Me Coming Back To A WIP After Not Looking At It For Months:

me coming back to a WIP after not looking at it for months:

When you lose momentum in your writing:

Aka what you should do if you literally can’t stand your project for another second.

Actually give yourself a break for a couple of days because maybe your brain is burned out and you need it.

Start a new story and come back to the old one in a week or two when you have new ideas.

Skip the part you’re on and write that exciting chapter you can’t wait to get to.

Replot by changing one major detail or event. A “what if” scenario.

Write a backstory or a later chapter in a totally new style (screenplay, first person, poetry, present tense, or look into other authors’ styles and see if any appeal to you.)

Make a bullet list of everything that’s making you stop writing or parts you don’t like about the story so you can fix them later.

Honestly your probably feeling like you hate your story because you’ve spent so much time with it that it feels old and tired. I recommend the first bullet point before doing any of the others.

Ocs: Charlotte-June

Backstory

Charlotte grew up in the spaced out Iowan countryside with her mild-mannered maternal aunt. She herself is quite ordinary, her father not so much. On November 21, she's invited by her father to accompany him on a "business" outing. While she is aware of her father's abilities she didn't expect him to bring her with him to 2019. However, she is her father's daughter and quickly adapts apparently there's an apocalypse to prevent. Charlotte over the course of eight days finds herself becoming quite the addition to the abnormal family.

Bio

Full Name: Charlotte-June Pedersen

Face Claim: Olive E. Abercrombie

Fandom: The Umbrella Academy

Occupation: Daughter?

Personality: sweet, witty, rational, ride-or-die, bubbly, and candid

Relationships: Number 5 (father), Renate Pedersen (mother), Dolores (step-mother), Magdalene Pedersen (maternal aunt), Luther Hargreeves (paternal uncle) Diego Hargreeves (paternal uncle), Allison Hargreeves (paternal aunt), Klaus Hargreeves (favorite paternal uncle), Ben Hargreeves (deceased; paternal uncle), Vanya (paternal aunt), Reginald Hargreeves (paternal grandfather), Grace (paternal grandmother), Topaz (bestest friend)

Fun Fact: Five calls her Lulu. To the rest of the family it's kind of a mystery where the nickname came from. As a baby she struggled with her J's. So she'd have pronounced Juju with syllables she could formulate creating Lulu. Five totally fell in love with her adorable mispronunciation of her own name. Her mother hates it.

How to write a character-driven plot

The Character-Driven Plot Wheel

1. Emotions drive actions.

Make your hero act on their deepfelt emotions. This not only adds meaning to their actions, but also helps communicate to readers your hero’s core emotional struggle.

2. Actions trigger consequences.

When your hero acts, give their actions consequences that affect the plot, themselves, and/or the surrounding characters. For example, driven by curiosity, maybe your hero opens Pandora’s box; maybe they act recklessly and someone dies; or maybe they stand up for what they believe in, but at great personal cost. Consequences raise the stakes and empower your hero with agency.

3. Consequences compel change.

Use the consequences of your hero’s actions to create a crucible of growth — challenges and situations that force them to take the next step on their character journey. That step may be forward, or backward, and it may be large or small; but something inside them changes.

4. Change influences emotions.

When a character goes through a change, even a small one, allow it to affect them emotionally. Maybe they feel increasingly frustrated or guilty. Maybe they’re afraid, having just taken another step closer to abandoning their old way of seeing the world. Or maybe they finally feel peace.

Regardless of the form it takes, remember to reflect your hero’s change in their emotions. Then let their emotions drive action, to trigger consequences, which will compel further change.

Lather. Rinse. Repeat.

And there you have it! That’s how you write a character-driven plot.

So what do you say?

Give the wheel a spin.

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Your stories are worth telling. For tips on how to craft meaning, build character-driven plots, and grow as a writer, follow my blog.