This is my Insecure Writers Support Group post for March 2022.
Alex's awesome co-hosts this month are:
Janet Alcorn,
PatGarcia,
NatalieAguirre,
and Shannon Lawrence!
Please stop by their blogs and say thank you.
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March 2nd
question - Have you ever been conflicted about writing a story or adding a
scene to a story? How did you decide to write it or not?
I'm a natural plotter and only pants the small stuff, so -thankfully- I rarely struggle with this. But I do have my moments. 😃
I encountered this problem in the second book of my Scarlet Knight duet, when the threat of a leftover villain from book one was mentioned but didn't materialize. I let my CPs read the draft first (so as not to bias them), then I asked them what they thought about that particular issue.
They said they wouldn't have put the book down over it, but that they did wonder why the guy never showed. I decided to have him come back and cause some trouble. It was fun to write, and it only added a few short scenes. Not only did this mitigate potential reader dissatisfaction, it threw in some tension and conflict during a somewhat saggy middle. Win, win.
What about you?
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IWSG is the brainchild of Alex J. Cavanaugh. It's a monthly bloghop that offers a safe haven for writers to express their feelings and concerns without fear of appearing foolish or weak. It's also a venue for offering support, both in the form of comments and positive posts. Writers of all kinds are welcome.
We 'meet' the first Wednesday of every month. If you're interested in learning more, click on the link above. And don't be intimidated by the size of the group. We're not expected to visit everyone on the list.
Yes, it can be hard if there's a threat or a smoking gun that you don't follow up on in your story. I have a lot of characters in my current manuscript and wonder if a few should be in more scenes.
ReplyDeleteAnything that can help that saggy middle...
ReplyDeleteReaders tend to notice those little dangling threads, don't they?
ReplyDeleteHi,
ReplyDeleteThat was fantastic the way you handle the issue and brought him back. I'm sure your readers were highly satisfied.
All the best.
Shalom aleichem,
Pat G @ EverythingMustChange
Tying up all the loose ends is important. Good that you got that handled.
ReplyDeleteAlways bring back a villain, if there's a choice! Villains make everything more fun, LOL. Happy IWSG day!
ReplyDeleteVillains always help. When my son was small, he was obsessed with the Mowgli cartoon. In the Kipling's tale and in the cartoon, the villainous tiger dies in the end. My son reenacted the story numerous times from about 3 to 6 years old. And in his plays, the tiger never died. It was always resurrected to cause troubles another day.
ReplyDeleteAh that is a win win!
ReplyDeleteYou're an official plot master.
ReplyDeleteAlways worth listening to betas' advice - and yes it can be somewhat disconcerting as a reader to finish the book and then be left wondering "but what about...?" Sounds like you tied it up well!
ReplyDeleteThe changes worked out well, Alex.
ReplyDeleteHey Melissa. I didn't realize that we write in the same genre. Fist bump:)
I envy plotters. I'm a total fail at it. I should ask you for some tips.
ReplyDeletePlotters amaze me, Melissa. I'm a panster. Fortunately my fiction pieces are short stories. The book I'm working on is a memoir, so I have a largely builtin outline. Happy creating in April!
ReplyDelete