When a story feels flat

[Djmac1031]

I've been working on a Nude Day submission for months now.

Well, technically, I started it months ago then sat on it because of indecision on what direction it should go.

So now I'm back at it, and I've chosen a direction.

And I even almost finished it.

My problem is: it feels...flat.

It's not really a stroker, so not a ton of sex.

And that's due to the intentional choice i made.

It has a conflict. But I feel I just kinda jumped straight to resolving it.

I still like the concept. I even like what I've written.

I just don't LOVE it.

I still have time, can think it over, maybe find a way to spruce it up.

What do you do when a story feels incomplete, or just not right?

Scrap it? Get test readers? Just sit on it til an idea comes?

I don't wanna scrap it. There's a good story in here somewhere.

Maybe not a great one, but that's okay.

I'm ultimately afraid the thing is BORING.

And that's even worse than a bad story lol.

Gonna sleep on it. Kick it around. Try and figure out that special ingredient to give it a kick.

Just hoping it comes to me sooner than later lol.

 

[AlinaX]

Add another character, and/or change POV, and/or go non-linear.

 

[Djmac1031]

Add another character, and/or change POV, and/or go non-linear.

I may actually have a new character to add, but she's not a major player.

I suppose I can flesh her out. But it's really between my two mains.

 

[Djmac1031]

Been up late... too late...tinkering.

Time to let it go and sleep on it I guess lol.

 

[ElectricBlue]

What do you do when a story feels incomplete, or just not right?

I know within five-hundred words whether a story has legs. If it doesn't, I delete it. Junk can't be resurrected or polished, so I don't keep it.

 

[Djmac1031]

I know within five-hundred words whether a story has legs. If it doesn't, I delete it. Junk can't be resurrected or polished, so I don't keep it.

I'm at 9k words, so...

I don't think it's JUNK.

just needs...something.

 

[ElectricBlue]

I'm at 9k words, so...

I don't think it's JUNK.

just needs...something.

Surely you had a hint sooner? How can you get 9k in, then realise it's gone a bit... flat?

That's like driving from Sydney to Melbourne and seeing the signs to Newcastle.

(EB sits back to watch the AH rush to Google Maps, to figure out what he's on about).

 

[Smuttyandfun]

Not that I'm an expert. But when I get stuck, and I think it feels a little stale, I always try and think of something out of left field, something to keep the readers' attention, so they want to keep reading to see how it plays out. Could be a twist, or just one of them divulging something that no one expected.

I wouldn't give up. I've had it happen before, when it just didn't feel right. Sometimes it means that some of it needs to go, and you'll need to replace it with something fresher. And hopefully it works!

Of course, this is just my humble opinion.

 

[AlinaX]

Gone through the planet's core? Oh... the other Newcastle. I get it.

 

[Rob_Royale]

Just sit on it til an idea comes?

Gonna sleep on it. Kick it around. Try and figure out that special ingredient to give it a kick.

Just hoping it comes to me sooner than later lol.

This. I'll often set it aside and work on another, but I do spend considerable time kicking it around in the week that follows. Sometimes reading another story in the same genre will spark an idea, other times it's just a bit of an aha moment. I usually get it though. Especially if I was really into the story at some point, my imagination won't let it go.

 

[Euphony]

Feels like you've mostly dissected it, now give yourself creative space and breathing room to deliver your solution.

If you've rushed conflict resolution, unwind it or resolve it imperfectly where little hangers on silently undo the bow your protag tied.

Or, you can inject another conflict but be careful it doesn't look like you crop up problems just to have something to solve.

Plus there's always the likely possibility you are being a tad hard on yourself as most writers are sometimes. A mental reframing or time away from a particular piece can do wonders.

 

[XerXesXu]

That's like driving from Sydney to Melbourne and seeing the signs to Newcastle.

(EB sits back to watch the AH rush to Google Maps, to figure out what he's on about).

And some of them'll be looking at a map of England.

 

[Kumquatqueen]

Leave it to sit for a week. Then I go through a chunk in the middle - are all these words needed? Can I tweak to add more info about what the character is seeing, hearing, also smelling, touching and tasting?

Refine other parts similarly. Then decide what the real strands of the story are. Weed out stuff that isn't relevant to that story; make it cleaner.

 

[AlinaX]

Make it cleaner? Nah. Make it dirtier.

 

[EmilyMiller]

I've been working on a Nude Day submission for months now.

Well, technically, I started it months ago then sat on it because of indecision on what direction it should go.

So now I'm back at it, and I've chosen a direction.

And I even almost finished it.

My problem is: it feels...flat.

It's not really a stroker, so not a ton of sex.

And that's due to the intentional choice i made.

It has a conflict. But I feel I just kinda jumped straight to resolving it.

I still like the concept. I even like what I've written.

I just don't LOVE it.

I still have time, can think it over, maybe find a way to spruce it up.

What do you do when a story feels incomplete, or just not right?

Scrap it? Get test readers? Just sit on it til an idea comes?

I don't wanna scrap it. There's a good story in here somewhere.

Maybe not a great one, but that's okay.

I'm ultimately afraid the thing is BORING.

And that's even worse than a bad story lol.

Gonna sleep on it. Kick it around. Try and figure out that special ingredient to give it a kick.

Just hoping it comes to me sooner than later lol.

You need to add a sexy nun .

Em

 

[Emilymcplugger]

I've been working on a Nude Day submission for months now.

Well, technically, I started it months ago then sat on it because of indecision on what direction it should go.

So now I'm back at it, and I've chosen a direction.

And I even almost finished it.

My problem is: it feels...flat.

It's not really a stroker, so not a ton of sex.

And that's due to the intentional choice i made.

It has a conflict. But I feel I just kinda jumped straight to resolving it.

I still like the concept. I even like what I've written.

I just don't LOVE it.

I still have time, can think it over, maybe find a way to spruce it up.

What do you do when a story feels incomplete, or just not right?

Scrap it? Get test readers? Just sit on it til an idea comes?

I don't wanna scrap it. There's a good story in here somewhere.

Maybe not a great one, but that's okay.

I'm ultimately afraid the thing is BORING.

And that's even worse than a bad story lol.

Gonna sleep on it. Kick it around. Try and figure out that special ingredient to give it a kick.

Just hoping it comes to me sooner than later lol.

We could do to know more about the plot to cast decent judgement.

Where are they?
How many characters?
What’s the nuts and bolts of the story and the conflict?

Once we know that we can all hurl ideas like chimp hurling poo in a monkey pen at the glass till eventually something sticks.

 

[Djmac1031]

We could do to know more about the plot to cast decent judgement.

I've held that back because of spoilers, although I fully understand many here probably won't actually read it. (I'm not offended by that. I don't read EVERYONE'S stories either.)

I may have actually hit on something this morning as I woke up, contemplating the POINT of the thing.

So that's a plus.

 

[onehitwanda]

You need to add a sexy nun .

Em

sexy nun in a wetsuit who's on her sabbatical (ha!) and is trying out scuba diving.

 

[Djmac1031]

If you've rushed conflict resolution, unwind it or resolve it imperfectly where little hangers on silently undo the bow your protag tied.

You may have hit on something there.

This particular conflict isn't something that just goes away, it's something that simply needs to be handled and controlled.

Very helpful. Thanks.

 

[EmilyMiller]

sexy nun in a wetsuit who's on her sabbatical (ha!) and is trying out scuba diving.

With a crotchless wetsuit.

Em

 

[Emilymcplugger]

You may have hit on something there.

This particular conflict isn't something that just goes away, it's something that simply needs to be handled and controlled.

Very helpful. Thanks.

True story: someone I know years ago when at school was asked as part of an English assignment to change the ending of the play: a taste of honey.

He had Bruce Springsteen come in singing Born in the USA over and over again and added a serial killer to get rid of the awful original characters.

It might not work for a Nude day submission though.

 

[SimonDoom]

True story: someone I know years ago when at school was asked as part of an English assignment to change the ending of the play: a taste of honey.

He had Bruce Springsteen come in singing Born in the USA over and over again and added a serial killer to get rid of the awful original characters.

It might not work for a Nude day submission though.

I don't know about that. In the movies, getting naked is usually a good way to attract a serial killer.

 

[onehitwanda]

With a crotchless wetsuit.

Em

All the better for any horny intergalactic Cephalopoid who might stop by...

 

[EmilyMiller]

All the better for any horny intergalactic Cephalopoid who might stop by...

I think we need to write a collab. Can you suggest a location we could meet to… er… discuss in private?

Em

 

[onehitwanda]

Can you suggest a location we could meet to… er… discuss in private?

I could, but given the other patrons here, we might need to do a security sweep for cameras, microphones, and @djrip hiding under the bed... er... work surface