1. GlitterRain7

    GlitterRain7 Galaxy Girl Contributor

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    Need help please

    Discussion in 'Plot Development' started by GlitterRain7, Aug 27, 2017.

    Right now I'm kind of confused and unhappy about my WIP. It's not that I'm stuck or anything, in fact I just finished chapter 10, but I feel like either one of two things are happening concerning my plot. 1- I'm overanalyzing it waaayyy to much to where I can't see something that's okay in front of me, or 2- I simply don't have a plot that's interesting or big enough for anyone other than me to read. I've told myself over and over that this book can be just for myself if nothing else, but I truly do want to get it published. I see little things that are happening in this story, like for example the MC is trying to get accepted back into his former group right now, and he has a girlfriend who treats him badly but he's blind to it, and he's unknowingly becoming friends with someone, but by probably the middle of the book all these won't be happening anymore and it'll be some other little thing. I guess what I'm asking is, is these little things that happen in this story that don't run through the entire book enough to keep people reading it? If I don't have something big that needs to be resolved by the end of the book is that okay? Am I just overthinking all this?
     
  2. OurJud

    OurJud Contributor Contributor

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    Probably over-thinking to a certain degree, but accept now that writing a novel isn't an easy task, which is precisely why the vast majority of 'writers' never even finish a novel, let alone get it published.

    Without knowing what your novel is about (and I mean how you see it from within you head) it's difficult to advise on content, but the little things you have going on certainly don't have to run the entire length of the novel. Your only real concern is whether or not they're interesting to read. Look at them as a series of small problems or hurdles for the main character(s), give your reader a reason to have an interest in these incidents.

    The single most difficult aspect of writing a novel (at least to me) is bridging these events, pushing on to the next without the story grinding to a halt.

    I see novel writing like a wind-up toy. It goes great for a while, but then it starts to slow down and even shows signs of stopping if you leave it long enough. So you have to grab it and wind it back up again. But what you do with the story during these slow-downs has always been my stumbling block and the single biggest reason I'll never finish a novel.
     
    AustinFrom1995 and GlitterRain7 like this.
  3. Homer Potvin

    Homer Potvin A tombstone hand and a graveyard mind Staff Supporter Contributor

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    You're putting the cart before the horse. You can't answer any of these things until you have a completed draft. It's kind of like worrying about whether an unborn fetus will be good at singing or sports. Or grow up to be a saint or a douchebag. Concentrate on getting it out of you with all of its fingers and toes intact and then worry about what it looks like or what it's likely to be. I hate to sound like a broken record, but until that first draft is done there's nothing to talk about. Not that you shouldn't be cognizant of what you're writing while you're writing it, but writing is hard enough without worrying about things that haven't happened yet.
     
    GlitterRain7 and OurJud like this.

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