I’m not sure why I’m posting. Since Thursday-Saturday are my writing days, I haven’t made any progress yet. I’m still wondering what to do with those six or so chapters that I need to fill in before getting into chapters 20-24, which will be the last five. I have outlines for those. I know some people would go ahead and write those last five chapters first, then go back to the others. But I’m a very linear writer. I have to write in order. If I write the exciting chapters first, then I won’t WANT to write the others. If I write the other chapters first, then I have the exciting chapters to look forward to. π Have I confused you yet?
Maybe if you go back and read the chapters you have already written you’ll find the answers to what the next chapters will contain. Sometimes the answer is given before you ask the question.
I’ve done that already. I moved forward some after I did. But then I got stuck again. Maybe I need to read them again. And again. LOL
Hmm. π
Do you ever have the problem of what to do in the third quarter of the book, Emma? π
Yes, my problem is always actually finishing it! π
Once I get past this 3rd Qtr hurdle, I don’t think the rest will be a problem. I know what I’m doing in the 4th Qtr.
I’m a linear writer too. Every time I wrote ahead, I ended up getting in trouble because my story ended up changing so I had to toss most of what I wrote out. It’s frustrating. I go through a slump in almost every book around the 20,000 word mark that doesn’t get easier until I reach 40,000 words. Once I get there, things pick up again. I go into a book knowing how it’ll begin and end, but the middle is always a mystery.
I hope you figure out what you need to write in the next few chapters!
Linear writing is more fun. I like doing the ending of books, so if I did that first, I wouldn’t want to do the middle. LOL And I’m like you, my story changes. I finally realized (Kait and Susan always told me this) that just because you do some plotting doesn’t mean you can’t change the plot. It’s just a way of getting a general idea as to where the story is going. My characters still change their minds. π