Brain: I have an idea! Me: Ok dude what is it Brain: Here's this one Scene that's really funny. Me: These characters are neat and have funny interactions. But where's the rest of it? Brain: ...there's supposed to be a 'rest' of it? Me: ..... Seriously, every damn story idea I have it's the same cycle. 'oh look, shiny new idea with shiny new characters' 'Ok I'll write it up to the fun scene that won't stop playing in my head' 'well shit, now I have no idea where to go next from here' Every single time, and the one time I have the full idea scoped out, I STILL have writer's block for the scenes in-between the scenes that appear in my brain. Even worse is that I'm a huge characters kind of guy, so the characters come to me with full backstories etc. But the story itself is a huge blank, other than like one or two scenes that play on repeat in my brain until I write them.
Stories are about what characters want/need and the things that are stopping them from getting it. No matter how interesting the characters or how detailed their backstories, none of that will matter if they don't have goals. It is those goals that propel the characters through the story, and it's the obstacles that they face that gives their journey meaning. It sounds like you might be pantsing more than planning and it isn't working for you. So figure out what your characters want, how they plan to obtain it, and what's standing in their way. Then write it.
Well, I had the same problem as you. In fact, I still have it to some degree, and while I haven't been able to solve it completely yet I do have some info you might find useful. The good news? You and I aren't the only ones, there are plenty of people who have this problem. I once saw the kind of "popular and relatable" social media post where everyone was relating to a similar problem to you. It was the "Gru's Plan" kind of meme, and it went something like this from what I remember: Come up with the beginning Come up with the climax And then come up with what's between Come up with what's between? That seems very identical to the inner-dialogue with yourself. The bad news? The solution to this differs between person to person, and you'll need to look into solutions, but I think that the root problem for most people is the same. And that being how there is no structure to the story they are trying to tell, or their ideas have not been fully developed into something that can actually make up a full story. From your post, you said: Do you really know their characters, is being neat the only thing there is to them? What about their flaws? What about about their strengths? What are they like? What do they want? And most importantly, what about their place in the story? What role/purpose do they serve to the main plot? How do they move it forward to the climax? You need to know the answers to these questions, otherwise, you are unlikely to make a compelling story. To answers these questions, you need a writing process, and that's what differs between people to people. What works for one person won't work for another. But one thing is for sure, you need to answer these questions if you are looking to make a full length novel. So to answer your question, I think this is why your brain is like this. It naturally gets stuck when it has nothing to go off from. Some writers plan this ahead (Outliners), others write as they go along and figure it out as they write (Pantsers). Now, I used to write like a Pantser, and the amount of time I WASTED being stuck and facing writer's block is not something I can admit without making a beet-red face. It was astronomically high, to put it mildly. This summer, after literally brute-forcing my way through a book overcoming writer's block after writer's block and wasting an ungodly amount of time staring at my screen, I decided that this needed to change or I'd go insane trying to make my dream of writing a good story come true. You can check the thread here if you want more info on my problem. But the short version is how I ended up using an outlining method known as The Snowflake Method, it's a ten-step process that involves taking a simple idea, and developing it into a complex one. And well, let's just say that both my efficiency and quality of my writing increased exponentially. I wrote the first draft of a book, being 74.1k words, within just a month. Writing the outline took me two weeks, while writing the actual book took me a little more than two weeks when it would take MONTHS for me to complete a book before hand. Don't believe me? Check my journal here. So, what I would say is, look into the snowflake method and try it! But do NOT give up if you find that it doesn't work for you, try to keep going! I am a big believer that discipline and perseverance is one of the most important things you need to achieve something. Try and complete the snowflake method all the way through, and see what you like and what you dislike about it. Using that information, you can then look into something else that might work for you (there are countless methods and story structures). OR... the snowflake method might just be what you need! You'll never know until you try it. At the end of the day, though, you need a process, and it's up to you to find one. The most important thing is to experiment and try things. As was said by someone I encountered on YouTube, "People don't dislike writing, people dislike their writing process."
I too have this issue. I end up writing out the characters' back stories, with details of how they like their eggs to their relationships with their pets, to why they have that nervous tick. I outline their families, friends, enemies. I write the scene, I lead up to the scene, I write past the scene to a point and boom, brain is done. I have around 200 story ideas and WIPs. Some are more detailed than others, including character sheets, settings, scenes. Some have up to 20+ chapters, some have one. One day I'll end up fleshing them out. I have on occasion blended more than one together to complete the short story. Some I revisit after some time and the ending comes to me. Some will sit and fade into oblivion. Yeah, it's a thing.
The formula is simple, as others have said. Give your characters a goal, put obstacles in the way of those goals, throw in a baddie and you’re good to go. Of course if it was that easy we’d all be published, and the linking of scenes, passing of time and pacing were always the elements that meant I never finished any of my attempts at writing a novel… or even got close if I’m honest.
Your brain is behaving just the same as anyone else's would in its shoes (cerebrospinal fluid). You've practised tons and tons of scenes. You're probably proficient at them. Then you demand it creates a novel. Of course your brain wouldn't know what to write! The poor thing is being dealt an unreasonable request. Now it's time to practise novel craft. Scenes are just part of the whole. I recommend starting with the simplest concept for a plot you can think of. You know, whatever you consider to be baby steps. Something pulpy. Study the simple stories. Emulate. Grow into complexity from there. You did the same thing while learning to write scenes—you just don't realise it.
