Does anyone just "ride the momentum"?

[BlueLucario]

When I say riding the momentum I mean like when you write, do you just go with the flow? Write whatever comes to mind?

I found this on Chris Baty's No Plot No Problem. And I felt, hey, maybe I should do this. But to the point where he said, "Even if you don't know exactly what to do with the three ninjas in your courtroom drama, hey they arrived. And they want to be in the book, so put them there."

That's sort of where I got a bit uncomfortable.

What about you guys? Do you ride the momentum too?

I just started a new story and I want to do it too.

[Fade]

Yes for minor events like dialogue and anything other than the climax and revealing key information. Those I have to keep as planned.

[bettielee]

Yes. I ride, ride, ride. I had a small character who was just there to give another character some info and add something to his past... and oh did she. She insisted on becoming a bigger character - and guess what? I went with it, and I so needed her. She's strong and interesting and she adds a whole new dimension to the story. For instance, my book is about a group of dragonfolk who are very intense and go through a lot of ritualistic stuff to get to be the uber-warriors they are. I wanted to show that journey, and now I can, through this girl that insisted she was more than a bastard from the other side of the sheets. (but she has that going for her, too!)

[BlueLucario]

Yes. I ride, ride, ride. I had a small character who was just there to give another character some info and add something to his past... and oh did she. She insisted on becoming a bigger character - and guess what? I went with it, and I so needed her. She's strong and interesting and she adds a whole new dimension to the story. For instance, my book is about a group of dragonfolk who are very intense and go through a lot of ritualistic stuff to get to be the uber-warriors they are. I wanted to show that journey, and now I can, through this girl that insisted she was more than a bastard from the other side of the sheets. (but she has that going for her, too!)
ooh...that is pretty awesome. :)

Is she the main character, or is she still a supporting character?

[scarletpeaches]

I go with the flow as well, but I think I know my characters well enough to only write events that would be 'in character' for them, if you see what I mean?

[bettielee]

Well, I got the term "epic fantasy" on my side, so she is one of the main characters - I am on book 2 of a 3 book arc, and her story will start going now in the 2nd book. She is being interwoven into the main, big showdown of showdowns. And I so needed her! Her family comes from the agricultural leg of my kingdom, who constitute one leg of the legal system there. I like that it balances the guy from the manufacturing leg that will be added in the 3rd book. I love it when a plan (that was more of a loose net of ideas) comes together.

And I totally concede that this doesn't work for everyone, and that my stuff may be total crap, but I can't write from an outline, and when I plan too far ahead I get the deer in the headlights syndrome and grind to a halt. And of course, all rules of characterization and good storytelling must be continued with your new idea. Show don't tell, etc. etc.

[Kaylee]

Yes, and when it happens, I don't want to quit writing until the new thoughts are all on paper. Then later I'll weed out what dosent' fit.

[BlueLucario]

And I totally concede that this doesn't work for everyone, and that my stuff may be total crap, but I can't write from an outline, and when I plan too far ahead I get the deer in the headlights syndrome and grind to a halt.
I sort of get those too.

[raburrell]

I love it when characters start to think and act for themselves... but I also ended up with a first novel that was way too long because of it. I'm going to try pushing back on them a little when they try doing it the next time to see what happens.

[BlueLucario]

You know. I think I'm going to try that out.

[bettielee]

I love it when characters start to think and act for themselves... but I also ended up with a first novel that was way too long because of it. I'm going to try pushing back on them a little when they try doing it the next time to see what happens.

Oh yeah. You gotta kill your darlings. But its fun to follow a trail and see where it leads you. sometimes you get out in the spooky woods. And sometimes, you gotta set those woods on fire and burn, baby, burn.

[PoppysInARow]

I ride the wave. I only step in when I realize riding the wave has screwed me over and doesn't make sense. That doesn't tend to happen, and it's usually minor things that I can fix in editing.

[RunawayScribe]

Ride the momentum? I try to. The moments you feel the story carries you often read the best later, I find.

[jodiodi]

I never plot so I just go where the characters tell me. Sometimes they hide things from me until later, but I just write it all and see what happens. I can edit it for flow and relevance later.

[motormind]

I try not to go with the flow, since whenever I do that it winds up becoming porn. Old habits are hard to break, I guess.

[ccv707]

This is how I write about 70% of the time...probably more than that (how does one calculate such a thing???). I've put it in another thread, but using SoC with everything I write, it's almost impossible not to.

[Izz]

I have to balance going with the flow with keeping structure. Otherwise i tend to write myself into a corner. But if i know my structure i can change it, if necessary. But i definitely do need a basic outline, or structure, to write a novel within (not always so much for short stories; i tend to let them spontaneously evolve a lot more). But a basic outline leaves me plenty of room to move.

[knight_tour]

I always know a basic plot point that needs to somehow be covered in a chapter, as well as the major characters that are involved. I may even have a rough idea of how I expect the chapter to progress; but as often as not the chapter goes off in directions I never expected, and certainly all the details seem to write themselves.

[IdiotsRUs]

Yes - it's not a choice, it's how I write 80% of my words - and where 100% of the 'good' stuff comes. By which I mean the plot point that has had me stuck, or how the ending is gonna work out or...any number of things.

When I'm in the zone is where all the best things I know about my characters come from. They don't come from me sitting down and saying, 'Ok, I'll have a one-legged dwarf lesbian single dad who...' I might start like that, but they only come alive when I let things go and just write. They tell me who they are.

[ChaosTitan]

I found this on Chris Baty's No Plot No Problem. And I felt, hey, maybe I should do this. But to the point where he said, "Even if you don't know exactly what to do with the three ninjas in your courtroom drama, hey they arrived. And they want to be in the book, so put them there."

That's sort of where I got a bit uncomfortable.


Blue, you say you don't outline or plan ahead, so what is it about this Baty quote that makes you uncomfortable?

[Maiden]

I do it all the time. Of course sometimes I write myself into a situation, momentum is over, and now I have no idea how to get out of the scene to the next without it being terribly cheesy.

Debating on just skipping to the next scene and writing the transition when I go back through. I already have a LOT to add that I didn't know I needed until my characters changed in ways I couldn't predict.

[backslashbaby]

I outline, and I ride the momentum. Then I change the outline :)

I do like to have many avenues that I could take, so I'm always still brainstorming. Even if I have scenes I love, I'll brainstorm on a tangent that wouldn't include those scenes.

It's all about still trying to find the best thing for the story, you know?

I've lost the ending, I must admit. The brainstorming brought great rewards but I need a new ending. I have full confidence that'll come. If it never did? I could go with the originl outline again. Kinda cool that way, imho :D

[eveningstar]

I found this on Chris Baty's No Plot No Problem. And I felt, hey, maybe I should do this. But to the point where he said, "Even if you don't know exactly what to do with the three ninjas in your courtroom drama, hey they arrived. And they want to be in the book, so put them there."

That's sort of where I got a bit uncomfortable.


Unexpected ninjas in courtrooms can always be turned into lawyers upon re-writing. Chris Baty's advice is also tailored for NaNoWriMo, writing a great amount in a short time. I think part of this advice is about writing uninhibited. Maybe the example is for someone who really wants to be writing about ninjas but set out to write a serious drama. Courtrooms can be removed in editing, too.

I always follow momentum and go with what wants to be written in my first, rough drafts. And I do a great deal of editing in subsequent drafts.

[Birol]

Remember, anything done in the first draft - right, wrong, or indifferent - can be fixed in the rewrites.

[Ken Schneider]

Yes I go with the flow, because the flow will really start flowing after a while. What I think is important to know if you write this way is this.

You must be able to remember what happened all throughout your work.
Being able to remember small moments as well as the big ones will help you further develope the story and tie the new with the old. When you have a new direction you want to go or idea come to you, figure out how this idea will fit in with what you've already written.

I find more often than not that what happens later makes the beginning make more sense because I keep it all tied together. If you remember you can deepen the meaning of what you wrote prior. It makes more sense to you as well and ables you to branch out into new avenues in the story.

It's harder to explain than it is to write like that. All one can really say is, it flows, and flows, and flows. I think since Friday night I've written 10,000 really good words into my work because of this.

By now, I have to go with the flow while it's flowing.

[ChaosTitan]

Remember, anything done in the first draft - right, wrong, or indifferent - can be fixed in the rewrites.

Which goes along perfectly with the oft-repeated gem: You can't rewrite what you haven't written.

[Linda Adams]

I do it all the time. Usually it's little things that don't seem important at the time, but then they become something I can take advantage of. For example, I added a scene where I had the bad guy watching the good guy. For no reason at all, I decided to add that the good guy reacts, sensing bad guy's magic--but doesn't know where it's coming from. That little change helped solve a problem later in the book and may actually help with the opening.

Put stuff in. The worst that'll happen is you'll realize you don't need it and take it out on revision.

[Blue Sky]

Yes! I love to write this way. It's not a choice with me either, but the way I've always written regardless of the type of writing.

Often I reflect on whatever got me fired up, or came in connection with an external assignment (theme article, term paper, essay). Then I sit down and start typing, stopping to ponder, looking at what may have inspired me, trusting what pops into my head. Like someone said in another thread, it's like making chili! This is the process that hooked me as a kid.

For my non-fic book (creative non-fiction, so it's related to fiction), I returned over and over to clearly define the purpose of the book. I wrote my purpose sentence on an index card and taped it to my computer monitor. It was like a laser beam that still holds my focus during final editing.

My purpose sentence, which answers who, what, where, when, why, and how, gave me an internal guide, an internal outline. I flew along, enjoying the surprises. Editing later taught me more about book writing than anything else could, because it was "doing," not talking about it. There was no use worrying about it, although I did at times.

Not anymore.

An outline is an external guide. Nothing is right or wrong, just best for you or not. You Blue, that is.

I LOVE the surprises that come while writing "by the seat of my pants," and that's how your readers will feel too. Just fly, baby fly and enjoy the ride!

When I started reading UJ's novel thread, I got fired up, so I created a word document titled "my first novel," looked at the screen, and saw a bald guy in a cave standing in front of a large steel door. It was takeoff time with no warning! :snoopy:

[Aggy B.]

I write detailed outlines. Then when I write I go with the flow of the story.

Example: in my current WIP one of the supporting characters in the first draft was a close friend of my MC's dad. In the second draft he turned into a distant acquaintance with ulterior motives. And then, once I started writing his chapters I realized he's a total bastard (petty, small-minded, drug addict, pervert and intellectual snob). Not at all something I had planned. But by letting instinct take over I realized I have a really great (though nasty) character. The changes in my idea about his character can be adapted into the outline with a bit of fiddling.

It takes practice though and working through several drafts. Not every brainwave I get while writing with the flow is a good one. But, as previously mentioned, anything can be changed in later rewrites/editing.

[wannawrite]

Go with it. Cut it later. Let the voices in your head, out. But, like a teacher at a daycare center, have a few rules. Example: I recently had a character spout off about being gay, and it totally shocked me when he came out of the closet. A very interesting twist to the mss, but I caught myself in time and made him straight, again. His being gay in that context would begged for further elaboration, and would have, out of necessity, led to a HUGE sub-story that the book just didn't have room for, word-count wise. And while I do like to let my people run rampant as much as possible, they are only allowed to do so under tightly controled condition. (Note to self, if this writing-thing doesnt work out, I should really look into a career in law enforcement)So, my advice is to let the story flow, but try to keep it on track as much as possible during the process, then go back and edit the merry heck out of it later. Good luck.

[Tanya Egan Gibson]

I go with the flow as well, but I think I know my characters well enough to only write events that would be 'in character' for them, if you see what I mean?

Ditto SP on this.

Also, I'd like to recommend a terrific, short book -- Ron Carlson Writes a Story. Though it's intended for short-stories, most of the advice, I found, works wonderfully with a novel, too.

Carlson addresses something Blue has brought up in this thread -- the idea of going with the "flow," in the sense that he proposes that much of "what happens next" comes not just from character but from situation and setting. That is, if you have a well-defined setting, those limitations (and those details) will help you find your way to what happens next. It forces you to really think about setting and then forces you to *use* the setting rather than just treat it like window decoration.

The book also addresses a problem that came up in another of Blue's threads -- How To Keep On Going (and keep bottom in chair). The book traces Carlson's path through the first draft of a short story, including all the times he wanted to get up or take a break, and it shows what he did to keep the momentum instead of getting up.

Indiebound Link to the book: http://www.indiebound.org/book/9781555974770

Keep with it, Blue.

[Maple]

I do this a lot, especially in the first few chapters. I might have an idea of where it's going, but I have to just go with it to really figure everything out.

[SarahMacManus]

I had one show up in the beginning that was supposed to be a dangerously chaotic character. He turned out to be a cream puff and quite the sympathetic little fellow.

As soon as I allowed him to be who he was, squares in other and unrelated parts of the story began to fill in with speed. Like tetris, just waited for the one piece of the puzzle to fit before the rest of them could.

[Quinn]

In school, I was frustrated by being required to write an outline and submit it before writing stories. I hated writing! I started to write by just putting a couple characters in a setting to see what would happen. I did poorly in school as a result, but now I love to write. There are a few things I do that help me write "By the seat of my pants."

I generally have a vague idea of the basic storyline in my head and let it happen spontaneously. For me, an outline kills the story. Strong characters and a conflict work themselves out. The unplanned electric realizion of why a character likes his office barren of momentos charges the imagination. (Ah Ha! He has a secret past!)

If I get stuck, I ask the characters where things are going wrong. My characters will tell me every time. "Do you really expect me to do that?"

Once, a character told me it was her time to die. She was a main character and I had big plans for her, but the story was really stuck. I killed her in front of her son. It's a powerful passage that propels the whole story. (Lots of tears when my beta's read it!) I couldn't do that if I kept to an outline.

I think we all have characters that are intended to be "cardboard characters", but come to life. One of mine came to life and is getting his own novel right now. Again, with an outline he couldn't have stepped into the story and carried as much as he does.

I sometimes write little vignettes of my characters; aside from the main story. They are only a couple of paragraphs long, but it helps me talk to them and get to know them deeply. I may ask "So, what is Felicity doing this morning?" It never comes out in a book; but I know that Felicity loves to sing and does it well. She get's up early, leaving her husband to sleep in. She takes her tea to the greenhouse and habitually overwaters the plants. The gardener knows this. He rotates the plants and finds ways to distract her so she doesn't kill too much.

It doesn't work for everyone. Still, try riding the momentum. It's a great trip!

[The Lonely One]

Well, with short stories more than novels I'll "ride the momentum" into some kind of plot and resolution (with a vague idea of what's going to happen, which could change). I have a less vague idea for novels; they're a bit too complex to just "wing" all the way through. I'll ride the momentum in that, the character takes the reins more heavily through certain scenes.

But you have to have a plan for when the momentum dries up and all of a sudden you're rowing your way off of a sand dune. It happens.

I think this is where a lot of beginning writers get a reality check and either push through or give up and start a new project, never finishing works at a rate equal to their potential.

[Nateskate]

I don't go into a freefall. There's an idea at the beginning- who wins or loses in the end. What's the point. It grows as I write, and becomes clearer.

I just try to avoid cold scripting, which is to map out every turn and to stay with it.

[BlueLucario]

I don't think I'm a linear writer anymore. But I'm writing whatever scene that comes to mind, not keeping in mind whether or not it helps the story.

Does that happen to anyone?

[BlueLucario]

Blue, you say you don't outline or plan ahead, so what is it about this Baty quote that makes you uncomfortable?
About the ninjas quote? I'm thinking how does the ninjas in a courtroom drama help with the story? Why would I even add something that silly and random in a place where it may not belong?

Like adding magicians and pixies in an action packed violent thriller. Adding robots in a wedding drama. Something like that.

I don't know why, it feels a bit weird to me.

[blueobsidian]

Blue, Chris isn't saying that you HAVE to throw something crazy into your novel to make it work. But if an element arrives that you wouldn't expect, it may be surprisingly perfect and change your book into something better.

You also have to remember that the book is about writing a novel in a month. He's the guy who started NaNoWriMo. The idea of NaNo is just to get the 50,000 words down on the page. Inevitably, people get stuck. That's when all the crazy suggestions start to get thrown around. It's just something to write down to increase wordcount.

Honestly, I think that you take everything you read to heart. If you ask 100 different writers the same question, you are going to get 100 different answers. Just because one writing book suggests something doesn't mean you HAVE to follow it. Just because one author did something doesn't mean that you have to. Just write your novel.

[The Lonely One]

Blue, Chris isn't saying that you HAVE to throw something crazy into your novel to make it work. But if an element arrives that you wouldn't expect, it may be surprisingly perfect and change your book into something better.

You also have to remember that the book is about writing a novel in a month. He's the guy who started NaNoWriMo. The idea of NaNo is just to get the 50,000 words down on the page. Inevitably, people get stuck. That's when all the crazy suggestions start to get thrown around. It's just something to write down to increase wordcount.

Honestly, I think that you take everything you read to heart. If you ask 100 different writers the same question, you are going to get 100 different answers. Just because one writing book suggests something doesn't mean you HAVE to follow it. Just because one author did something doesn't mean that you have to. Just write your novel.

I agree. Though Robert E. Lee stabbing a ninja through the heart with an American flag, laying his recently-dead body before the jury and muttering, "and justice for all..." just has a certain ring to it.

[blueobsidian]

I agree. Though Robert E. Lee stabbing a ninja through the heart with an American flag, laying his recently-dead body before the jury and muttering, "and justice for all..." just has a certain ring to it.

I'm so stealing that idea.

[EzraHoliday]

I agree. Though Robert E. Lee stabbing a ninja through the heart with an American flag, laying his recently-dead body before the jury and muttering, "and justice for all..." just has a certain ring to it.

I'd buy that book! I love and adore shameless reworks of historical figures, but only if they're over the top.

As for riding the momentum? I hate to just take a page out of Stephen King's method of writing, but it worked very well for me.

I start with the idea: 'Hey, you know what would be weird?' And whatever that is. Then, make the 'I Guy' or 'I Guys/Gals'. Design characters enough that they feel real.

Then? The most majestic part of all... WRITE! Who cares if it's crap. The first draft of anything is crap. The beauty of writing is you can always fix it later. Just write it and let all your little chaotic drippings pour into your hands.

Never be afraid to be too silly or too demented.

[Birol]

About the ninjas quote? I'm thinking how does the ninjas in a courtroom drama help with the story? Why would I even add something that silly and random in a place where it may not belong?

Like adding magicians and pixies in an action packed violent thriller. Adding robots in a wedding drama. Something like that.

I don't know why, it feels a bit weird to me.

Blue, are you taking the quote literally? As in actual, honest-to-goodness ninjas? Remember, most people don't speak or think 100% literally.

[paurong]

I ride the momentum. It is so effective when you are really there on top your lungs, screaming out whatever is coming out of your mind. Just make sure that everything you write is still coherent to each part. and be sure also to make it a point not to ruin everything. :D

[TTCleveland]

If only....

[2Wheels]

It's the best thing in the world - to be writing flat out like some demented thing, as if you are merely an observer of what's going on the screen, not even thinking about it. I call it "channelling". Needs some tidy up later, but darn it's good stuff. Guess it comes from the muse ...

[ChaosTitan]

About the ninjas quote? I'm thinking how does the ninjas in a courtroom drama help with the story? Why would I even add something that silly and random in a place where it may not belong?

Like adding magicians and pixies in an action packed violent thriller. Adding robots in a wedding drama. Something like that.

I don't know why, it feels a bit weird to me.

I had a feeling that's what bothered you. Reread everything in blueobsidian's post, which I've quoted below for you. Just in case.

Blue, Chris isn't saying that you HAVE to throw something crazy into your novel to make it work. But if an element arrives that you wouldn't expect, it may be surprisingly perfect and change your book into something better.

You also have to remember that the book is about writing a novel in a month. He's the guy who started NaNoWriMo. The idea of NaNo is just to get the 50,000 words down on the page. Inevitably, people get stuck. That's when all the crazy suggestions start to get thrown around. It's just something to write down to increase wordcount.

Honestly, I think that you take everything you read to heart. If you ask 100 different writers the same question, you are going to get 100 different answers. Just because one writing book suggests something doesn't mean you HAVE to follow it. Just because one author did something doesn't mean that you have to. Just write your novel.

BlueLucario, you said something very similar in a thread two weeks ago, in which we were all discussing plot ninjas. We explained in-thread that "ninjas" were placeholders, metaphors, and no one meant literal ninjas.

So Chris Baty was not literally telling you to put ninjas into a novel as a way to propel the plot. It's a metaphor that urges you to do something unexpected in order to move the story forward.

[dreamsevolve]

"Even if you don't know exactly what to do with the three ninjas in your courtroom drama, hey they arrived. And they want to be in the book, so put them there."

That's sort of where I got a bit uncomfortable.

I was like that once, totally petrified of jumping off that cliff, but that's where you start to use your imagination. Even if what you write turns out to be garbage, you've used your imagination and you'll keep using it! Suddenly you'll find yourself wondering and realizing avenues that you never thought existed. It's a lot of fun!

[Eric San Juan]

When I say riding the momentum I mean like when you write, do you just go with the flow? Write whatever comes to mind?

I found this on Chris Baty's No Plot No Problem. And I felt, hey, maybe I should do this. But to the point where he said, "Even if you don't know exactly what to do with the three ninjas in your courtroom drama, hey they arrived. And they want to be in the book, so put them there."

That's sort of where I got a bit uncomfortable.

What about you guys? Do you ride the momentum too?

I just started a new story and I want to do it too.
I've done it, but all too often I find it leads me to dead ends. I plunge forward heedless of where I'm going and run headlong into a wall. Maybe it's because I was attempting to fly by the seat of my pants like this some years back, before I was really ready. I like to think I'd be more capable of handling it now.

I did a small bit of it on a MG/YA fantasy I finished not too long ago. The second half of the book was only loosely plotted. I knew the major points I needed to hit but let the story take me from milestone to milestone. Ended up discovering a few characters I didn't know would be in the story, including a talking bear I quite like and the villain for the second book -- before I even realized there would be a second book.

So for me, being open to riding the momentum of unexpected turns in your story is a positive thing, if you do so within some sort of structure. Even if it's just knowing your endpoint and a milestone or two on the way, it will help you know what the hell to do with the crazy stuff that wants to nose its way into your story. Otherwise you've got these unexpected new elements and you're, "Ummm, what do I do with this?"

[Blue Sky]

So Chris Baty was not literally telling you to put ninjas into a novel as a way to propel the plot. It's a metaphor that urges you to do something unexpected in order to move the story forward.

No ninjas? Bummer....

I'll get over it.

Blue, I saw that you like Ender's Game. Me too. How about Star Wars?

Use the Force Blue. Trust the Force.

(Could this be the writers muse?)

I've been grounded by Eric San Juan's "Not ready to fly" as well. Yes, great point.

[skywriter16]

I sit down I grab my computer and I go into the world of my book sometimes when i re-read what I wrote I think where did that come from? Going with the flow is the only way to go-------WOW that was super cheesy!

[BlueLucario]

Do you still ride the momentum when you write stuff completely out of order?

[blueobsidian]

Sure. Blue, all that is meant by "ride the momentum" is being willing to change the direction you are going if your story tells you otherwise. That's it.

[Makai_Lightning]

I don't just go with it, I take off sprinting, most times. I'd uess 95% of every scene that turned out exactly like I planned was edited into obsideon or deleted, as they were far more stilted and overall less interesting. 100% of everything, though, is edited, so I don't worry about my writing being perfect of making the most sense when I write it the first time. Everything can be changed, and made sense of. I usually have a basic plot of certain events that must happen, and even though I get most of them to happen, they hardly ever turn out exactly how I'd thought they'd happen, which is in my opinion the most important part. Even when I don't let the outline part fall out of place, things happen completely different than they sounded when they started in my head--usually for the better. I can't write any other way. Things are constantly changing for me, and I love it. Unfortunately, it seems like this also makes me prone to wanting sequals, if only for myself, since I want to get to events/things that didn't work out in the original. Inevitably I come up with more ideas that don't fit and I'd want yet another....

I need to work on telling myself to shut up.

Do you still ride the momentum when you write stuff completely out of order?
Yup. I usually write for the most part in order, but even when I don't I still run with it. For me it's about discovering the characters and the world more completely, in ways you just can't plan until you start writing. It's kind of like the difference between theory and reality, for me. In theory, a giant pit of pudding sounds like a good idea (to my friends, anyway). In reality, a giant pool of pudding is useless, because you don't really want to eat it, you can't swim in it, and it makes a huge mess. A pudding pool still might be awesome, but maybe not as awesome as a pool of.... money. Which wouldn't be messy, you could still use, and you couldn't swim in, but damn, would it be cool to be surrounded by that much cash. And you wouldn't drown.

Weird comparison, but that's what I'm good for. For me, outlines are like those theories. I have them sometimes, and they always sound really cool, until I get to writing. Then something better usually comes up, or the original idea doesn't work out. So my writing is always changing, and never turns out how I plan, regardless of where I start. Scenes might start where I wanted, and end somewhere I hadn't thought of. They might start from places I hadn't expected, but end exactly where I needed. It's all still good.

As long as I can edit my mess.

[BlueLucario]

I was just riding the momentum, and I must say. It's kind of fun.

[Blue Sky]

So many surprises lie ahead....

;)

[xXFireSpiritXx]

I outline and do character profiles so I have a strong grasp on everyone and what is happening. Then, I just let things go. Most of the time the outline changes due to my characters making different choices and following different paths. Most of the time I find when they do this the story is 100% better. I say 'most' though because I have had a character or two write me into a little box and getting out of it is like retracing a breadcrumb trail that crows have attacked.

[Puck38]

I try not to go with the flow, since whenever I do that it winds up becoming porn.

Ain't nothing wrong with that. Porn is good for the soul.

Riding the momentum is usually my primary mode of writing. I'll have some major plot points I want to hit, but other than that, it's usually just a multi-page drunken ramble. I didn't say riding the momentum made for good writing, but hey, it makes for some sort of writing at least.

[gonovelgo]

Sometimes I can just 'ride the momentum' (and it feels great), but usually I find writing more like trying to push a grizzly bear up a flight of stairs. Occasionally I do let myself just go nuts, but I almost always regret it afterwards.

[ccv707]

Why would you regret it?

[gonovelgo]

Why would you regret it?

Usually because 'going nuts' means 'throwing my quality control policies out the window'. I tend to be reasonably happy with anything I write if I do it slowly and methodically, occasionally agonising over a word choice or a turn of phrase. But if I write in 'full steam ahead' mode, it tends to come out very crappy.

[ccarver30]

Sometimes I do but there are times when you have to stop and think about which direction you want to go- that's for sure!

[Little Earthquake]

I do a great deal of planning ahead of time (even for NaNovels, which would probably make Chris Baty cry) but when I start writing, it's a free-for-all. I find myself writing scenes that I had no IDEA would happen. And I just ride the wave, because it's usually pretty awesome.

[DWSTXS]

I do. I have to. Especially on those days when the Muse refuses to appear. Because I found out that if you wait for the Muse to appear, you'll realize that she's busy with some other writer who kidnapped her and has her strapped to the bed and won't let her go to tend to you etc etc etc

[BlueLucario]

For some reason the muse refuses to cooperate. :D

[Writerpatty]

I've written stories both ways. I have a series of three books that I planned out carefully, but still found happy little surprises to write about as I went along.

My latest book started out as a very vivid scene with characters that I hadn't thought about it. The scene was just so vivid, I had to write it out. I kept writing until I had a whole chapter written with more than one scene. Then later, I picked it up and just started writing the rest. If was a fun exercise to let the characters reveal themselves to me as I went along and twists that were very unexpected kept popping up.

The downside to writing like that is that the revision process takes a lot longer to go through as rewrites of sections are needed. The good thing is that I love the editing process and rewrites and improvements are not a chore for me.

The best thing I've found for my creativity is not to limit myself. I tell myself I can write under any circumstance. Loud or quiet environment, deadlines or not, full outline or on the fly. I'm a writer. I write. Everything I write can be improved and if I hate the final outcome, it's not a loss, just another learning experience and I move on to the next project.

[Steve Kahn]

Without a doubt. Some of the greatest stuff happens.

I learned that from my mentor Quinn Redeker who wrote The Deer Hunter. His main lesson to me was NEVER to edit while you write. Personally he has one write day followed by one edit day.

On the write day he lets himself go completely writing whatever comes over the wires. No censorship at all!

The next day is reserved for calling things great or crap.

In this way you become an intuitive writer and not one led by your brain - which is creative enough.