Does anyone else have this?

Pardon my anime references, but it's the best I have. When I am staring at a blank page of a new chapter/story/etc. Does anyone else have to wait for that 'opening thread'? For those who have seen Demon Slayer, the opening thread is something one just sees while fighting demons that leads them to victory. I feel that way about writing. I have this new story POV that I couldn't figure out and wasn't going anywhere no matter how I tried. Then, today, I just saw the opening thread and the whole thing is beginning to unravel into a story.

Does anyone else have this? Or it is just me??

 

True. It may be the 'vibe'. But also, not? Because I can be 'vibing' a story, but not be able to write a single word of it. (Talk about writers disfunction) Which is weird. But I get what you're saying about the vibe and the combo of thread and that make great writing.

 

if I want to start a story, i just write whatever scene for it that pops into my head. i continue to do that until i can string scenes together to get a chapter. the "thread" comes when i've strung enough scenes together to see where the story could go, then I continue to write. If i dont see that "thread" i file the story away.

I have one like that now. I've written 2 scenes so far. havent seen the thread yet. I have a concept and a general plot. but not enough to pull my attention to come up with content

 

Oh, this is interesting! I used to write like this, but I could never thread the scenes together. They were always so mis-matched no matter how hard I tried. So, do you ever use pieces of stories you have filed away in new works or what not?

I hope you get more inspiration for your current work and have you ever thought of doing a story soundtrack? Those help me get inspired.

 

I do understand what you're describing. A story begins in fits and starts, like you are trying to battle your way through a thick haze, and you're waving your hands to clear the smoke, then a little light starts to shine, and as you write, the choo-choo of imagination starts to chug, towards the horizon, and disparate thoughts come together, and a coherent portrait of what you want to say finds itself in words.

 

Yes to both;
I have used snippits and pieces of filed away wirks in others. I remember i was stuck on a scene once and went into my files for inspiration. Came across the RIGHT scene already written and i put that into my WIP.

And, i have story playlists on spotify.
I have a "Mood" one where its just instrumental and vibes.
Then i have a couple that i have made specifically for characters and stories.

 

That's awesome! I am glad you actually found a piece of work that was the right shape for your WIP.

Yeah, I love playlists and what kinda songs are on your 'mood' list?

 

Spotify's Bridgerton playlist (string quartet music) is nice when i want something light.
Then i have a playlist that has Studio Ghibli scores. Another that has Fantasy game and movie soundtracks (game of throne and final fantasy, for example). Then sci fi ambiance (a lot of synth).
Artist wise, i like Intervals and Covet (instrumental alt rock).
I prefer not to write to lyrics because then i start humming/singing along.

 

Interesting. Do you not like singing? I end up singing a long with my soundtrack as I'm writing. But I have always loved singing.

 

I like singing, but its a distraction when im deep into writing

 

I have a story that opens up into a new character, and now it's on hold. It started with a rich kid spoiled rotten who was sent to a camp in Mexico, where we found out her dad was a money man for a cartel. Now her father is hiding in San Diego as he had left the cartel with some of their funds. The story was moving along nicely, but what to do about the 25000 words about his daughter?

 

I kept trying to find a way to phrase that I do indeed experience this thread plucking... and in that effort I realised I, in fact, do not. The first page is teenager awkward. The prose sucks. The characters don't character right. I hate all of it. It isn't until after the first chapter that it seems to suck less. In my current WIP, that's 6500 words (across eight scenes) in.

Moments of intensely productive flow come after I've arduously established elements, as if I've been standing up dominoes. The majority of my work, about 60-70%, feels like forced labour.

 

I try to plan the entire story in advance (using beat sheets etc.), which makes the planning stage arduous but also highly enjoyable. This is where I dump all my ideas on paper and see what sticks. (If I really like an idea and my critique partner thinks it stinks, I can junk it, or move it somewhere, or leave it where it is and try to make it not-stink).

So when it comes to write a new chapter, I copy the beat sheet entry (and outline entry) over to the new file, stare at them for a while, switch back to the previous chapter and see how far we got, then stare at the entries again, and then start writing.

"It was a dark and snowy night, tending towards slush, in whose puddles -- and thanks to the copious efforts of the farm-horses -- might be found the mudcakes of the afternoon..."

 

Okay, finally got around to posting to this thread.

I think the mental image of being like a Samurai that is suddenly keenly aware of precisely where to strike his opponent is an exceptionally powerful one! That's a very cool and especially vivid way to explain the feeling of suddenly being hit with that intuitive sense or vision of how to "attack" your demons (which can otherwise be a very abstract experience to explain). In this case, the demon is a blank page. It's such a cool metaphor, in fact, that it makes me want to watch Demon Slayer! I myself have not seen it, though I've heard good things about it ever since the anime got popular. Besides its art style and characters, I never really felt interested in seeing it until I read about this specific plot element. I've got a long watchlist, but Demon Slayer is definitely on there now.

You say to excuse the anime references, but I think this is pretty fascinating. Thank you for sharing, Gravy!

As for me, I can't think of many times something like that has happened to me. At least, not for an entire thing. I think that may be because my writing process is a bit different. The sudden insight is mostly in the initial idea, and figuring out how to develop that or put it into words is usually more of an unearthing process. It's a slow burn. It's as though suddenly, you come across a big red 'X' on a sandy shore, but then you have to figure out how to dig up all the sand, which can demand alot of patience. Though, come to think of it, recently there have been times when I hit a road block like you describe, and then out of nowhere I'm randomly struck with a sense of how to overcome that obstacle. Sometimes it's in the form of a better way of phrasing a sentence, or a better transition into a paragraph. If not "better" then one that I think is more satisfying or accurate in getting across what I'm trying to say.