McAnally's (The Community Pub) > Author Craft

A Conversation About Endings

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blgarver:
Really?  I might have to check the others out.  I LOVE King, but sometimes it gets trying to get through a thousand pages.

Cyclone Jack:

I've never used an outline and never will. If I knew what was going to happen I'd probably not bother writing.

ihatepeas:

--- Quote from: Cyclone Jack on August 28, 2007, 05:00:20 AM ---I've never used an outline and never will. If I knew what was going to happen I'd probably not bother writing.


--- End quote ---

I wholeheartedly agree. If I know the story beforehand, there doesn't seem to be any point in writing it. 99% of the enjoyment I get from writing is being carried along with the reader, not knowing how it will turn out until I get there.

--Sarah

blgarver:
Well, that's how I feel too...I'm along for the ride with my characters.  However, the lack of structure is causing me to force a lot of scenes and they just seem...blah.

Cyclone Jack:

--- Quote from: blgarver on August 30, 2007, 06:32:09 PM ---Well, that's how I feel too...I'm along for the ride with my characters.  However, the lack of structure is causing me to force a lot of scenes and they just seem...blah.

--- End quote ---

To clarify: I mean an outline in the sense of a detailed rundown of every sequence and scene. I do make notes. I work on a daily quota system and, usually, the last thing written will be notes and reminders for the next session. Otherwise, I'd forget what I was leading up to in the current session. These notes are far from written in stone. Sometimes a better idea comes along and sometimes they just flat out do not work like you thought they would.

Be careful of judging individual scenes as 'blah'. Any story needs moments when the action, tension and conflict are relieved and the characters are either given a moment to breathe or allowed to dangle. This is a needed element in the creation of suspense. In other words, that scene that may seem blah to you might just be the pause a reader needed before the next turn of the screw. :)

Mr. Butcher has some excellent advice on the construction of scenes on his blog. If I get a moment later on today, I'll revisit this post and link them. :)

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