Quote by Rumple_deWriter
Good thread, Reg. Here's my FWIW replies.

1.) When writing something like this, do you outline / block out the story arc for the whole thing first? Do you write a draft of the whole story, break it into chapters and then complete / submit chapter one?

RdW: I've never done anything similar to your project. However, I've always done a rough outline for long-form fiction, including my two finished novels. For short stories, I've never used outlines. It would be interesting to get Verbals's take on this subject since his 'Shard' series of flash fiction involves the relationship, both sexual and emotional, between the same man and woman.


2.) Do you plot out the biographical details character eleements before starting? Keep notes on the character?

RdW: For my novels, yep. This was especially true for my second one which, unlike my first one, contained no auto-bio elements.

3.) Did you start with the complexity of characters, plot elements, etc (love triangle, KKK, off to college, preachers’ kids, etc.)... determined to mix them in, or did they evolve during the writing?

RdW: For the primary characters, I did a fairly extensive 'rap sheet' of their looks, quirks, personality traits, history, habits etc.. None of that was chiseled in stone. Elements were added as the story developed others were never used.

For secondary characters, I tried to come up with a distinctive feature to set each one apart from all the others.

4.) Do yo incorporate details that are personal and based upon your experiences? Are they always in your protagonist?

RdW: Yes, but that's not a goal, it just happens.

5.) Did you intend to break it into chapters? Would you make it a novella if you didn’t have to break it up?

RdW: Can't help you with this one since I've never set out to write something in this form. That said, I tend to be an almost instinctive user of chapters.

6.) How far ahead of the latest published chapter is your writing?

RdW: I've only intentionally written one set of stories that were posted as a 'series'. It's on another site. I wrote it on-the-fly, one chapter at a time and don't plan on ever doing that again. If I ever do tackle another series, I'll write the entire thing first, them submit it one chapter at a time, making any needed edits along the way.

Quote by AnnaMayZing
Not sure if my work comes into this category but, for what it's worth, I write each chapter and publish it when it is ready.
My story has been one continuous tale from Chapter one which evolves along the way.
I completed part one at forty-one chapters as the first book and am now working on part two in the same way.
Hope this helps.

Quote by gillianleeza

Quote by tonyal
I am awake with this dumb cold and lonely.
I am feeling lost

I'm sorry you were awake and not feeling well. We should hang out or form a club on those nights we are up and feeling lost and lonely. I understand those feelings.