Commitment Issues

As some of you know, a few months ago I started on my resolution for this year of writing a novel. 

It was going pretty well. I really liked my idea and I thought the plot and characters were quite interesting, but making it come to life was kind of like pulling teeth. Like pulling my own teeth. With no anaesthetic. And only rusty screwdrivers as tools. 

So yeah. It wasn't going very well and I was feeling pretty disheartened. 

I also noticed that I didn't really want to talk about it. Which was worrying because some of the sites I had seen on writing novels said that it can be really helpful for authors to talk about their ideas with trusted friends or to let people know that they are writing a novel to help keep them motivated. I know this isn't for everyone, but I didn't even want to admit to people that I was writing, let alone discuss the content.  

I guess in hindsight I should have seen that as a warning, but alas, I pushed on. 

I pushed on for a few months with no success at all.

Finally I got fed up with the whole thing, and interestingly that's when everything started to fall into place. 

I resolved to stop writing (hence the blog inactivity), or thinking about writing, or reading about writing, or trying to talk about writing. I just stopped. 

I focused on my normal everyday life and trying to kick the cough that had been bugging me for weeks. 

That's when it happened. That's when I had the idea that has made me happier about writing than I have been in months. 

It was an idea for a new story. It started out as a random thought and developed quite quickly into a plot and characters and conflicts. 

I have progressed further with this story in two days than I did with the last one in all the months I was working on it. 

It seems wrong to jump from one thing to another. I feel like my commitment issues are coming out to play and I know this might be a huge mistake, but here I am, powering through the random notebook that I hurriedly bought at Coles the other night. :)

Here's hoping this streak of inspiration lasts a little longer. :)

Planning or Pantsing?

Planning or pantsing? That is the question.
As I mentioned in my last post, I am determined to write a novel this year and right now I am well and truly caught up in the 'How' debate.

I have had this long standing superstition that the ability to write something great is directly related to the medium used. Like if I find the perfect note book I will somehow be more able to write the perfect novel. It's ridiculous, I know, but that doesn't stop me walking into every stationary store that I see.
This long standing theory of mine has led me well and truly down the rabbit hole in all questions regarding how to write a novel. Do I want to write in ink on paper or type on the computer? Do I want to follow some kind of guideline or book and plan it all out (Planning) or do I just sit at my computer and start typing (Pantsing)? How will each of these methods assist and restrict my ability to write when and where I want to write? If I opt for paper, how will I keep it all organised? If I opt for computer will I need to buy some kind of software package to help me along the way?

There are so many different options and so many different opinions, but what works for someone else might not work for me. It's crazy.
Who knew there were so many different ways to write a book? I sure as hell didn't.

After a lot of research I think I am going to do a bit of planning first just because at the moment I feel totally overwhelmed by the whole process, and some structure might help.

Now I just have to decide how I'm going to do it.
There are tonnes of different software packages designed to help writers organise their thoughts and research and character profiles and things. I have used Scrivener before and really enjoyed it, but it was a little confusing and time consuming to figure out. Plus these things tie you to one computer and I like the idea of working anywhere. They also cost money, even if they do usually offer a free trial, and I have always kind of felt like I write better with just a pen and some paper.

So. Pen and paper it is then.
Now, originally I thought I would want to write in a really beautiful note book that I could carry around with me all the time. Now I'm not so sure because obviously I will need multiple note books and how will I keep it all organised? I'm going to be all over the place at the start, sometimes working on character profiles, sometimes on plot problems. It seems really organic and awesome to just work on it all as it comes, but I can't imagine that I will be super happy when I start actually writing and have to sort through it all to find certain bits and pieces of information.

So now I don't really know what to do.

*sigh*
I just wanna write a book...  :/

Suggestions from anyone who has been here before would be greatly appreciated. :[