Kristal Lee

(Reposted from New Kids on the Writer's Block.)

I've been struggling with my WIP lately. In my head, the story spins endlessly. When I type it out, the story runs in every direction but the one I first imagined.

What I've found is that it's easy to come up with a story. It's much more difficult to get it out of my head and into a tale that other people would want to read. Desperate to figure out what was wrong with my "baby", I broke down the chapters I've penned and poured over the character worksheets. To my surprise, I found that I don't have a much of a plot. I've developed the internal conflicts but the external conflict is too nebulous to be much of a driving force and thus the story fizzles instead of dazzles. Well, crap, I chastise myself. I've invested all this time in this WIP and all I've been doing is walkin' the dog.

Margie Lawson explains walking the dog, as she learned it from Jameson Cole, as the unnecessary busyness of a scene or chapter. I have a whole lot of stuff going on, but nothing that really matters. What happens in those pages does not deepen the characters or move the story forward. It meanders along with no destination. Well, double crap. My story is on vacation and I need to bring it home. Back to the storyboard I trudge.

I think of Jennieke's post The Importance of Plot and Julie's post Plotter, Panster or Planner. I've learned that my plot "planning" needs a lot of work. The things that I need to pay more attention to, the story and character goals and external conflicts, not just the HEA. After all, the story is about how the hero and heroine get to their HEA, not walking the dog along the way.

~kristal lee

Recently I purchased Stephen King’s On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft. It was recommended to me as a writer’s resource keeper. Of the many gems of Mr. King’s writing wisdom, the nugget I’d like to ooh and aah over today is his confession of writing rapidly with the door shut.

What? Close out the fur-babies, the hubby, my Nickelback iTunes? And what about stopping to make those pesky corrections after I re-read the paragraph I just wrote? Oh, the horror!

Well, Mr. King is the master of horror novels.

So, I allowed his little tidbit to marinate in my shocked and awed mind.

Mr. King explains that he literally closes his door and writes as quickly as he can, transferring what’s in his brain into words exactly as they come to him. He doesn’t stop for corrections and only flip-flops back to check characters and essential back story. He focuses on the goal of finishing the story by writing fast enough to outrun self-doubt. Revisions eventually come, but not until the first draft is complete and adequate time has passed so that sink holes in the plot and stumbling blocks in character building become as apparent as a shimmery full moon in a cloudless, black velvet sky.

Suddenly, I got it. For months, I couldn’t get past the first few chapters of my current WIP because I kept stopping to revise and rework it. As a result, the story twisted tumultuously and kept changing. Mainly, because I became unsure of where I was going with it. Self-doubt mowed me down and kept riding over me each time I made a change. I thought I was working toward improvement when I was actually disassembling the foundation and scattering it to oblivion.

Although I’ve been writing since childhood, I’m a novice when it comes to the craft of writing for publication. Knowing this, I read how-to books, take online classes, and whatever else I can find to do to learn the techniques I need to develop for success. I have charts and outlines and character interviews and storyboards. None have worked to help me complete this WIP.


Mr. King talks about starting with a situation that organically develops into a story. He defines the difference between plot and story as “Story is honorable and trustworthy; plot is shifty, and best kept under house arrest.”

I found that when I returned to the basic inciting situation for my hero and heroine, their story began to naturally evolve. Twists and turns and reveals are occurring that I never imagined when trying to systematically structure the storyline. I also found the writing is easier and faster than when I was struggling to make the jig-sawed plot pieces fit together. With resounding clarity, and a sliver of guilt, I accepted that formal plotting doesn't work for me.

Now, my mission is to write hard, write fast and let self-doubt choke on the dust my fingers leave behind while I'm tapping out that first draft. Do I expect it to be a masterpiece? Not in any lucid reality, but that’s okay. Ernest Hemingway said “The first draft of anything is sh**!” So, I’m in good company.
Reposted from New Kids on the Writer's Block