Finally, after a lot of replotting and revisioning, I’m at that stage with the novel where I’m attempting to pull all of the various story threads together into something resembling a neat conclusion. As of the latest revisions there are eleven main plot elements that somehow need to be gathered and tied and trimmed into something that resembles a satisfying wrap-up. I say eleven, it’s perhaps twelve. Is that too many? I guess I’ll find out in due course when they find me muttering away in a corner, hands full of loose ends, fingers gummed together with parcel tape.
This I find is a problem for me at novel length. No matter how carefully I outline the story before I start writing there are always going to be surprising plot strands that arise during the writing as I become immersed in way people live in the world I’ve created: in this case, the functional meritocracy I planned has proved to be a fair sight more corrupt than I expected, and that’s brought a whole bunch of activity into play that I wasn’t expecting, and a whole lot of consequential ripples to the material that was already there. What can you do though? It makes story sense for it to be there, so you just have to knuckle down and get on with it.
Which is why I’m only now getting round to finishing everything off. So it goes.
Next one will be much simpler.**
**This post was brought to you by the Famous Last Words corporation.
ayeahmur 