A writer writes.

It sounds so simple. But there is no single method for creating a story. Some writers spend days or weeks outlining a book or write scenes on little cards that they shuffle and reorder until they have the optimum “beats” for their book. Only then can they begin writing their story. These writers are often called “plotters.”

Other writers spend hours, days, or weeks getting to know their characters. From the character’s favorite color, to the type of socks they wear or why they won’t wear any socks at all, to what they most liked and disliked about their dead grandma — these writers have to know everything about their characters.

One writer I know starts with how she wants to make a reader feel when they read her book — scared? happy? satisfied? dissatisfied? She writes toward the mood she wants to create.

Other writers start with a conflict or a “logline.” That’s basically a good idea. But a good book doesn’t always result from a good idea. The writer may never find the right point of view to tell their story behind the idea, or there may not be enough “meat” to the idea, that is enough conflict or depth to draw the reader into a novel. And sometimes a great book has a boring logline, which is the case for A Gentleman in Moscow, which takes place entirely in a hotel and the main character is a man forced to live his entire life under house — er, hotel — arrest. How much interesting stuff can happen over decades in a hotel? Yet it’s a beautifully written book that sucks readers in.

Other writers find that extensive outlining takes the joy out of the creative process. They like to discover the story as they write. Sometimes they know the ending. Sometimes they don’t. This method, adherents of which are frequently called “pantsers” because they write by the “seat of their pants,” generally results in more drafts. This is because the author doesn’t know where the story is going, so they wind up taking more detours and having to revise more.

    Some writers can only write with pencil and paper. Some have to have yellow legal pads, while others love moleskin notebooks. Some writers wouldn't dream of attempting to write anything without their laptop or computer and can't imagine deciphering their scrawling penmanship later. Some can only write using a specific, made-for-writing-novels program. Others wing it in a basic word program. Some writers obsess over typeface and spacing and word count. Others let the story dictate the length of the book.

    Some writers write whatever scene happens to be speaking to them on a given day no matter where the scene falls in the order of the book. Others start with the book’s first sentence and proceed until they get to the end. Other writers leave gaps in the time line with a cryptic comment holding space for entire scenes or chapters. (For example, they write, Something bad happens to X here.)

Some revise each new page until it's a glowing gem of prose before moving on to the next page. Others never edit at all until the entire book is written. Others do a combination of these, going over the previous day's work before recording new words or going back to fix a problem earlier in the manuscript that resulted from decisions made later in the process.

    I begin each writing session by reading over and editing the previous day's work. I don't set time or word limits for myself, but I like to get 4 to 5 pages or 1,500 words written when I’m drafting a new novel. I'm a pantser who has been trying to use some of the plotter's tools to curb the number of drafts I write. I try to write several days a week since my life doesn't allow me to write every day. I write on a computer while listening to music — hopefully with no disturbances. I can't write in coffee shops or in public — partly because I sometimes act out expressions or gestures that my characters make and partly because I find the noise and interruptions too distracting.