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How do you remember what you've written?

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RackinRocky

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I know the title isn't very clear, but I didn't know how else to put it. I write novel-length stories, and I have an average of maybe 40 chapters, averaging maybe 140,000 words total.

My question is, with a story this long, how do you remember what one character has told another, or if a certain thing has happened, or if someone knows this or that... etc. It seems to me that I'd almost have to have a small summary for myself for each chapter so I know where to find something. You know, has this character already said this, or did I just think about it, but not put it in yet?

I hope I'm being clear enough. I've found myself, on many occasions, going back, chapter after chapter, to check up on something, and you can imagine how long that can take. It's it's really starting to annoy me. Does this happen to you? And how do you deal with it? It takes the fun out of writing!
 

rwm4768

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I've never come up with a trick for it. If you're in the rough draft phase, you can just focus on writing it, and if you repeat something, you can fix that during revisions. It might also help if you go back through the sections where you think you might have already said something.
 

Sam Argent

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I don't remember squat, which is why I use word search a lot. If there's a particular thing I keep forgetting, I usually have that fact typed on the top of my evernote plot page.
 

The Package

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I think it may depend on how you're writing. I usually end up reading each chapter (as I'm writing) over 50 times. In all honesty, I could probably write my latest chapter here verbatim without looking.

That, and I constantly think about my characters, and my story throughout the day. On the toilet, on the bus, I'm thinking about them. (Is the toilet thing weird?)

What may help is plotting more. How thorough do you outline? I took over a year outlining, and plotting, and creating the world in which my characters inhabit (Fantasy genre, fyi). I'm not saying that my way is a good way to write, but I've not suffered from what you describe.

Regarding the outline specifically: I use Excel, and plot each scene. I couldn't imagine forgetting who said what, and when because each spoken word or action is placed intentionally.

So, like I said, I'm intrigued to know how you outline.
 

RackinRocky

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It feels as if I read over my chapters 50 times too, although I'm sure it's not quite that many, haha. I also think about my characters frequently. On the toilet, how funny! I do too! I bet a lot more writers think about their characters on the toilet than will admit it!

I don't outline. I'm one of those seat-of-the-pants writers. I write it as it comes to me, unless, of course, I get an idea and write it down to include in the story somewhere along the line. I thought I was unusual, but I've since read on this forum where many people write as I do.

Come on! You have to forget some things! How can you possibly remember everything that has happened, and been said in a full length novel?
 

Brightdreamer

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Maybe try writing up a cheat sheet, a quick chapter-by-chapter rundown of the plot-pertinent developments. ("Chapter 1: Introduce Hero Bill and his father, discuss the upcoming Three-Kingdom Livestock Talent Show and Bill's plan to enter his tap-dancing chicken, mention how his friend and secret love interest Mary plans on entering but won't say with what act. Chapter 2: Bill decides to spy on Mary and sees her training her prize rooster to ride a unicycle, making them competitors for the same thousand-gold prize for Most Talented Poultry; Bill also runs into Joe, a rival for Mary's affections, sneaking around behind Mary's barn..." etc.) Or, as others have suggested, use your word processor's search function to help.

For smaller details, do your best on revisions, but for the final polish you may want to hire an editor or some other impartial outsider to take a look and make sure you haven't repeated yourself (or, worse, contradicted yourself); when you've reread and revised and reread again, sometimes you're just too close to the story and start remembering how it used to be three versions ago rather than seeing what it's like now.
 

Roxxsmom

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I don't worry too much about it during the draft phase. If there's something that I write in a later chapter that conflicts with something that's earlier because the story's going in a different direction, or I decided something would work better here, or I changed my mind about something, then I make a note (I have a file with notes), but otherwise, I focus on catching the inconsistencies when I rewrite and rewrite and rewrite and...
 

The Package

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("Chapter 1: Introduce Hero Bill and his father, discuss the upcoming Three-Kingdom Livestock Talent Show and Bill's plan to enter his tap-dancing chicken, mention how his friend and secret love interest Mary plans on entering but won't say with what act. Chapter 2: Bill decides to spy on Mary and sees her training her prize rooster to ride a unicycle, making them competitors for the same thousand-gold prize for Most Talented Poultry; Bill also runs into Joe, a rival for Mary's affections, sneaking around behind Mary's barn..." etc.)

For each chapter, I have on of these. I plot every chapter, and every scene before I sit and write. Each scene is dependent upon the previous, so if I've messed up or forgotten something, I'll realize it immediately when the following chapter hasn't been set-up for properly.

I also keep my Excel sheet open as I write, and follow the directions I've made. My process is very mechanical.

I can't say that outlining will be fun because sometimes it's not. My best advice would be to do as Brightdreamer has suggested and just write little synopses. You don't even have to do it at the beginning, once you finish it just write one up as if you were doing a book report.

Hope this has helped, and good luck. 140,000 words is a lot, keep up the progress!
 

Sonsofthepharaohs

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My question is, with a story this long, how do you remember what one character has told another, or if a certain thing has happened, or if someone knows this or that... etc. It seems to me that I'd almost have to have a small summary for myself for each chapter

Exactly what I do. I actually have two types of summary: a chapter breakdown, with a scene by scene mini synopsis, and a chronological breakdown, with a day by day list of events. The calendar is a table, divided across the top into main plot and subplots, and down the side with days, so that on any day I know exactly what is happening in each plot and with each character (it's a complicated novel).

Other than that, I have a crazy memory for words. Numbers I forget instantly, but words I can recall verbatim for years (my family and friends often regret this ability of mine, lol). I'm rewriting a novel I started 10 years ago, and quite often I will remember an exact line I still want to include, so I can word search it. And most of the time, if I want to go to a particular scene, I can remember a word or phrase that occurs in that scene only, and ctrl F right to it.

But I have been living with this novel in my head for so many years, and have read it god knows how many times, that if it hadn't stuck my now I'd be surprised ;)
 

blacbird

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I'm going to say something here that may seem heretical, and even perhaps aesthetically offensive, so you are now warned:

If you can't remember how one character interacts with another, through action or dialogue, you don't know your story well enough. No matter how long the story is.

caw
 

meowzbark

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I still want to understand when a 550 page book became "an awful lot" anyway...

I find 500 pages barely tolerable...

Terry Goodkind, First Confessor 180,000 words - just about perfect

First Confessor is a fantasy novel, which was mccardey's point. It's an acceptable word count for the SF/F genre, but not other genres.
 

Thewitt

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My question is, with a story this long, how do you remember what one character has told another, or if a certain thing has happened, or if someone knows this or that... etc. It seems to me that I'd almost have to have a small summary for myself for each chapter so I know where to find something. You know, has this character already said this, or did I just think about it, but not put it in yet?

I use two tools for this.

The first is a timeline. I use Aeon Timeline to manage the events in the story across multiple characters. This keeps me from having different threads that put A before B or B before A depending on who was around... The sequencing helps. When I write what ends up as Chapter 35, but I do it after I've just written Chapter 10, I put it on the timeline and make sure I line up other characters and events at the right place in the right time.

For the specific "what did they know and when did they know it" or who said what to whom, I simply keep notes on each character. I write with Storyist, which has really nice Character Sheets, and I keep one for all of the interesting characters. I update them after each chapter with things like what they know, who they have met, how they are changing, etc. It makes for a really nice place to go back and check on the development items that I'm working on.

Good luck!

I know each of us will have their own method for this type of thing, and whatever works for you will be your own in the end.
 

Thewitt

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First Confessor is a fantasy novel, which was mccardey's point. It's an acceptable word count for the SF/F genre, but not other genres.

Acceptable to whom? It doesn't matter to me the genre. 300 page books are short stories as far as I'm concerned.

Anyway this is off the topic so I'll drop this discussion.

The whole concept of "acceptable length" is really a publisher's limitation, not a reader's limitation.
 

mccardey

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Acceptable to whom? It doesn't matter to me the genre. 300 page books are short stories as far as I'm concerned.

Anyway this is off the topic so I'll drop this discussion.

The whole concept of "acceptable length" is really a publisher's limitation, not a reader's limitation.


Just pretend I'm not here....
 

Rebekkamaria

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I have a terrible memory, but for some reason I can remember almost everything I write. I got back to my MS after a four-year-break, and I could remember all that matter from main conflict to the MC's past and quirks. I remember a huge amounts of details because I connect them to larger issues and strong feelings. I do forget things, but I know pretty well what my weak points are.

I write each chapter separately, and I've named the chapters based on the main event in every chapter. I also keep a timeline for history events and follow the amount of days the book goes by. I have character descriptions in a separate file, too, because those I tend to forget unless they are main characters.

I pretty much remember the same things about my characters and their past than about the people I know in real life: what I find important. It's the essence of everything. Timeline and details need a bit more work on the side. I can recall every character interaction for example and I know what my characters think of each other and why. Those are always the most fascinating things for me so they stay with me.
 
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chompers

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I also have a terrible memory and yet can remember what all happens. I am also a pantser and write out of order.

This really does go back to what Blacbird said. I think I am able to remember it all because I automatically know if it's something that's in line with the character or plot. I also mull over scenes before it gets written, thinking about how it affects the rest of the story, so I've put enough thought into it that I'll remember it happening. I might not know the exact dialogue or actions, but I know generally that it happened.

The only time I had to make notes was when the TIMELINE was of utmost importance. The story was part mystery and I had planted hints throughout, and the storyline went back and forth between two eras, so I had to be very careful that I didn't give something away too early.

What I did was write down key events or dialogue from each scene onto a notecard, while also writing down notes to myself, such as "this cannot happen until blah blah blah happens."
 
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StephanieZie

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Honestly, I re-read my own stuff so much there's no way I could forget any of it. It's kind of a guilty hobby.
 

Bufty

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If I've written something I remember it - always. I find it difficult to comprehend how one can write a story and not remember.
 

Jamesaritchie

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Well, I don't write novels that long, for one thing, but I remember details in a novel the same way I remember details in my life. I just do it.

But I also don't take forever to write a novel. I have no idea how writers who take two years or more to write a novel remember anything. Or even a year, for that matter. If I want to remember details, I have to finish a novel pretty fast.
 

TessB

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I keep lists of things like minor characters so that I don't have to keep scrolling back to the first chapter to remember if I named the random parlourmaid Ellen or Helen; otherwise, if I need to remember exactly how I phrased something or if x was in the room when y happened (or if I changed my mind after outlining and forgot to correct it...) Ctrl-f is my very best friend. Usually I'll be able to remember a phrase or two in the sentences around where the thing is I've forgotten, and can get to the right ballpark.
 

Sonsofthepharaohs

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I keep lists of things like minor characters so that I don't have to keep scrolling back to the first chapter to remember if I named the random parlourmaid Ellen or Helen;

Which is why I never name minor characters ;) They're always 'the laundry maid' or 'the desk sergeant' or whatever other role they play in the story. Even a fairly main character is never named, he simply goes by his job title, because he's pretty much the boss of everything, yuh.
 
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