Ahrrg - It's not working

[marylahree]

For those attempting their NaNoWriMo novel - without first mastering plot - how? How are you managing to complete the story? I've had this particular idea for a story for a while, but never tested it thoroughly against an outlined plot. In trying to keep with the rules of the NNWM contest, I simply started writing it. I managed 5,500 words before stumbling into the (first) hole in my plot. And I'm way down in this hole. I can't figure how my protagonist will escape, not as the writing stands. Yet if I re-write I will have lost those few precious words I can contribute to my word count thus far. I won't make the deadline, and I suppose that's alright. If not practical, the exercise has been fun. I've made some new friends. But I'm not seeing how one can write to completion without a thoroughly devised plot and story outline.

Mary

[temporus]

Taking a not really needed break from my own Nano here.

There's no real right answer of course. Some people need to know every bit about a story before they put word to paper. Some people need to know nothing. Some people fall in between.

I've written stories both ways. My current work started with nothing more than a single word that stuck in my head, and churned for quite some time. My previous short story, I plotted out every single scene. You could almost consder that outline as my first draft since it ended up being roughly one quarter of the final length.

Sometimes you get stuck. Sometimes you do write yourself into a hole. When you're trying an experiment like Nano (and for many of us, it's really more experiment than anything else) you have to allow yourself room to think outside the box, work in a way that might not normally be acceptable.

One of the things I do, when I get stuck is cheat. I finish my paragraph. Then I write something like this:

[Hero needs to escape from his ropes, and on his way out, he'll pick up something useful. After he breaks free, he ends up in an alley, where he'll meet up with Linda]

Then I start the next scene.

If I know that I don't know enough about something, but its something I know can be researched, I'll sometimes throw in a line: [insert details of man cleaning his gun.] and move on. When the choices are: stop the writing and learn enough about gun maintenance to describe it right now, or move on and meet the deadline. For this project, I move on. I also tend to highlight those passages in "marker" (using that feature in Word) so that if I get stuck later, I can scan back through the novel, and see if I have learned enough to finish up those bits. Sometimes later details will help you understand what you missed, and give you the insight to figure it out.

Don't give in lightly. I've known people to bring in the goods on the last week alone. So you're count may be low right now, but give yourself the permission to not worry. Leave the worry, and the rewrite to December. As long as it's November, you just have to keep the momentum going forward. No matter how cheesy the excuse, put some wallpaper over the plotholes and move on.

Ed

[marylahree]

Ed,
Thank you so much. You're such an encouragement! I'll try to write some other piece of the story.

[aprilg]

Just wanted to pipe in that Ed's right.

I'm halfway through and it's time for me to write the final two chapters because I've reached the point where I'm not sure what will happen next, but it needs to point towards the end. And that is my usual way of writing: do the beginning, do the ending and then muddle on through.

Another thing to do when not sure what to write is a sex scene. That's a bit of a fanfic in joke, but I find it always loosens me up and breaks up mental log jams. And I can always take it out later.

And that's another nice thing about Nano. You are just writing a rough draft. If there are plot holes you can fill them in later.

[Steven Barnes]

The process is more important than the product. You are learning. It is certainly easier for many to outline first, but you would miss the fun of seeing what kind of corners you jam yourself into.

[marylahree]

I haven't missed the fun, LOL. I've gotten myself wedged real tight in a corner, suspect my back may have molded to it's triangular shape at this point. But it has, no doubt, been a learning experience.