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  1. Stammis

    Stammis Banned

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    Let the Story Happen

    Discussion in 'Plot Development' started by Stammis, Aug 24, 2019.

    For those that write on intuition, do you sometimes find it difficult to continue writing on certain parts? Like you hit a wall when before words flowed like water? I often wondered why that is. It's not like I hit the dreaded middle point or anything, it's too early, or too late for that to happen.

    I personally think it's because that certain parts are not supposed to be. If you've written parts of the story already, chances are that you have a plot in your mind and you try to make the characters reach those points. For planners, or whatever they are called, I call them planners, that's perfectly fine, but for those that rely on intuition, that is how a story die.

    I recently read Stephen King's book On Writing and he says that plot just happen. I have to agree. You cannot force your characters to do anything, at least I can't - they struggle...

    I have tried a lot of ways to write but I think the way I find most enjoyment from writing is when I let go. I clear my mind and make it a point to never use anything I've already written. I will rewrite the story over and over until the characters stop struggling.

    I don't know if this will produce particularly good stories. There are many things one must consider when making a story, but if it flows easily and doesn't resist, I think that's a good foundation to expand on.
     
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  2. NiallRoach

    NiallRoach Contributor Contributor

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    I'm not one for structure in any part of my life, and certainly not in writing, but if something feels wrong then it's a very good idea to go back and look at it with structure in mind.
    If I'm struggling with writing a certain scene, standing in the shower for a few minutes and really attempting to nail down what I want the scene to do in the context of the overall story tends to help. Maybe I'm struggling because the scene is irrelevant, or because the character motivations don't really make sense, or because there's just zero tension and nothing is actually happening.
     
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  3. KerryD

    KerryD New Member

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    for me its more that i am unfamiliar with how an event actually should go.
    For example I need this scene in one of my stories and i have no idea how this event would actually happen:
    Someone from a mid size company needs to approach a slightly larger company to get a meeting;
    the smaller business wants to buy a minor asset the bigger co-op owns that may or may not be 'for sale'. He doesn't know if they will even consider it.
     
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  4. StoryForest

    StoryForest Banned

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    I would love to be able to write on-the-go! But I'm one of those that need to have a very clear vision before I write. I plan out all the time because I really enjoy that part of storybuilding. I hear it's the reverse for a lot of writers though. And I find the writers that like writing more than planning are often times the more skilled writers. They write beautifully and can do things with language and words that I can only dream of. I think it's because that's how they "flow" just like how I "flow" when I plan a story, they "flow" when they write.
     
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  5. The Bishop

    The Bishop Senior Member

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    That's the exact same problem I have. It might be I don't understand my character enough, but I feel that I do. So, I don't know, but I feel the same
     
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  6. Stammis

    Stammis Banned

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    The most important thing to me is that when something feels wrong, I don't ignore it, which is very easy to do because I'm generally lazy. I tell myself it's not a big deal then it bites me in the ass later down the line. I find that as long as the premise is clear, I have a good foundation to do anything.
     
  7. Alex R. Encomienda

    Alex R. Encomienda Contributor Contributor

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    I tried writing stories with only a simple idea or premise in mind but I can't pull that off. It always feels too disjointed, even after editing several times. I need to know exactly how I'm going to organize the story and what kind of personalities I want the characters to show in order for it to work. The actual writing is a little easier after I have a specific way I want things to go.

    Some people have minds that serve them dishes after dishes though. I wish I was that kind of writer.
     
  8. OrdinaryJoe

    OrdinaryJoe Active Member

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    I was unable for many years to "flow" when writing. Still have long stints of time that nothing creative happens. But, I found that if I visualize my story in my own head it helps me quite a bit. When I get stuck I imagine what it would be like to watch the scene in a movie. This came about from listening to audio books. I drive several hours at a time for work and I started listening to books to keep up on them. As the story was being told I could see what was going on in my mind. I just applied this to when I try and write. If I can't imagine what it might look like I cant find the words to write down.
     
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  9. ItalianCri

    ItalianCri Member

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    I think I am a hybrid between a planner and someone who follows intuition. I like to imagine embryonic plots and characters, but I'm also open to changes. It's fantastic when a character shows me his real intentions and feelings, even if they are different than my plan. It's a taste of their free will for me. As for the plot, I make changes to story's credibility. I had a problem in my past: I tried to write stories following the scenes' order like as I thought the manuscript's final result should has been. Now I have noticed that by focusing first on the scenes that are strongest in my imagination, I get better results, also in terms of continuing the story itself. Then I write and insert other scenes, I let them become stronger first. I don't flow, not anymore: I often enrich scenes later.
     
  10. The Dapper Hooligan

    The Dapper Hooligan (V) ( ;,,;) (v) Contributor

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    I plot, but I don't force my characters to do anything. I create a character, and if I want them to be at a certain place at the end of the story, I create a set of circumstances in which they would willingly choose to go there. It's like how in real life if you know somebody and want them to do something for you, you say certain things, offer them material rewards, and/or manipulate them emotionally until they do it. I still get stuck, because I'm not magic, but having a plot goals, like distant things I want in my story, always gives me something to think about when it comes to getting my characters from point A to point B. I more frequently get stuck when I have ill defined story goals and ill defined characters. So I plot, but I also have to allow room for flexibility, because sometimes during a draft I do get better ideas, or my characters change or take on new traits and I have to take that into account. I've personally found that putting work into plotting before a story greatly reduces the time it takes to finish a draft, reduces the time it takes editing for consistency, and makes me far less frustrated than when I'm trying to figure this out as I go. If you're writing just for the fun of it and aren't really worried about deadlines, then yeah, you write however you most enjoy writing, but it doesn't really work for me. Also, as much as I respect Stephen King, his books do have some flaws that I do think are directly related to his writing process. I do enjoy some of his books, and most of the books of his I've read have really good parts in them, but very few of them, especially his later ones, don't contain segments that are just terrible to get through. They drag horribly, contain almost no relevant information, and kill whatever pacing was built. Not only that, but a lot of his stories just don't have very satisfying endings. Some plot threads don't so much end as just fall apart and die, if they're even tied up at all. It may work for him, but I really don't want that in my own work. To each their own, though.
     
  11. peachalulu

    peachalulu Member Reviewer Contributor

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    The reverse happens to me I usually wind up rolling one scene into another and then I have a hard time making the scene cut off and starting up again via * * *
    Worse I include bits that need some kind of follow up.
    It's a lot easier in the second draft but man what a lot of writing I have to wad through. I have to actually turn my imagination off and make really hard cuts. I don't struggle to find the next scene I struggle with eliminating scenes/options.
     

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