Hello,

As you can see from my stats I’ve been a member of WW for quite a while and been generally lurking around

I originally registered when I was working on a story (I am yet to refer to it as a novel, that would be way too much pressure!), which is subsequently shelved because it simply didn’t work.

I did the cardinal mistake of not having a clear ending, and I thought I could sort-of go with the flow. It worked in the past for much shorter stories, but as I hit the 50 K word mark I just couldn’t go on. No amount of editing was going to fix the underlying issues with the plot.

Since then, I’ve been writing bits and pieces but nothing with much commitment.

Anyway, last week (which is a year or two on after I shelved the story) I was at the airport and had about two hours downtime. I forgot the book I was reading and had very little money on me, so I bought a very cheap notepad and pen, and started to jot down some ideas.

An hour later, voila`, I had ironed out all the issues with my original story, got rid of all characters that didn’t work (which in hindsight were sooo autobiographic, *shudder*) and had an excellent ending (if I say so myself - when I came up with it I was a bit stunned at my momentary brilliance haha).

I have no idea how it happened, as I didn’t really set out to work on it, but I am really pleased with the outcome.

I am currently ironing out a clear and simple structure and making sure I don’t make the same mistakes, so that I don’t end up reaching a dead-end or veering in the wrong direction as I did originally (the hippy inside me isn’t too happy with this).

It’s been a learning curve, as it turns out I can’t just wing it but need a clear plan.

Anyway, it’s good to be here. I mightn’t be able to post much with Christmas coming up, but what I am trying to say is, you’ll probably see me around as I am now reinvigorated with this new-found enthusiasm and plot. All I need to do now it start writing.

Steph

Steph

I have no idea how it happened, as I didn’t really set out to work on it, but I am really pleased with the outcome.

It often seems that the brain works better while we're concentrating elsewhere. I suppose it's working away in the background while we're not inhibiting it with preconceived ideas.

It can also be very productive when a piece of work changes direction completely and the original concept becomes the trigger for something different and better.

It sounds like you're now onto a good track and that this time it will really work for you.

Chris

Ah, the power of the subconscious! You've probably been working on the difficulties of your plot without even realising it and, given some downtime, out it all poured. Congratulations, sounds like a real breakthrough.

I wonder if you have difficulty putting time aside to write? It can be a real block to creativity, I think, if you feel you 'should' be doing something else. Maybe being stuck in an airport with nothing else to be getting on with was the key to unleashing your subconscious?

You may have just redefined the term 'airport fiction'. Best of luck with it.

Sounds brilliant. I do think that things do often sort themselves out when you're not trying to hard, when there isn't too much riding on it. Good luck with it.

That's exciting to hear, Steph. I've experienced that myself, when a story seems to be stuck at a dead end and then suddenly you have an inspiration that undoes all the knots and reveals the ending to you!

But I am coming to the conclusion that it's far more efficient to iron all that out before you actually start writing. Even though I'm the type of person who only discovers the story as I'm actually writing it... which wastes a lot of time, unfortunately

Thanks It's good to hear it's happened to others too! I am still planning things though, I feel like the end of this story is just the beginning of a plot bigger picture, and I am curious to see what happens (if anything).

Any over-analysers out there? I am usually more of a "let's go with the flow and hope you can wing it" kind of gal, but this time it's different, and I am wondering whether I am over-thinking it.

It's hard for me to strike a balance, but this new approach seems to make a refreshing change so I'll just stick with it for now.

Thanks again for taking time in replying to me by the way!

Steph

You'd probably benefit from sketching out the plot, writing down what needs to happen in each chapter in terms of plot development, rather than the detail of exactly how it happens or where. That way, you have a clear route map but with plenty of opportunities for creativity along the way. Some people use index cards with the bear minimum of words on each, then pin them on a board so that they can move them around if necessary.

Thanks for the suggestion, I actually stole EmmaD’s idea, on her blog she wrote about how she used a “plotting grid” (thanks for sharing it Emma!) so now I have a clear outline of what is happening, all in the one place.

It was actually very helpful because at the minute the story follows three different timelines/POVs, and I can now clearly see where they meet and how long they are with regards to one another.

What I am working on now (I use the term “work” loosely. I don’t have a great amount of spare time at the minute and with Christmas and other things coming up, and that’s not likely to change for a few more weeks) is deciding the background of my characters. I don’t particularly want to have their in-depth life story written out, but I think a biography will help me put in perspective why they do what they do, and I’m keen to see for myself how people’s experiences can modify their train of thought/behaviour. I don’t expect to use too much of it for the story itself mind you.

On a related note, my friend gave me a horse riding lesson a few weeks ago (I have been on a horse a total of two times over the space of five years, check me out) and she taught me that, when you’re looking to “steer” the horse (what’s the right word for this? *too tired for this!) you need to look at where you’re going, as your body will naturally lean towards the direction you’re looking at and it helps the horse know where you want to go.

I think that you can apply this to some degree to your writing; if you know why X is behaving the way he does you can implicitly make it transpire by their mannerisms/the way the talk or think, which will hopefully make them more three-dimensional (one of my per hates for example is when a character is evil/good/ bitchy/ etc, just because it suits the story).

I understand that people will have been born with certain character traits (I am naturally moody, for example) but your environment shapes you and certain experiences will bring out some qualities whilst curbing or acerbating others.

Sorry I am blabbering. Hope all this makes sense, it’s is really the first time I’ve analysed my writing (I usually just write) and I have a sense that it’ll help me in the long run, it’s actually quite fun.

Yes, I don’t have much of a life

You're welcome, Steph. I do think that even if you don't end up using it all through your process, it can be very helpful at some stages, such pondering which bits of the story should be told from where, or as un-scrambling a plot problem that involves who-knows and who-doesn't-yet-know whatever.

when you’re looking to “steer” the horse (what’s the right word for this? *too tired for this!) you need to look at where you’re going, as your body will naturally lean towards the direction you’re looking at and it helps the horse know where you want to go.

D'you know, I ride a bit, and knew this, but I'd never made the connection with writing, where I also know that I know where I need to be going, for the characters to follow me...

I can feel a blog post coming on! Thank you, Steph.

Emma

I don't ride a horse but I do ride a bike and I rode a tricycle for a long while. There's definitely a difference between the two. The bike will steer you but you definitely need to steer the trike otherwise you'll end up in a heap.

<Added>

Maybe there's a difference there between the bike of a short story and the trike of a novel.

I can feel a blog post coming on! Thank you, Steph.

'Tis true, I am a muse.

No need to thank me, it’s what I do.

(Some free poetry there for ya, yes I am that talented)

@ Jem, I think you’re onto something there. All the stories where I was able to just “write and see what happens” have all been short stories. Anything more substantial, and after a while I was in trouble.

Apparently Stephen King doesn’t plan his endings, which is really noticeable in some of his novels. Definitely the sort of thing I want to avoid.

I guess I’ll just have to start riding the proverbial trike from now on? (You’ve just created a proverb Jem, we’re making history on this thread!)

Hi...I'm newbie here. Nice to meet you all.

Hi Yashmeens. You were hidden away. Good luck on WriteWords. I hope your time spent on here is as useful to you as it has been to me. The people are lovely, really helpful too.

Hi Yashmeens - welcome to WW. Hope you're finding your way around, and if you need any help, just stand in the middle of the forum and shout!

Emma