How often do you change direction?

TarnishedPenny · May 23, 2018

I find myself writing a story which has, entirely on its own, done a 90 turn in theme, from a perv landlord to a lost soul trying to make the world a better place. Not sure it won't shift again, but it's early days.

Is this common?

NotWise · May 23, 2018

TarnishedPenny said:
I find myself writing a story which has, entirely on its own, done a 90 turn in theme, from a perv landlord to a lost soul trying to make the world a better place. Not sure it won't shift again, but it's early days.

Is this common?

Shifts of that size aren't common for me. I normally have a good idea of the story I want to tell. Characters do have their own voices and they talk back. I find different ways to get my story told even with the sassy characters, but I don't think I've ever changed what the story was about. I'll abandon it instead.

If your story is changing that much, then could it be that the original story wasn't really the story you wanted to tell?

KindofHere · May 23, 2018

.............

Hypoxia · May 23, 2018

I sometimes mention my three basic approaches to LIT storytelling.

* Visualize an ending and make the story go there.
* Know how the story goes, like embellishing a script or journal.
* Create a setting and some plot points and let the players tell the tale.

The first two tend not to go off-track. The third... characters always surprise me. I think I'm pushing the story somewhere and they take it elsewhere. I pretty much just transcribe their deeds and words, plot shifts included.

The voices in my head tell whatever stories they want. I must submit.

SamScribble · May 23, 2018

I tend to agree with Hypoxia.

TarnishedPenny · May 23, 2018

I guess this one is being done under Plan C.

ElectricBlue · May 23, 2018

TarnishedPenny said:
I find myself writing a story which has, entirely on its own, done a 90 turn in theme, from a perv landlord to a lost soul trying to make the world a better place. Not sure it won't shift again, but it's early days.

Is this common?

With me it is - I rarely have a pre-conceived outcome in my head when I start writing, and I've had major plot twists arrive between the first sentence of a paragraph and the last. My job is to keep up.

Kojak01 · May 23, 2018

TarnishedPenny said:
I find myself writing a story which has, entirely on its own, done a 90 turn in theme, from a perv landlord to a lost soul trying to make the world a better place. Not sure it won't shift again, but it's early days.

Is this common?

It happened to me in my latest story. When I set out I was planning to write a totally different story. And by totally different I mean not even in that category. It was supposed to be a rather short romance and ended up being a roughly 24-page-novella with a totally different theme.

But for the other of my stories I wrote what I had planned from the beginning.

Kantarii · May 23, 2018

Mostly, I’ve noticed shifts in my writing when I’m expanding on character developemwnt of certain characters in one of my stories. Probably no correlation, but I bet it’s a strong argument to the case

Kant

TxRad · May 23, 2018

Welcome to one of the wonders of Lit. You can write what you want and how you want it and there is no one to say different. Turn your characters loose and enjoy the ride.

Hypoxia · May 23, 2018

TxRad said:
Turn your characters loose and enjoy the ride.

They can be most unruly beasts but we love them anyway.

TarnishedPenny · May 23, 2018

Thanks for the thoughts.

How often do you change direction?

TarnishedPenny

.

NotWise

Desert Rat

KindofHere

Guest

Hypoxia

doesn't watch television

SamScribble

Yeah, still just a guru

TarnishedPenny

.

ElectricBlue

Connoisseur

Kojak01

DoberDaddy

Kantarii

I'm Not A Bitch!

TxRad

Dirty Old Man

Hypoxia

doesn't watch television

TarnishedPenny

.

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