Nathan Bransford - The Forums

Claudie wrote:

writersink wrote:

, but not if people are nearby, or especially if they're right behind me.

I love that!

Haha, yes, me too. And I also have the same problem. I can't write if someone is close enough to read, even if they aren't reading. It's just... what if? And whether I'm writing Nano-crap, a paper for school and something creative, I CANNOT do it if someone reads, so that's a big no-no. I don't think it's all that weird, though. Most of my writer-friend have the same problem. Then again, perhaps we're all weird. (wait. No perhaps. We ARE all weird)

"What if..." I just realised I have the exact same problem! And if someone actually has the nerve to come up to me and start reading aloud I slam the laptop cover down and won't budge until they are far, far away.

I write on the metro rail (D.C. subway) which means that fellow riders can see the netbook screen. At first, it hindered me. But now, if I catch them looking at my screen, I look at them and they stop. Apparently, I have a scary enough glare. As for people looking over my shoulder from behind me, as long as I can't see them, I can pretend they're not there and keep going.

I have wondered whether my pacing is affected by the fact that nearly the entire novel has been written on the metro in twenty minute snippets.

Here's a weird habit that has annoyed critique partners: I title each scene and I don't split the writing into chapters. I figure the chapter divisions can come after I've finished with the story. However, in the meanwhile, I've been told that it undercuts the suspense when a scene is titled something like, "Bob's Death."