When Walking Away Works: An IWSG Post

Hi everyone! 

Welcome to Insecure Writer's Support Group. We are a group writers who share our doubts and encouragements. I'd like to thank Alex Cavanaugh and this month's hosts. Learn more about the group here.



I started a new novel. Actually, I'm revisiting an old idea with a new twist. You see, while I was working on Entangled, book three in my Embrace Series, Nikki, the main character in an idea I had several years ago, popped into my thoughts. She wanted to know when I was going to get to her story. I can't call her impatient. She's been waiting at least three years for me to revisit what I had written all those months ago. Checking my draft, that was around 10,000 words. I only had to read a few pages to remember the different problems I had with the story. One being that I wasn't sure the plot was right for a teen audience. Nikki was kind enough to agree and push me to come up with a fix, because she was definitely a teen character. Not really helpful, but she successfully got me thinking about her again. That's when this guy poked his head into my thoughts and pointed out that I hadn't started the story in the right place, and that my dual point-of-views weren't from the right two people. Sure, Nikki's has to be there, but so does his. 

The point of this post, and how it ties in with insecurities, is that sometimes it's necessary to put an idea away for awhile. Stew over the plot. Get a better idea of who the characters are. This way, when you come back to the story, you'll be ready to roll up your sleeves and write the story.

Hopefully my new found energy for this story will last for at least 60,000 words.


Do you talk to your characters? Ever revamp an old idea into a new story?