Planned chaos: Sarah Armstrong on freewriting and rewriting
Local writer Sarah’s Armstrong’s second novel, His Other House, was published on 1 March by Pan Macmillan. Her first novel, Salt Rain, was shortlisted for several prizes including the Miles Franklin. As she works on her third novel, she reflects on how her approach to writing has changed over the years. There’s something exhilarating about writing a novel and having absolutely no idea where the story is going. Anything is possible and unexpected twists in the plot can pop up, seemingly out of nowhere. I once read someone describe writing a first draft as groping your way blindfolded through a strange room. I’ve heard many writers commend this approach to a first draft, most recently Jeanettte Winterson, who was the standout guest at last year’s Byron Bay Writers Festival. She encouraged writers to let their work be wayward and uncontrollable and spoke of the ‘necessary chaos.’ I’ve always urged my writing students to use freewriting* in their first drafts, worried that too much planning or thinking might prematurely constrain their writing; worried that they might …
BYRON BAY WRITERS' FESTIVAL BLOG 