Plot dead ends and other obstacles

a_sharp · Nov 4, 2007

Yesterday I had to back out of about 15 pages because I got my MC in the right place at the wrong time. It wasn't a complete throwaway, but I had to scrap a lot of work. Another time, I got my MC's love interest in the wrong place at the wrong time, trying to bring the two together for what I still think is a powerful first meeting.

I spend a lot of time hurdling obstacles like this because my rough outline is, well, rough. I know where I want to go, but getting there can be a miasma (good word, huh?) of options.

Does this 3 steps forward and 2 back happen seldom or frequently to you?

WittyandorIronic · Nov 4, 2007

Hmmm...I have noticed a definite penchant for coming up with a GREAT idea after I have slogged through 10,000 words or so. LoL. Typically I struggle for a bit, and then suddenly I have this brilliant idea that cleans up all the little holes or weak parts (sometimes adding or removing a character, location, or personality trait) and everything seems so much more real and three dimensional. Unfortunately, I usually have to scrap what I have written and start over, c&ping what is salvageable.

Gillhoughly · Nov 4, 2007

It's part of the learning process.

You'll get better with practice.

Just bull ahead and write. You will kill many pixels with rewriting just as I slaughtered many trees to learn the craft.

To quote Joe Bob Briggs, "What you write doesn't matter--it's the practice that matters."

Good luck!

Stew21 · Nov 4, 2007

Gillhoughly said:
It's part of the learning process.

You'll get better with practice.

Just bull ahead and write. You will kill many pixels with rewriting just as I slaughtered many trees to learn the craft.

To quote Joe Bob Briggs, "What you write doesn't matter--it's the practice that matters."

Good luck!

I completely agree. It happened a lot in my first novel. Not nearly as much in the most recent one.
Practice really is the key.

heyjude · Nov 4, 2007

Oh yeah, I had a character show up in the last book who SO did not belong. It was about 5K words before I realized he was taking over. I had to weed him out and give him his own book.

In my current WIP I had to redo several thousand words after I did some more complete research into head wounds and found out what I had written is not technically possible.

So yeah, it happens. I try to look at it as part of the learning curve, like gillhoughly says.

DVGuru · Nov 4, 2007

I've had the same problem in the past, to the point where I've gotten discouraged and abandoned stories. For me, the problem stems from writing too fast. With my current WIP I've taken a "slow and steady wins the race" approach. I think about every sentence before I start typing, and even after it is on the screen, I'll read it over to make sure it works. Before moving onto the next scene, I think about it from every angle, every possible POV. I won't start writing it until I know exactly what it's bringing to the story, asking myself whether it's building character or moving the plot forward. What I don't do anymore is write something and tell myself I'll rewrite it later. I want the first draft as solid as possible.

I'm not writing nearly as many words per day as I could with this approach, but I'm more confident with what I've written, so I feel like I'm outrunning the self-doubt constantly chasing me (my main problem).

Bufty · Nov 4, 2007

It just possibly could be that while thinking so much about how you are writing you are not giving your characters enough freedom to go where they choose to go. Just a thought.

And the original poster, too, knows where he wants to go - maybe the characters want to go somewhere else -huh?.

DVGuru said:
I've had the same problem in the past, to the point where I've gotten discouraged and abandoned stories. For me, the problem stems from writing too fast. With my current WIP I've taken a "slow and steady wins the race" approach. I think about every sentence before I start typing, and even after it is on the screen, I'll read it over to make sure it works. Before moving onto the next scene, I think about it from every angle, every possible POV. I won't start writing it until I know exactly what it's bringing to the story, asking myself whether it's building character or moving the plot forward. What I don't do anymore is write something and tell myself I'll rewrite it later. I want the first draft as solid as possible.

I'm not writing nearly as many words per day as I could with this approach, but I'm more confident with what I've written, so I feel like I'm outrunning the self-doubt constantly chasing me (my main problem).

job · Nov 4, 2007

The thing about writing -- it's not like cutting a dress pattern out of fabric or putting together a batch of muffins. You're not 'using up' resources when you write.

Writing and redrafting is more like doing garden work -- mowing, transplanting, pruning, edging, seeding. You get all brown and strong and skilled because you're doing the work -- which doesn't happen if you sit at the window and talk about gardening. You weed, not because weeds are a sign of failure, but because weeding is part of the process.

And everything you discard goes into the (mental) compost heap. That's next year's flowers, that is.

DVGuru · Nov 4, 2007

Bufty said:
It just possibly could be that while thinking so much about how you are writing you are not giving your characters enough freedom to go where they choose to go. Just a thought.

I don't know if maybe you misunderstood my post, but thinking about where my story and characters are going works for me. It helps me feel more confident. It's when I allow myself to "write crap" that I run into problems.

I still give my characters freedom (I don't write from an outline or any other kind of plan), it's just that I prefer to put some thought into their actions to assure they make sense within the context of the story. This way I'm less prone to hit a dead end and have to go back and make changes. It's not just the character's actions either. I think about how a scene will play out, where it takes place, whether introducing a new character is neccassary. In other words, I don't just write, move on, and hope it all works out in the end. I take my time and try to get it right the first time.

The approach may not work for others, but it's been giving me results I'm happy with.

Joe Moore · Nov 4, 2007

job said:
And everything you discard goes into the (mental) compost heap. That's next year's flowers, that is.

That's a great tip. Never throw anything away. Store it. I've cannibalized old stories and chapters many times because some tidbit written a month or a decade ago finally has purpose.

And don't feel bad about having to retrace your steps. Like others have said, it's all part of the process. Good luck.

Wraith · Nov 4, 2007

Oh, I sure did. I seem to have the same sort of outline you do. Never needed to cut that much, though (actually going back), but I wrote a scene about 10 times because it kept happening in the wrong place or with the wrong characters or plain wrongly.

It's usually hard to get back on track after that, but there's always one idea that solves all the little problems and just fits.

I agree it's just how it goes when you're learning - not that I like it much. As long as you can pull yourself out of the dead end, you'll be fine. In time you'll develop second sight to know dead ends from a glance and not even go there. (They say you get almost drowned in swamps instead, but let's keep a positive attitude, ok?)

Good luck with the story - better a rough outline than a too detailed one that leaves you no way out of the dead ends

Doodlebug · Nov 4, 2007

Whenever I finish a project, I go back (just for a laugh) and read some of the old drafts. It always amazes me just how little they resemble the finished product. I love how the plot, characters, and settings change from one draft to the next.

HourglassMemory · Nov 4, 2007

Boy, do I hear ya!
I'm going through something very similar right now.

Imagine having all of your meaningful characters showing up in a really fun and imaginative and interesting sequence.
And then imagine taking that away because a plan of another character does not permit it. The plan would crumble if they met.
Imagine having to dodge the meeting of the characters for the first 7 or 8 chapters so they can only meet later.
Imagine thinking you've reached your goal, but you've found a more intriguing way of writing the whole sequance again, with only two characters.

That's the place I'm in right now. And since this came out of nowhere I have to make it up as I go along.

laffarsmith · Nov 5, 2007

These stops and starts seem like a normal part of the process. I tend to take notes and make annotations rather than scrap thousands of words while I'm in the first draft process but ultimately the final version looks very different from the original.

Speaking of issues with plot related to planning or not planning you might be interested in this series: Six Part Series: Street Signs and Plot Humps. A few of the topics relate well to this thread.

What it all comes down to is to do what you can to find a writing process that works for you. If that means you'll have to take a few backward steps to move forward then you should. With practice you'll find you take fewer wrong turns and find it easier to hear where the characters want you to go. The most important thing is to keep writing.

Old Hack · Nov 5, 2007

I love those wrong turns. I love it when my characters take off in odd ways that I'd not expected. I love it when my writing seems to flow from me almost as an independent force that I'm just chanelling. I wish it would happen more often.

I write fiction with only a rough idea of where I'm going. I've yet to produce anything that when complete matches the idea I had when I started. I've only written one original novel: the others have all flowed off from each other as tangents, with characters who marched in and demanded their own stories be told. Not that you'd be able to tell once you read the finished pieces: they split away from the parent story quite neatly, I find. For goodness' sake don't just bin those odd fragments. They can make something beautiful.

Julie Worth · Nov 5, 2007

I don't have a problem nowadays, but on my first book I gave my MC retrograde amnesia. I had a hell of a time after that, and I swore I'd never do it again.

Garpy · Nov 5, 2007

Old Hack....your signature image just made me spurt coffee over my monitor.

Plot dead ends and other obstacles

a_sharp

Somebody give me an A

WittyandorIronic

Gillhoughly

Grumpy writer and editor

Stew21

heyjude

Making my own sunshine

DVGuru

Plays too many video games

Bufty

Where have the last ten years gone?

job

In the end, it's just you and the manuscript

DVGuru

Plays too many video games

Joe Moore

Wraith

The demon in your inkwell.

Doodlebug

HourglassMemory

laffarsmith

Old Hack

Such a nasty woman

Julie Worth

What? I have a title?

Garpy

keyboard monkey