In the last Writing Technique I covered my plotting method. Now I'm going to highlight some of the ways which I use to troubleshoot a plot which is going nuts.
The first problem I had with being able to fix problems was picking up that there was a problem. Sounds a little confusing I know, but have you ever felt that something's not quite right with your novel but your not sure if it's just you and that other people wouldn't think there's something wrong? This used to be my trouble, wondering if others would judge a flaw more severely. So here's the trick I use to decide where I need to fix something and where it's good as it is:
Do you like it?
You the writer are, after all, the alpha reader; the first person who will ever lay eyes on your work. It's tempting to want to please others with your writing, after all others will be buying your work with the purpose of enjoying it. But "others" aren't here right now, and even if they were it's easy to get discouraged from external feedback, even if it's meant purely constructively. So here's what I do; I change positions from writer to reader and look at the text in front of me as something I've purchased from a bookshop. Then I ask myself "what would I want to tell the writer to change to make it better?" It usually becomes very clear after that.
>This bit is a little boring, I think it would need another character in it.
>This bit is a bit confusing, I think there's too much happening at once.
>This bit is a little vague, I wish the character would explain the thing a bit more.
Using this technique I always remember to add a "why" to my critique. Just saying 'it's boring and it sucks' is not only less than useless, after a while it can make you feel like you're just not good enough and shouldn't bother, which is complete BS. When you find out why you feel it's boring (or whatever applies) then you figure out what you need to fix. This can take a bit of practice, but after a while it gets easier to realise why you're feeling bored rather than just being bored with your writing.
Okay, now we've got a technique for spotting problem areas, let's look at some ways that we can fix those areas.
Problem: "The text is just boring. The main character is going along in his adventure but I'm getting bored with him. But the adventure is a really good one, I know it."
Possible solution: The text may be too 'linear.' By this I mean the story maybe constantly just following the MC around without a change of scene. Subplots can be a great solution to this. Have you tried breaking the focus away from the MC and onto other characters for a scene or two? Have you got other characters moving around your map and doing different things? Remember that while your main character is doing his/her thing, other individuals will be moving and doing their things are the same time. Like your bad-guy will most likely not just be sitting around waiting for your MC to come and defeat him. The longer the novel, the more you'll need supporting cast to keep it interesting. Try experimenting with adding people and viewpoints if you're stuck.
Problem: "The story doesn't feel to be moving. I'm not really sure where the characters should go or what they should do next."
Possible solution: Do you have an antagonist? Do you have an ending to your story? If one or both of these are missing it can make your story 'wander' aimlessly. But even if you have both for sure you can still run into the trouble of not knowing what your characters should do next. Then you just need to decide what the characters would need to do next in order to reach their goal (like beating the bad-guy for example) and what obstacle is in their way (maybe your bad-guy has sent his evil minion to fight them?)
Problem: "My world is very extensive and complicated. I understand everything that's happening right now and I can picture my world, but I'm not sure if my reader can. I'm worried my reader will be confused."
Possible solution: This just comes down to 'how to describe.' A good short description is a couple sentences long and gives four or five senses about the thing you're describing. Also keep in mind that your reader is stepping into your world essentially blindfolded; with no idea what it looks, sounds, feels, tastes or smells like. If your explaining a magic system or something, it's best to give it to the reader as slowly as possible instead of an info bomb.
I'll cover description in more detail (no pun intended) in another post. I also recommend the book The Master Authors' Secret Handbook that can be found on the Inner Circle Writers' Group website for reading up on description!
Okay, last one.
Problem: "There are a million things wrong with this novel, I don't even know where to start! It's just plain awful. I feel exhausted with trying to fix all the problems."
Possible solution: The trouble may not be as bad as it looks. As we say in Finnish "emergency does not look like this" (which means the same thing). I know for myself that I often get so wrapped up with fixing plot difficulties that I sometimes forget that complicated problems can have simple solutions. If you've spent a lot of time (a month or so) actively writing and working with your story, spending a few months apart can do wonders. After I finished NaNoWriMo I thought that the list of problems with Arkanos would be a mile long. Now I look at it again and I'm surprised at how good the text is. A shorter-term solution is to take a walk. Take the day off and do something else, think about something else. Don't really have other hobbies than writing? Go to the library, go explore a part of town you've never been before, go shopping. This'll give your mind a chance to relax and help you think much more clearly when you come back to your novel.
But sometimes it'll be that your novel may need re-writing. Even if you don't plot normally, doing a little bit of light plotting might help to straighten it out. Even if this is the case, some time away from your writing can do wonders.
Okay, that was today's this month's writing technique on troubleshooting. I hope I was able to explain my method on picking up what and where problems are clearly. If anyone has any questions, please feel completely free to comment and I will do my best to ignore them completely answer promptly with my best advice. :)
Like I mentioned above, next time I'll cover the techniques and methods I use in descriptions. I also watched the broadcast from the Simian City News. *Sigh* I leave my cave for a few days and those monkeys set up a news channel?! But yes, I will also be posting another excerpt from my Electrostatic Fantasy soon.
Thanks for reading!!
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