It’s six o’clock on a random Wednesday evening. My husband is cooking dinner, and I’m desperately trying to get this blog post written (which I have been writing said blog post for about two weeks now — which is a little pathetic considering it really isn’t even that long and was due to be posted last Monday). I have been in the process of prepping a new project — my first novel under a deadline that I didn’t set for myself. This is both exciting and terrifying. One thing I do to keep the scaries at bay is prep. Before the plot and deep character outlines, there are 5 things I always do to prep for a new project.
These aren’t hard and fast rules. They aren’t five things that every author needs to do before they start writing a project. These are just five things I have found helpful to stay organized which I find especially helpful when you’re juggling multiple projects.
5 Things to Prep for a New Project
Buy a new notebook — I always seem to grab Moleskine Cahier lined notebooks. Honestly, any notebook will do I have just found what I like and have a hard time using anything else. This notebook is the place where I dump all the things. Thoughts, ideas, lists, snippets of chapters, etc. You can see an example of a past project notebook here.
Set up Scrivner — I love setting up a new project in Scrivner. I create an aesthetic with colors and fonts. Drop-in my character sketches, outline, notes, etc. (yes, basically this is my project notebook in digital form — I have to have both or my brain won’t work).
Playlist — I use Spotify for creating all my playlists. I will also admit I’m really bad at coming up with playlists for my contemporary stories. Battle scenes. End of the world books. I have those playlists covered, but when it comes to romcoms … I end up listening to lots of Taylor Swift and Ed Sherren with some We Bought a Zoo and Me Before You score/soundtracks thrown in.
Pin Board — I probably spend way too long on Pinterest. I love creating mood boards — what my characters look like, the setting in which they live, clothes they way, and any images that just have the “feel” I’m going for.
Scent — I love scents to ground me into a project. Because I live in an apartment and one of the rules is we can’t burn candles, I’ve had to get creative. Instead of burning candles, I have created a special scent for my work in progress that I can diffuse while working on that particular project. This is especially helpful when you’re working on multiple projects. (Just for the curious, It Happened at Christmas‘s scent was YoungLiving’s Christmas Spirit. My current WIP which has major beach vibes is a scent mix between lime, copaiba, and YoungLiving’s Stress Away blend.) Another plus to using essential oils, when you’re working remotely—like I do much of the time—you can wear it as a perfume. You’re welcome.
What about you? What do you do to prep for a new project?
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