Hey there everyone, I’ve recently gotten back into writing again, after life got in the way for a while (as many of us have repeatedly). Over the many times that this has happened to me, I find that both being away from the material for a while, as well as just being a different person and a different writer make for quite large hurdles to overcome initially. Do you have any strategies for reengaging with old material that make it easier for you to get back into a story? Looking forward to your thoughts <3 Love, Vic
I end up going through cycles where I'll write chapters back to back to back but then spend months or even a year or two not writing. Whenever I come back its usually because of an inspiration to add onto the story from where I left off. Without that inspiration, it's really hard to come back after months and just tac on a new chapter.
CHYOA is all about branching stories. If you want to use the same characters but give them a new perspective, just create a new branch to the story. It doesn't have to effect anything that came before. Now if you're talking about continuing the exact same story, yes, we as authors do change over time and have different perspectives on life. If you want your characters to change motivations in the existing story, that will work if you explain how it came about. If you want to keep them the same, but it somehow doesn't motivate you, then you're kind of stuck. I have no idea how to get back into the mood of writing a story you no longer wish to write but feel a need to simply because that's what you did before. Even Sherlock Holmes got killed off over that
I'm terrible for starting stories and not finishing them. A few years ago I realised how unfair that is to readers if you leave them part published, so now I have a rule that I won't publish a new story unless it is complete. Although this needs serious will power! Right now I have about 8 good, solid stories that are part written to one degree or another, with about 3 more in development. I've long since stopped beating myself up about not finishing them and just dip in an out of which ever one takes my mood at the time. I tend to spend a few months on one before I get bored and change to another one. So I am quite good at picking up on stories that have been shelved for months or even years. Things that work for me when picking up and old story: 1- Read it from the beginning and edit as you go. This is the best way to get back into a story, but if there is a lot of content then it takes some time and effort to do, but it's worth it (I've just picked up one that is about 95k words and did a complete re-read and edit before writing again). Once you've done the read through/edit your mind will be back in the story and you'll be able to pick up where you left off. 2-Short read through. If you are familiar with and remember all the content well, then just do a short read through/edit of the last few chapters or whatever and pick up from there. 3-Make continuity and future plot ideas notes. I write on word docs using chapter headings to easily jump around the doc. At the bottom of the doc, around half a page below what I am currently writing, I have 2 sections. The first one I head 'Remember' and is in bullet points. Here I put stuff I need to remember to do for continuity and other small things things. For example, a character is big on yoga, I'll drop a reminder in the remember section, so that I know to put the occasional reference to yoga every now and then. Or if a character makes a commitment for the future that you'll need to remember, like 'lets visit Susan next month', I'll drop it in here so I remember to write it. The second section I keep at the bottom of the page is plot ideas. Time and life often get in my way when I am writing, and if I am in a good flow it's really annoying to have to stop. So I'll write a few notes, sometimes as much as a few paragraphs, about what is in my mind at that time for the immediate plot. Then when I go back to it, I can see where my mind was at and where I was heading with the next few pages or chapters. I don't always follow this, I can ignore it and go in different directions, but it's a big help to get my mind back to where I was when I left off on the previous session. 4- Don't flog a dead horse. Sometimes a story is just not worth the effort, especially if, like me, you've got lots of other options that are half written to chose from. It's a tough thing to do, but occasionally I do move it a folder marked 'old' and leave it there so I can concentrate on the better stories. Why not just delete it? Because there is still good stuff in there, maybe a character or particular scene. Every now and then I'll go through my old folder and use it for spare parts, a bit like a scrap heap, where I can find useful little bits I can place in other current works. So nothing I write is ever truly abandoned, it's either waiting to be piked up again or in the scrap pile ready to used for spare parts.
I recently resumed working on an older story of mine (despite my earlier post in this thread ), and I did (and do) exactly the same things. So +1 I guess!
Dansak has covered the most important points Don't know if you have one but often times when working on a story had a sort of notepad with story prompts, what has sort of worked for me is to start out another story and as progress goes on I either: Get ideas for an older story (CHYOA style another path) or decide to dump the old one and keep on forward.
Great suggestions, I tend to enjoy putting my notes in draft chapters so that they remain on the CHYO websites for ideas on where I want to bring the story. This might have to do a great deal about which type a story you're writing. But I tend to treat old stories that I return to here on CHYO as me contributing to another author's story, even thought it might be my own story or branch. I find it lowers the pressure for me on maintaining the same characterization and flavour of the story. It also helps the sense of writing for fun and breaking out of a creative deadlock. Basically write for you and not for others when returning to an old story, chances are you audience won't remember the story in it's full detail either, and lots of new readers will be brought in by the updated and get a fresh start on it.
I have many dangling threads over many years as a Chyoo/Chyoa author, and part of how I keep them alive is to cue myself by revisiting details, recalling character personality and attitude, and working reminders frequently into the chapters of a sequence. For me, the TTRPG moves in Slut World and my take-off Lusty Magical Academy help me crank forward a scene at a time and make threads easier to resume. I don't tend to write finished arcs, but rather I enjoy having a bit of improv wandering with characters, scenes, and settings, occasionally tying them up with an epilogue or "where are they now?"
