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Visual Thinking and Writing?


  • Caterell
    Apr 11 12:07 AM
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    I am naturally a visual thinker: which creates a few problems when it comes to writing - namely that i see everything as a 'whole' Like a giant photograph with everything in the present at once, and it makes seperating it all out into logical sequences for writing a bit difficult...

    i'm not planning to give up on writing because of it, but i was wondering, does anyone else have similar problems - and does anyone have some good techniques for overcoming them?

    my problem is mainly, when I am writing, I have trouble putting the sentences and paragraphs into an order that flows, makes sense, and leads on to the next paragraph. I know what i want to say, i know what words and descriptions to use, i just have no idea what order is best to write them in!

    anyone else experience this?

  • GuitarShank
    April 11 ↑
    Reply
    The only time my visual thinking ever gets in the way is at work, since I'm a lifeguard and the images cover my entire vision. When I snap back from it I feel like I zoned out, when really, I was just thinking.

    As for writing, try to switch back and forth. When you see someone do something, get out of the visual mode and write what you saw, then go back. Not sure if it'll help, but it's worth a shot.

    The biggest help I have though is just this: Write. Don't worry about the flow right off the bat; that's what editing's for. Even better, put a piece down for a month or so, then go back and read it so it's not as fresh in your mind. This helps you judge your own work without bias. From here, you may be able to fix your flow and such more easily than you would have while writing the original draft.

    Hope this helps

  • Myryca
    April 12 ↑
    Reply
    I get this sometimes. For instance, when my character first walks in a room and I have to describe what the room looks like - when you walk in a room for the first time you kind of see everything at once (or you get a first overall impression of everything) so you don't know what to describe first.

    But I think I mostly get it when it's a fight scene or some sort of action sequence where lots of things are happening at once. Sometimes I catch myself trying to describe everything which is just a big no-no with action and other times I have difficulty knowing what order to write things down in.

    Often with that I find I have to force myself to take a step back or I have to grit my teeth and force myself to leave out details and cut the sentences short even though it doesn't seem to flow right at the time. But afterwards, when I read back over it, the short sentences that didn't seem to flow at the time usually fit. Or else, as Shank said, you can more easily fix the flow during editing.

  • Caterell
    April 14 ↑
    Reply

    Thankyou

    Some good advice here. I had begun trying some of this before posting, and I believe I am making improvements. It is nice to know I apparently had the right sort of idea to begin with. I will keep at it.

  • scriptor
    April 14 ↑
    Reply
    I'm not a visual thinker and, to me, that causes problems in my writing more that anything- i can't visualize aspects, actions, landmarks, and all that stuff in between so im not sure exactly how i should describe it and it gives me trouble.

  • Pyro Fish
    April 17 ↑
    Reply
    write them in the wrong order, on a piece of notebook paper or a word proccessoer file that no one but you will see, just get all of the individual sentences down on paper before you try to re-arange the order of the sentences, what you seem to be doing is the job of "editor" but because you yourself are the writer, you're putting the cart before the horse, trying to "edit" before you actually have anything there to alter

  • Caterell
    April 20 ↑
    Reply

    Thank you

    Some really helpful tips coming out

  • Marta
    May 13 ↑
    Reply

    Visuals good. Learn to focus and harness your energy. Practice writing the scenes they way they come to you in your mind and go slowly--maybe you are rushing through the process of writing--remember to breath.

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