Has anyone experienced this while writing? Like, you're just writing your story, chapter, whatever and then BAM, millions and millions of ideas, pictures, scenarios come to your head about various parts of the book you're writing. And when you try to take your pen to write it, another one hits you, leaving you with no results...
Actually this happens when I'm asleep. I dream my book/characters making different decisions, winding up with different people. It's really frustrating because the ideas play out in a very exciting manner but they also demand drastic changes. Half the time it freezes my ability to continue.
Plot the book you intend to write and write the scene your protagonist is experiencing. There are millions of different paths your story can take. So what? It's not the plot that matters, it's how your protagonist reacts to the events that makes the story interesting. The plot only serves to test their determination and worthiness for recieving of our support. It's how involved you make the reader, and how well you slant things so the reader feels they would have made the same decision the protagonist did in each instance of choice. That's the writer's art. Placing your reader in an interesting situation, and giving them reason to take the protagonist's problems so seriously they worry about the welfare of that character is your goal, not providing a series of plot points. Making the reader care about the protagonist trumps plot every time. That's not to say that plot doesn't matter, but it's the framework for the emotional part of the story, which is what entertains. And entertainment is the name of the game.
This, dear sir, is the most enlightening post for new writers. But, I did pre-plot my whole book, characters, scenes, system, everything. And still I feel the need to expand my writing since the protagonist of my first book is described as emotionless, which we can agree is not the best buyer of readers. And there come ideas on how to do it in brainstorm. Unfortunally, that still ain't working.
