Honestly, I don't really have a clue what to write next after the first chapter. The genre would definitely be YA, but a little dark. The novel starts with the main character looking for a grave of a loved one in a thunderstorm. He is blaming himself for the death of his friend (it may be his very fault; it could be interesting to discover that at the end of the story, though). Maybe he was part of a bad group and he tries his best to forget about that part of his life. I'm not sure what the plot could be about, so that's why I'm asking you if you have suggestions. I'm sorry, it may not be much to continue from. That's the best I could come up with. Thank you.
“Alice asked the Cheshire Cat, who was sitting in a tree, “What road do I take?” The cat asked, “Where do you want to go?” “I don’t know,” Alice answered. “Then,” said the cat, “it really doesn’t matter, does it?”
It sounds like you have a beginning and an end in mind. My recommendation is to sketch out a broad outline of the story in a mind-map on a piece of paper or a whiteboard. Try to create a story arc. If that's not your style and you prefer to let your story lead you, then start by developing your plot themes from your first chapter. Let those leads draw you to the next chapter, and the one after that, and so on. For example, explore: How and why your story is dark. Why is your main character looking for a grave of a loved one in a thunderstorm? Is he in a hurry, perhaps? Maybe it is part of a dark ritual? Maybe it is an unbreakable routine? Does he not want to be seen? Explore the backstory of the friends. Explore the events leading up to the friend's death. Explore your protagonist's psychology in the lead up to the blame. Is he, for example, sensitive, callous, timid? How does that profile play out in the story? Explore the bad group. Why are they bad? Why is he trying to forget? What is the relevance of the bad group to the story? Remember to try to show and not tell. What I mean by that is instead of telling us that your character is callous, for example, rather show this by way of one or more scenes where his actions, words and demeanour come across as callous. Doing this makes your protagonist and the rest of your story come alive for a reader, rather than just attaching a label to something or someone. I hope this helps and good hunting!
If you've already got ideas within the story write them out. My current WIP after I wrote the opening I wrote the end then filled in the middle. Doing this I knew where my characters would end up. All I had to do was get them there. (haha, all). I wrote down a dream I had and one of the people in it became a character in my story. This works for me. I can't write from beginning to end. I need to put things in the middle. Sometimes I have ideas I'm not ready to put in the story but don't want to lose so I write them out. Sometimes this results in great character/world building opportunities. Sometimes they get purged. Also my current story barely resembles what it started as. It's the same basic story but I changed the way I was telling it.
It sure helped me a lot. Thank you! There are a lot of questions I need to answer in order to develop the plot and that's what I'm going to do.
I can only tell you what works for me... Sit down in a quiet room with your computer open to a blank page. Picture your character. What does he look like? What is he wearing? Why is he wearing what he's wearing? Write it down, even if you don't intend to use it in the story. Continue questioning, Is he sitting? Standing? Leaning on something? If he's sitting in a chair, what does it feel like? Is the chair old? New? Comfortable? Start picturing where he is. Is he in his house? Or is it an apartment? What's around him? How does he feel? Then ask the why... Where is going after? Is anyone there with him? Why? Is there an item in the place that reminds him of something? Write it down. This is just a small exercise I use, it may work for you, it may not. Try it.
