My story has gotten away from me :(

[SirTimberWolf]

I've been working on this book for far longer than I'd like to admit to with no appriciable difference in actually getting it DONE. :(

It's been about 8 months since I last opened Open Office to work on the book and to be honest I don't know where I'm going or how to even get there. I remember the basic idea of the story but I've kindda lost it with all the real life stuff getting in my way. . .

I want to get it done, obviously. I loved my story and the characters, world, etc. But I don't even know where to start. Should I outline the basic plot and tweak it before I dive back in or should I just put on the scuba gear and pray for the best?

So any former burnouts have any advice?

[Madison]

Yeah, I would definitely advise outlining. I used to think I was too cool for that stuff, until I realized that I never finished a project I didn't outline. Hm. So now I outline. Sometimes the points are just phrases - like she goes there or does this. other times, they're pretty extensive and in-depth. But it helps SO much! I know where I'm going - I know the big picture - I know what needs to happen to further the plot and reach the ending.

It's sorta like how you don't put on scuba gear and head for the deep seas until you actually know what you're doing :)

Good luck!

[DWSTXS]

I sat down recently and did something, just to make sure that my WIP didn't get off track.
I wrote one paragraph for what I wanted to happen in each chapter. Sort of like a synopsis for each chapter.

This is a form of outlining I guess.

At any rate, when I finished, I could read the 12 paragraphs and see how the story progressed from start to finish.

[czjaba]

I wrote about half of my latest WIP, then decided to outline the rest of the story, so I would know where it was going. At that point, there were so many flaws with the story line itself and so many holes. So, I thought I would try to work around it and fix it somehow, but got off onto other subjects, and easily distracted. That was almost a year ago.
I came back to it almost a week ago and attacked with a vengence. First 3 chapters? Gone. Entire synopsis? Gone. Complete story line? Gone. The only thing that remains is the very last thing I wrote about the story and couldn't go any farther. So, I'm writing based on what I liked best about what I had started a long time ago. Only now, I can see how my writing has improved (probably because of all the revisions and edits on 2 books in between.) The difference is that I'm constantly thinking about this new version and where I want to go with it. It's the same aggression that I attacked my first book with and that first draft was completed in less than 4 weeks.

Good luck with this and don't give up,
Czjaba

[BlueTexas]

I'd try and outline it and see if I'm still excited and in love with the story at that point. If I weren't in love with it and raring to go, I'd scrap it and start another one.

For me, if I can let something sit 8 months, it's not something I'm racing home to finish and so I start on something I can be that excited about. No joy, you know? If I find myself slogging, it's a cue to me that I ought to be working on a story that feels less like work and more like play. If I'm bored writing it, it's boring to read, too.

But that's my personal experience, and not a suggestion to give up on writing a novel...just maybe not that novel.

[SirTimberWolf]

Thanks for the words of encouragment (and the reality check ;) )

I think I'll give it a shot and see how it goes. I had to put it down because of some real life issues like loosing my job/living situation type stuff but now that things are relatively sane again, I guess it wouldn't hurt to see. :p

[kzmiller]

It sounds to me that if real life hadn't interfered, you'd be all over this story. Good luck! I have some ideas that might help:

Yes to outlining but only if outlining is something that works for you. Try Snowflake (http://www.advancedfictionwriting.com/art/snowflake.php)--it'll help get you get reacquainted with your characters as well as provide some direction. Personally I only snowflake after I've finished a novel, and only if I'm having story problems, but I could see this as being useful mid-way, especially in your situation. Oh, and don't take it to the end. I go to about step four. Go only as far as it's useful to you, and then stop. There's no golden reward at the end, it's just a tool.

Take a bath or shower or go for a walk, get some time where you won't be interrupted, and think about the story when you're out of reach of the computer. I use the time to chat with my characters, invite them to rub my feet, and ask them what's the worst possible thing they can imagine happening to them. Sometimes I can one up them. It's always fun when the worst case scenario in their minds pales in comparison to the real problem. When you're ready to write you should be able to feel it. An army of Spartans won't be able to keep you away from your project.

Don't forget the setting. I find that I remember characters and plot pretty well but the setting gets left in the dust when a project has sat around for a long time. Sometimes thinking about stuff like culture, climate, history, population density, housing, economy and politics is just busy work, but often if you play around with the setting in your mind it'll spark the story, create a subplot, or deepen the relationships between your characters.

Hope the writing is going well!

[Charlie Horse]

It probably would help to at least jot some notes down on where you've been with this and where you're going. The thing of it is, if you're really meant to write this book then nothing will stop you. Once you get back into it set a schedule for yourself that includes writing some every day. If something interferes or you just can't get yourself motivated to make constant progress then maybe you need to move on to something else.

Oh, and remember, anything can be changed during rewrites. Allow yourself the option to write a bunch of crap.

[taloom]

I had a WIP going then stopped for over a year (huge, huge mistake) and by the time I got back to it, I had no idea where I was going with it.

[angeliz2k]

There are a lot of suggestions already, but here's my idea:

I would just grab a blank piece of paper and start writing down all the plot points you remember and all the ideas that come to you at the moment. I find that forcing yourself to just write it down helps to take a fuzzy thought and make it a real idea. Hopefully the brainstorming will get the ideas out and get you excited again about what you're doing. Then give it some time. Mull over these ideas and organize them into something coherent.

Oddly enough, this works for me with shopping lists--I usually make a list but don't look at it when I'm shopping since the act of just writing it helps me to remember!

[James81]

On works that I have put on the shelf and return to later, I always make it a habit to re-read everything I've written to that particular point. This has been effective for me to get back into the groove that I was in when I was writing it.

[big_black_bird]

I've found that it's just important to write.

When my MCs are being boring, or just not talking to me, I go and find a supporting cast member and see what they're doing, because it probably has nothing to do with the stagnant bits. Put 2k into that, and suddenly everyone seems interesting again.

[ishtar'sgate]

I've been working on this book for far longer than I'd like to admit to with no appriciable difference in actually getting it DONE. :(

It's been about 8 months since I last opened Open Office to work on the book and to be honest I don't know where I'm going or how to even get there. I remember the basic idea of the story but I've kindda lost it with all the real life stuff getting in my way. . .

Been there. Life can remove huge whacks of time when there's no way you can possibly work on your novel. One summer my job kept me in the office seven days a week from 8:00 am to 10:00 pm or later for three months. Then there was burnout recovery time. After that I just didn't care for a while so I didn't write for six months or longer. Then there was the huge break to have kids and deal with early mornings, late nights, work, babysitters, preschool and on and on and on. Eventually I was able to dig in and stay at it. The only thing that worked for me was rereading what I'd already accomplished to that point, revising as I went. Because of the big time gaps my ideas about the novel had altered as well so those had to be addressed. Some people find an outline helpful. I don't happen to be one of them. I have to think about my story and 'see' its progression in my mind and then I can write. The creative process seems to be very different for each writer. Try a few suggestions. Hopefully one will work for you. Good luck with your writing!
Linnea

[icerose]

I've been working on this book for far longer than I'd like to admit to with no appriciable difference in actually getting it DONE. :(

It's been about 8 months since I last opened Open Office to work on the book and to be honest I don't know where I'm going or how to even get there. I remember the basic idea of the story but I've kindda lost it with all the real life stuff getting in my way. . .

I want to get it done, obviously. I loved my story and the characters, world, etc. But I don't even know where to start. Should I outline the basic plot and tweak it before I dive back in or should I just put on the scuba gear and pray for the best?

So any former burnouts have any advice?

I have stopped writing more novels than I've finished but I have finished them and am currently going for my fifth finished novel.

My suggestion. When you've been away from the story for so long you really will forget more than you remember about the story. Print it out and retype it. It will allow you to get back in touch with your story and perhaps fix some problems that are holding you back. Then make a pact with yourself to write one page every single day until it's done. You'll be done in less time than you've taken off and it will keep you going. One page, 250 words. You can do that, even if you only have ten minutes, and believe me, everyone has ten minutes even if they don't want to admit it.

[ToddWBush]

My WIP has had several starts and stops. For instance, my MC is now a police detective; in the original version of the book I was going to write with him as a lead, he was a priest.

It's sometimes helpful to start something, dork it up big time, then start over. That's what edits are for...

[Ravenlocks]

If I were you, I would reread what you've already got and see what strikes you, see where you would take it now. It sounds like you've just come through some tough times that may have put you in a different emotional place than you were in when you started the novel, so you may not even want to take the novel the same direction you were originally planning to go. Rereading it may help you get some new ideas and regain your eagerness to work on the novel.

[Oasilhael]

I don't know how well this works for other people, but when I forget my direction in the story I'm writing, I open up another Word document and start writing an outline. Sometimes it takes quite a while, but eventually I get back into the novel and most of the time I find that my outline starts extending the novel past what I have already written in the real thing! Its a helpful reminder and sometimes a writer's-block-remover to boot.

[Bufty]

Hi Sir T.

Glad you're back on the trail.

Re-reading some of your old threads here may help, friend.

I've been working on this book for far longer than I'd like to admit to with no appriciable difference in actually getting it DONE. :(

It's been about 8 months since I last opened Open Office to work on the book and to be honest I don't know where I'm going or how to even get there. I remember the basic idea of the story but I've kindda lost it with all the real life stuff getting in my way. . .

I want to get it done, obviously. I loved my story and the characters, world, etc. But I don't even know where to start. Should I outline the basic plot and tweak it before I dive back in or should I just put on the scuba gear and pray for the best?

So any former burnouts have any advice?

[sportacus]

Although I'm new to the whole idea of writing something with success as a goal, I find it easier to return to old projects if you re-examine what drives your MC to continue towards his or her final goal. Adding ulterior motivation may be something that rekindles your interest.

I find that it works for me.

[SirTimberWolf]

Thanks a bunch for the replies! I've started re-reading the MS and I'm going to be sketching an outline a bit later this week. I'll try and post what's going on as I work on it. . . Maybe it'll help someone else out should they come up against this situation.

THanks again and see you in a couple days :)