Overtaken by events

[TheWritingGroup]

I haven't published anything for months, because I've been alternating between three stories, and they grew. One is "only" a novelette, the other two grew to novel length.

I finally got the shorter one to almost done (with the first draft). The last sex scene is done, I have one more plot scene, and then it's off for rewrites.

Except ... I plotted this story in 2024. In mid-'24, it made sense for a brown-skinned young foreigner to want help immigrating to the United States.

In mid-'25, not so much, especially for this person (who has an alternative place she could go).

Now I have to think of a different ending. I just hope it doesn't mean too much rewriting.

--Annie

 

[EmilyMiller]

I haven't published anything for months, because I've been alternating between three stories, and they grew. One is "only" a novelette, the other two grew to novel length.

I finally got the shorter one to almost done (with the first draft). The last sex scene is done, I have one more plot scene, and then it's off for rewrites.

Except ... I plotted this story in 2024. In mid-'24, it made sense for a brown-skinned young foreigner to want help immigrating to the United States.

In mid-'25, not so much, especially for this person (who has an alternative place she could go).

Now I have to think of a different ending. I just hope it doesn't mean too much rewriting.

--Annie

You could set it in the past.

 

[THBGato]

What Emily said.

 

[joy_of_cooking]

Yeah just tack "it was the summer of '24 when" into the front.

 

[lovecraft68]

You could also not play into politics by inserting your own and just go with what you've written.

Many people just like to roll with the story and aren't always screeching like lunatics over narrative and ideology.

 

[Five_Inch_Heels]

Not sure why you're making any distinction.

 

[TheLobster]

And I thought this was going to be a thread about how one writer's writing has been totally overtaken by Literotica- and author-organized events, and that he barely has time to work on any story that isn't slotted into one of these contests.

Needless to say, my disappointment has been considerable.

 

[lovecraft68]

And I thought this was going to be a thread about how one writer's writing has been totally overtaken by Literotica- and author-organized events, and that he barely has time to work on any story that isn't slotted into one of these contests.

Needless to say, my disappointment has been considerable.

I'm still trying to wrap my head around them having three long involved projects going at the same time. That's what I thought the focus would be.

 

[EmilyMiller]

Not sure why you're making any distinction.

Maybe any discussions about the true nature of reality should be kept for the politics board…

 

[gunhilltrain]

I'm still trying to wrap my head around them having three long involved projects going at the same time. That's what I thought the focus would be.

Slightly off-topic perhaps, but it seems that views on non-event stories have dropped compared to earlier years. It's a weird metric, and it's difficult to say what's really going on.

 

[gunhilltrain]

Maybe any discussions about the true nature of reality should be kept for the politics board…

Well, some discussions about the true nature of reality are inevitable. The OP's question about having an immigrant as the main character seems valid.

 

[EmilyMiller]

Well, some discussions about the true nature of reality are inevitable. The OP's question about having an immigrant as the main character seems valid.

I never said it wasn’t. I was commenting on denying its validity.

 

[gunhilltrain]

I never said it wasn’t. I was commenting on denying its validity.

Sorry, I misinterpreted what you said.

 

[EmilyMiller]

Sorry, I misinterpreted what you said.

No problem

 

[TheWritingGroup]

I can't easily change the timing because it's part of a series, which crosses over very slightly with other stories. Well, I could, but it would bug me (if probably not any other reader).

It isn't some sort of catastrophe. Really, the immigration thing is a minor point about a minor character. It just annoyed me this morning when I realized it.

--Annie

 

[TheWritingGroup]

You could also not play into politics by inserting your own and just go with what you've written.

Many people just like to roll with the story and aren't always screeching like lunatics over narrative and ideology.

I commend to you OneHitWanda's essay on brush strokes, and suggest you consider the weight and implication of the word "screeching".

 

[Five_Inch_Heels]

But it isn't relevant and doesn't need to be there. Change the reason the character has a problem.

 

[lovecraft68]

Slightly off-topic perhaps, but it seems that views on non-event stories have dropped compared to earlier years. It's a weird metric, and it's difficult to say what's really going on.

Interesting, I've only posted a couple things the last few months so haven't noticed

Maybe its a result of their being way too many events, it's crazy how many author challenges there are, plus the site sponsored ones.

Then again, this is a free site and no limit to how much people can read so maybe its just a trend?

A few years back I remember views and votes taking a nosedive for some reason to where people were getting nervous. You could look at the new story lists and see the decline, then after awhile it picked back up again.

Its also summer so maybe people are reading less? I know e-book sales generally decline in July/August, its why SW has the summer sale.

 

[TheWritingGroup]

But it isn't relevant and doesn't need to be there. Change the reason the character has a problem.

That's my plan. As I said in the first message. ???

--Annie

 

[NuclearFairy]

Its also summer so maybe people are reading less?

I haven't been able to read anything on lit since the kids got out of school in May.

 

[lovecraft68]

I commend to you OneHitWanda's essay on brush strokes, and suggest you consider the weight and implication of the word "screeching".

Check out LW comments, the word applies.

No offense to OHW but I can paint just fine on my own. This is a discussion forum, not a story. But back to the topic on hand, your story that you wrote and put work into should matter more than political climate and potential butthurt from readers. But that's your choice, you posted here for opinions and you're getting them. What you do with them is your business.

 

[TheWritingGroup]

Check out LW comments, the word applies.

No offense to OHW but I can paint just fine on my own. This is a discussion forum, not a story. But back to the topic on hand, your story that you wrote and put work into should matter more than political climate and potential butthurt from readers. But that's your choice, you posted here for opinions and you're getting them. What you do with them is your business.

Speaking of readers: bringing up the topic would distract many, many of them with something not incredibly relevant to the actual story. From all parts of the spectrum of political opinion.

 

[lovecraft68]

Speaking of readers: bringing up the topic would distract many, many of them with something not incredibly relevant to the actual story. From all parts of the spectrum of political opinion.

That's possible, its also possible that many, as I said, just take it as part of the story and don't get riled up over it.

Which of us is right? Maybe both of us to some degree, but you don't know unless you try it.

My opinion, which is mine alone, is I won't let anything like that make me change a story. If you think about it, say you write this a couple of years ago and some reader comments "That didn't age well." you going to pull it? Offending or upsetting someone is a risk we take to some degree with every story. We live in the age of the professionally offended. It doesn't take much.

I was shredded by a few people the way I portrayed Pentecostal Church in a story last year. Oh, well.

 

[alohadave]

Really, the immigration thing is a minor point about a minor character. It just annoyed me this morning when I realized it.

It's some unfortunate timing, but if the date isn't important to the story, in a year or two the real life situation may be different and the connection not as strong as it feels now.

 

[TheWritingGroup]

While working on the shorter of the two novels tonight, I thought of a better plot device that only requires throwing away a couple of pages (from the novelette). And it gives a better mood for the ending.

Plus, I was more productive than I expected, and now the novel is only one chapter from its conclusion (again, in first draft).

It's funny. @lovecraft68 mentioned being surprised that I was working on three stories at once. The reason is: when I get stuck on a story, I switch to another and come back to the stuck one later. I've been feeling pretty blocked for months now, so I was switching constantly.

Just now, because of that comment, I realized: while I was feeling blocked, I wrote the first draft of: (most of) a short novel, most of a novelette, and half of another and longer novel. In six months. I can't really be ashamed of that. (The quality may suck, I'm not the judge, but I wrote 140,000 words.)

--Annie