how much you both are willing to spend on book promotion. By that, I mean buying ads where you can. Bookbub is great (if you have over 50 reviews and a 4 star plus average, but don’t quote me on this because they will never admit it.) But last time I checked, the cost was $900 to advertise a 99 cent mystery on Bookbub. It might pay off. (Mine did for one series.) But it might not.
So that brings up another issue: are you both okay with occasionally reducing the price of your book to take advantage of some of these ad sites? Is your publisher? (We’re with a traditional publisher that is very social media marketing-savvy, thankfully.)
CONTRACTS (YOUR WRITING PRENUP)
I’m not talking about the standard publishing contract here. No, I’m referring to a contract between two writers. This is separate from the contract that determines who will publish your book-baby.
My co-writer and I didn’t have a contract when we first started writing together. We were friends setting out to have fun with fiction. To our surprise, we actually finished the first book. That’s when Cindy suggested we might want to draw something up to address things like: what about the characters we created together? Can either of us use those characters in a book that we write solo?
Even more important, you’ll want to have an agreement in place as to how you will split royalties and marketing costs.
Other issues to hammer out in advance: How will your byline be treated? Who will be listed first: by Agatha Christie and Dorothy Sayers, or by Dorothy Sayers and Agatha Christie? Some co-authors choose by alphabet, based on the first letter of last names. Other teams put the more-published author first.
There are several co-writing contracts available for free on the internet. There’s an easy fill-in-the blanks co-author contract available from James A. Conrad.
Which brings me to the final question:
WHY WRITE WITH A PARTNER?
Simply put, it’s FUN! There is someone sharing your lonely writing journey every step of the way. Cheering when you surprise her with a twist in a new chapter…moaning, when you both start the heavy work of editing.
Writing a novel is a lonely pursuit. You spend months by yourself before anyone sees the work you have been slaving over. Having a co-writer takes the loneliness out of being a writer.
Yes, you give up a little autonomy over your plot and characters. But you also share the delight of incorporating new ideas and plot twists that you would never have come up with on your own.
Take it from me: planning murder with a partner is much more fun than doing it yourself. Even our (very much still alive) husbands agree.
by Melodie Campbell (@MelodieCampbell) February 14, 2016
The Toronto Sun called her Canada’s “Queen of Comedy.” Library Journal compared her to Janet Evanovich. Melodie Campbell has over 40 short story publications, 9 novels and 10 awards, including the 2014 Derringer and Arthur Ellis Awards for screwball mob comedy, The Goddaughter’s Revenge.
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What about you, scriveners? Have you ever co-written a book? Are you thinking about it? I had a great experience co-writing HOW TO BE A WRITER IN THE E-AGE with Catherine Ryan Hyde. and Ruth Harris co-writes thrillers with her husband, Michael Harris. But I’ve heard some horror stories of partnerships that didn’t work out. We’d love to hear your experiences, good or bad.
And if you want to know what Anne is up to this week, she’s over at Mark Tilbury’s blog, answering some interesting questions, like how important is blogging for a writer?
BOOK OF THE WEEK
A Killer Necklace
![Pageflex Persona [document: PRS0000040_00067]](https://selfpublishingsites.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/A-Killer-Necklace-Front-Cover.jpg)
available at Amazon, Smashwords, Kobo, Google Play
Who is the dead woman at the bottom of the stairs?
When Weather Network star Gina Monroe arrives in Black Currant Bay for her wedding shower, all is bliss. But happiness turns to horror, when Gina and close friend Becki find the hostess at the bottom of the basement stairs with her head bashed in. It’s not good to be found at the scene of the crime, especially when you know the victim. But did anyone really know Louisa? A killer is determined to keep the true identity of the dead woman a secret. Even if it means killing again…
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OPPORTUNITY ALERTS
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WERGLE FLOMP HUMOR POETRY CONTEST NO ENTRY FEE. Limit one poem with a maximum of 250 lines. First Prize: $1,000. Second Prize: $250. Honorable Mentions: 10 awards of $100 each. Top 12 entries published online. Deadline April 1, 2016.
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Melodie—Thanks for such useful and realistic tips about working with a collaborator. I’ve collaborated with my DH and 1) we didn’t kill each other 2) we’re still married 3) it was fun!
And you’ve overcome the hurdle of distance, Ruth! I fear if I collaborated with my husband, the book would have to be about car racing.
Thanks Melodie, that was very eye-opening. Strange, hard to imagine for an egotistical “visionary” like me, but interesting to think about. I might- might, mind you- be able to contribute a short story to a shared world setting, something like that. What you and Cynthia have must be terrific, like a built-in fan girl.
A good friend of mine was going to write up a tale where the MC sits next to a guy on a plane and sees him taking notes on a murder. Is it a crime in progress? Or just a book plot? Fun.
I think part of our success is the fact that we both write other things on our own. So we can have fun with this series, knowing we aren’t ‘defined’ by it. Thanks for commenting, Wil!
Great post — I’ve never tried co-authoring. One thing I think I’d appreciate about working with a partner has to do with pace. As a solo writer (with no editor begging me for my next brilliant manuscript), my self-created deadlines center around the meetings of my critique groups. I imagine if I were writing with a cohort, I/we might take the opportunity to churn things out a bit more speedily by adjusting our self-created deadlines. Having a chum to “write for” would probably be a good thing for me.
CS, you are so right. Just knowing that someone is waiting to read your next installment is great incentive to actually write it! Thanks for commenting.
A really important thing is to watch for signs of trouble. Listen to your instincts. If something doesn’t feel right, it probably is a bigger issue than a first look. Address it on the spot. Don’t wait.
I got started with my cowriter for the wrong reasons. I was having a writing related problem, and he said he was strong in that area (not true). We had great fun writing the book.
It was when it came time to submit that something didn’t feel right. We got the usual rejections, and after we got only a few, cowriter wanted to drag out the process. He fussed at the queries, stating that he hated them, and wanted to network with agents to get them to look at our book. Given our location, that was highly unlikely. We’re in about the least creative environment out there.
The book ended up back in redraft after it became apparent why the agents were rejecting it. We were again fine and happy working on the project, but as we got near the end, things began to change. Cowriter started fussing about changing the first chapter because “something was wrong with it.” I was okay with looking at it, but the last time he’d requested it, he’d just changed one word with another. So I asked to give me specifics, and he said, “I don’t know!” Then I’d ask, “Then you how do you know what to fix?” It was very frustrating for me.
When that didn’t work, then he got nasty. When I suggested an idea or discussed one of his ideas, he accused me of trampling all over his ideas. I knew I could be strongly opinionated about writing, but my gut instinct was not to change, because I wasn’t doing anything different.
We finally got the story into submission. I did most of the work, doing the actual submissions and the queries. Cowriter did everything he could to stall the process, and then started picking fights. We’d be having a normal conversation, and next thing I knew he was having a major meltdown, and I’m going, “What just happened?”
About then, we went to a writer’s conference in New York. At an auction there, he bought a critique from another writer, and the first thing I thought was that it was another attempt to sabotage the submission process. By the time we got back, we were fighting non-stop, and I was done. I had to get out of the relationship to protect my writing.
Years later, I figured out what exactly was going on (thanks to DWS). It was one of the writer fear points–cowriter was terrified of getting published. The signs were there early on, and I wish I’d raised the issues when it was less emotional. By the time I realized there was a problem, even the friendship was non-recoverable.
What an experience, Linda! I’m lucky that Cindy and I have had good fortune in our relationship. We were friends first, and both had won awards for our own fiction. I expect that helped.
Linda–Thanks for sharing this hair-raising story. I’m really intrigued by what you said about the co-writer’s fear of getting published. I’ll have to check in Dean Wesley Smith’s archives to see what he said about it. I think more writers suffer from this than we realize. I think I had the fear myself when I was starting out. I got an agent before I was ready and I was terrified.
Ann, it’s in his time management workshop. I took the first one, and all of us hit this one video about fear and it was like “OMG! That happened to me!” I just wish more craft books would talk about the fear in the different areas. For years I thought something was wrong with my writing process because I kept getting stuck at the same point any time I wrote. That was another fear point.
Thanks Linda! It sounds as if DWS has some great insights on this. I know so many writers who get stuck in certain stages of writing. I’ve been working on a post about that.
Some excellent points there, Melodie.
I’ve co-written across several media – books, theatre, radio and TV. Sometimes with friends, sometimes with people I’ve never met.
It’s quite common for TV to be written by teams nowadays, and there’s no reason why this cannot work well for books too.
I love collaborative writing.
But as you say, all parties have to be flexible and all parties must respect the strengths and weaknesses of the others.
My best collaboration was with two then teenage girls writing a YA novel by email across two continents. We’ve still yet to meet in person.
My worst collaboration… Well, let’s just say I’m still picking up the pieces from that.
When all parties are on the same wavelength writing partnerships can be great fun.
But it can also be a total disaster, both in the production and, years down the road, if things turn sour.later.
What I would say, and stress, is that both parties should keep copy of EVERY exchange, every email, and every version of the work produced, in all its stages, for that just-in-case scenario when the other party’s memory no longer coincides with what happened, what was agreed, who wrote what, etc.
But absolutely, collaborative writing can speed output, increase creativity and be absolutely great fun.
Despite a couple of bad experiences I’ll be teaming up with new writing partners, as well as solo writing, for a long time yet.
Mark, thanks for those thoughtful comments. Cindy and I leaped into this, as fun project to do with each other. We thought, wouldn’t it be fun if we actually came out of this with a publishable novel! Looking back, I can see that we learned so much, and have been really fortunate. I’m hoping the blog post today will help others who wish to try this, so they have a positive experience.
Lots of good information in here. I’ve never tried writing with a partner and am not sure I could do it! Kudos to you and Cindy!!!
Thanks, Joan! I definitely recommend getting publications first, so one has confidence and credentials, before setting out to co-write.
Great points presented with your usual humorous flair!
Thank you, Sheri! I should have mentioned: the other quality you want in a co-writer is a generous sense of humour 🙂
I have never co-written a novel or short story with anyone, though I think I’d like to. I can now use the tremendous outline that Melodie just outlined to approach a potential partner! Over the last year, however, I have co-written four film scripts. I thought I’d share my experience with you. First you need to know that my children and I own and operate an independent film production company. We have two feature film credits for Sisbro & Co. Inc. Up until recently, I was the manager/organizer/financier. My writing was strictly novel-based. Then suddenly my daughter drew me into scripts. The first was more of a re-imagining. Based on an indie film conceived and directed by my son, fleshed out by the actors, and put on paper by my daughter-in-law, the script needed a fresh, sassier, dirtier approach. Naturally my daughter thought of me. Right now, it’s being considered by an actor who has made her potty mouthed irreverent approach popular. Next up was a comedic/drama story that my daughter created. Basically, she gave me all the details of what would happen and how the characters would react and change, and I did the writing. Fabulous experience! We would exchange ideas, rewrite, replot, and rearrange back and forth. We live in the same city, so that helps for brainstorming sessions. Neither of us has an ego about our ideas, so we’re very flexible. When the executive of a production company suggested changes, we made them. My daughter is shopping the script now and we’ve had some very promising responses. The third was a redo of an original script by someone I’ve never met. Once again my daughter and an executive producer had some ideas about how to make the script more marketable, but the first writer was no longer interested in making the changes. Enter me and my daughter. That script’s sale is in the hands of a producer. I am currently working on a fourth script with my son. He did the treatment – in fact, a very thorough outline of the plot and character arcs. This experience, I am sure, is going to be a bit different, since my son is a little less flexible in his ideas and vision. That’s the director in him. Plus he lives in LA so it’s not as easy to collaborate. I like face to face when I can. This is a very different experience, but could even work with a novel, I think. If one is strong with plot and the other can get into the characters, it might turn into a great partnership. It would be interesting to try!
Catherine, thanks for sharing this experience with co-writing scripts. Scripts, to me, sound daunting. I just don’t know enough about the industry. But I can see that if your collaborator is in the biz, then it would be a HUGE advantage. So in effect, a co-writer can fill in gaps where your own knowledge may be lacking. What another great benefit.
Thanks for this, Melodie. It’s amazing how many authors join up with a partner to write a book or series together. I have to agree with all your points but I do admit having a problem with Pacing right now. It’s my turn to pick where my co-author left off, but I’m busy trying to finish the first draft of my current solo series. She’s been very patient, but I feel the pressure! But, you’re right, writing with a partner can be loads of fun.
Thanks for sharing your experience, Gloria! I know of another writing partnership that struggles with pacing. Definitely something to come to an agreement about, before leaping into a new project.
Thanks for this helpful post. My daughter and I have been talking about writing a professional book, so if this ever comes to fruition, we now have a good idea about how to approach it. It seems to me that co-writing is more common in the academic arena and probably easier than having to mesh plot ideas. Good luck on your future endeavors. You have inspired me to take the initial steps with my daughter.
Rita, I’m delighted to hear that! I know of a mother/daughter writing team in the mystery world, and their books are great fun. Thanks for commenting.
Thanks Melodie,
My co-author Liz Lindsay and I write under the name of Jamie Tremain. You have outlined the highs and lows or collaboration and we still feel that the highs out weigh the lows. In our first year, when we felt we had a book that was perhaps publishable we signed a contract outlining what we both expected out of our enterprise. We trusted each other completely from the start. We were colleagues for many years but now I’m retired and Liz still slogs away in corporate land.
As Melodie mentioned, ego can’t be an issue and we have to work with each others strengths or weaknesses. We write mostly on-line and occasionally Skype, but once or twice a month we have a face to face when we can brainstorm and plot our next move. We have built our ‘platform” on social media and have finally found a publisher. Now we are working on revisions for our editor.
The best part of collaborative writing is the trust and friendship. Nothing is going to happen unless these two components jive. I have a problem with pacing.I have more time on my hands than Liz who works and commutes everyday. Then life gets in the way and we do some waiting. I believe Liz’s beef would be my computer skills or lack thereof. They can get me into a lot of trouble. But she shores me up as I hope I do for her.
Having fun would be the top of my list and the friendships I’ve made in the writing community. If you are considering collaboration…Go for it!
That’s a great testimonial, Pamela! And I think having fun must be the main goal. Writing a book together is a great reason to get together regularly. And even if you fall into a slump with your own projects, your writing partner won’t let you drop this one. Another great reason to co-write!
Thank you, Melodie, for your lovely illustration of our friendship and writing partnership. Ditto of course!
I am often in awe of the multitude of collaborators that create the films that we all love, especially at this time of year when the Oscars approach. Those seemingly endless lists of credits speak to what creative types can accomplish when they share a belief.
As it happens, right this minute, I’m collaborating with hubby Yves to remove the old top of my writing desk and put a large antique mirror in its place. Sort of an artistic endeavour [n’est-ce pas?] and we’re both contributing our very best skills. To Yves the application of silicone glue!
Happy Valentine’s Day everyone!
And Cindy – there’s our next challenge: writing for film! Meet you in Orangeville. Make time for lunch at our little bistro.
It sounds like you have a wonderful partnership. Thanks for the tips.
Thanks for commenting, Sue!
This is such a timely post for me, Melodie, and so entertaining too. I write fiction on my own but I have been co-writing screenplays with a partner in another country for about 10 months. We write by sketching an outline first and then taking each scene in turn. Once written, we send each other the scene and whoever didn’t write it does an edit. What I find astounding is how much better the work is, particularly in screenwriting, where it has to be incredibly tight. A lacklustre scene can be transformed with just 2 or 3 tweaks by the writing partner which nails the original intent. It’s about having someone who is as involved as you are, but also has the ability to stand back from it at the same time. It’s hard work too, constantly agreeing and disagreeing and compromising, but appropriately for Valentine’s Day, it really is better with two!
Tara, you nailed it with the sentence, “It’s about having someone who is as involved as you are, but also has the ability to stand back from it at the same time.” Cindy and I also write scene by scene, and hand off to the other. I admire you, doing it with someone in another country. That is a brilliant collaboration – across kingdoms! Could be the theme for a sci-fi novel: writers collaborating across planets. 😉
Hi Melodie, not only am I fellow Canadian. I live in Wasaga Beach, and we share the same last name. Marcy Kennedy, editor extraordinaire, also co-authored a novel with Lisa Wilson so I know it can be done. Thanks for sharing your experience. Thanks to you too, Anne ? Happy Valentine’s Day ❤️
So nice to meet you, Tracy! You live in a beautiful part of the province. Thanks for commenting 🙂
I would love to co write a novel, thanks for these insights. Gives me lots to think about.
Thanks for commenting, Coreena!
Melodie, This is fascinating. I’ve never thought of collaborating in any serious way before. Once or twice I’ve thought about it because one of my writer friends and I share similar philosophies on style and subject matter, but it’s never become more than a thought. But who knows? Maybe we should give it a try. Thanks so much for the tips and for sharing your experience!
Jan, I think the trick is, to keep it fun. A partnership of friends first, before a business partnership. Thanks for commenting!
Hi, Melodie. Thanks for your post. What are your thoughts on using a pen name for a collaborative work?
Tina, I think it’s a good idea, particularly if the two of you are not established writers. The advantage of using real names would be that current readers of one author might be looking for more books by that author. But it’s easier to establish a ‘brand’ with a single name.
Great article, Mel. You have covered the co-author scene very well.
Pam Blance and I write under the name of Jamie Tremain and have been doing so for almost ten years!
Your blog has covered so much of what we have experienced over the years, hard to think of anything to add.
A few years ago we drew up a legal partnership agreement that we felt was equitable. I believe this is vitally important, because as we all know, life does not always work out as planned.
We live about an hour apart so do try and arrange for face to face time as often as possible. Google docs allows us to collaborate in real time. Skype and email are invaluable, but when it comes to the nitty gritty you can’t beat hashing things out over countless cups of coffee (and dishes of chocolate covered almonds). We’ve also found that you can’t beat reading the story aloud to each other. Fantastic was to catch a lot of errors or plot faults.
We draw on each other’s strengths to compensate for what we individually fall short on. Pam is great with networking and draws on past experience in her business world. She’s been known to approach total strangers in malls or bookstores to promote Jamie Tremain or a fellow author’s book, and always with a business card or other promotional material at hand. That’s really difficult for me and I prefer to work behind the scenes keeping us organized with accounts and tracking lists. For our stories Pam often provides the bones and I have fun putting the flesh on. Then we re-read, revise, and re-read again.
Building a platform is essential. Long before we received our first contract, our brand was well established. Blogging and being active on social media has enabled the name Jamie Tremain to be recognized within the writing community. Part of our niche is author interviews and we are always willing to provide reviews.
And of course, actual plotting can be fun, on several levels. An idea is hatched, then the what if’s and how to’s come into play. Even more fun is, as you mentioned in the article, being overheard.
One sunny Saturday, Pam and I sat outside on my townhouse patio discussing a plot idea, and we were well into an idea when next door neighbours settled into their own patio. There was silence on the other side of the fence when, “….he’s a dirty cop. How can we easily get rid of him?” became part of Jamie Tremain’s discussion.
Serious writing on any level is hard work. To balance that you do need to have fun – and a partnership can provide that. The fun is vitally important to keep things fresh and motivating. Honestly, I don’t know how solitary authors do it!
Liz, thanks so much for sharing your experiences! I agree with you about the fun aspect. Writing with a partner is a very different experience for me than writing solitary. I relax and kick back, when writing our shared books. When I am alone with my own series, it is more frenzied. Of course, I have these darn deadlines…grin
This is an excellent article, especially when you’re looking to take co-writing to the next level.
Co-writing in a play-by-post role playing game site was actually how I got started in creative writing to begin with. Unlike most writers I had to figure out how to strike out on my own and craft stories without the infectious collaboration of multiple people tossing ideas around like a preteen food fight. In comparison the ideas in only one mind can feel rather tame; however, it is easier to create a tighter storyline working solo.
I mostly do co-writing now for fun on websites like rpol.net, which has all the benefits of collaborative work without the sometimes negative stress that comes with writing for publication. It’s more addicting than Facebook, and my solo writing stays fresh because of the intimate exposure to other people’s creative process.
Nova, you bring a delightful new perspective to this co-writing discussion. “More addictive than Facebook” – I think many of us can relate to that (smile). Thanks for commenting!
What an awesome article! I have often considered writing with a co-writer, but have never pursued it. Not yet. I’m hoping James Patterson will take me on. 😉
Grin – James Patterson, eh? You’re a LOT better looking, Cheryl 🙂