There comes a point within a manuscript's life cycle where it loses its shiny luster. Sometimes, it's because we've been working on the manuscript long enough that there is nothing new in it for us to discover. Or maybe we've gotten stuck and have no idea how to move the story forward. Or perhaps we've hit a scene that we just don't want to write though we know it needs to be there.
Regardless the reason for why the manuscript now seems dull to our imaginations, that will be when a new shiny bauble dangles in front of us, distracting our brains from the story we are meant to be working on.
Some writers will chase the new shiny, but following every shiny, new idea can lead to the road filled with incomplete manuscripts. There is one thing that all successful novelists have in common: They finished a manuscript.
As such, every writer wishing to pursue publication needs to develop the discipline needed to persevere on a manuscript that has lost its shiny-new luster.
There are countless numbers of blog posts out there about creating focus and avoiding distractions. I'm not going to bother adding to that pool of questionable wisdom, except to say this:
Everyone works differently. Therefore, the strategies to create focus will be different for every writer. And to complicate matters, what worked during one manuscript doesn't necessarily work for another.
Experiment with different techniques. Change up your routine until you find something that works for you. And when it no longer works, change it up again.
In this post, we're going to talk about a few strategies on dealing with the shiny, new idea, and moving it to the side, so you can get on with finishing that current manuscript.
The ideas jar
A close friend of mine has an ideas jar where she bottles up all those good ideas. Whenever an idea comes into her head, she'll write that idea on a piece of paper, then put that idea into the jar and leave it there for when she's ready to look at a new project.
I myself do something similar but I do take it a step further.
The random ideas folder
I do all my personal writing within Scrivener. Within my main project file, I have a folder that I call Random Ideas. Whenever a shiny, new idea strikes me, I create a new file in that folder and make my notes.
Sometimes, it will be a full scene. Occasionally, it's a whole plot, complete with all the beat points. And sometimes, it's just impressions and a character.
I learnt long ago that if I don't write my random, shiny, new ideas out, they will continue to nag me until I give them the attention they deserve. By writing them out, I give the idea just enough attention so my brain can let it go and get back to my main project — and get to work.
The reason I keep my random ideas folder in my main project is so I don't leave my main project. I don't have to open other programs or projects to make my notes. It minimizes the chances that I could find myself running down the rabbit hole that I don't need to be going down.
For those who are not fond of Scrivener, and I know there are some writers out there who don't use it, create a Random Ideas folder on your computer for the same purpose. Quickly create a new file in your favorite writing program, and off you go.
The shiny, new idea that masquerades as a story sub-plot
For those who are working on long projects, you'll understand how sometimes a sub-plot takes over our imaginations. Those story ideas are connected to our manuscripts, even if the connection is loose, so we don't question them or see them for what they really are. So, down the rabbit hole of the shiny, new plot thread we go.
The pantsers (or discovery writers, as they're also called) will encounter this particular issue quite frequently. They will start writing their stories, then the characters run away with it and lead us down unexpected plot roads. Sometimes these plot twists are just what was needed to keep the story going, but sometimes those new plot twists turn out to be a disaster.
Plotters will encounter this problem too, but to a lesser extent, because they tend to be working to a particular destination.
Recognizing the difference between a plot twist that will enhance your story and a shiny, new idea that is just a distraction is not easy. Even the most experienced writers out there sometimes struggle with this.
Sometimes the best way to handle this particular situation is to just write that plot twist and see where it takes you. If it leads you too far away from where you wanted to go, then perhaps that shiny idea is just a distraction. But if it adds a flavor to your writing that you just adore, then it is something that you should keep. (And for the plotters, perhaps it's time to revisit that plot.)
As a writer with pantser tendencies myself, I manage these distracting plot twists by keeping an end goal in mind. That doesn't mean I know exactly how the bad guy is going down at the end of the manuscript. That particular detail is something that I normally discover as I write it. But I do know how I want the resolution of my manuscript to look like. My final scene is typically one of the first scenes I actually write. Never mind that I normally have to rewrite it when I finish drafting, but knowing what transformation I want my characters to experience does help to shape their character arc and hence the plot arc.
My character may be in the hospital recovering from whatever happened to her during the climax of my manuscript. Or it could be a funeral scene where my main character comes to terms with the destruction that had happened around her. Or it could be my main character just standing there and laughing her head off as the cop that she has been working with found himself trapped behind a bunch of bars that only she knows how to get him out of.
It doesn't matter what that end scene looks like, but having that idea in my head helps me to identify which plot twists will service where I want my manuscript to go.
And even then, there will be times when my brain just wants me to write that scene anyway—even though I know that it won't stay.
The ideas you know will not stay
There is the odd occasion where I will write a scene, and by the time I get to one or two pages into that idea, I know the idea will not service the end goal for a manuscript. But because of the way the shiny new has attracted my attention, I won't be able to go back to where I need to be unless I write that scene. It doesn't matter that the scene will be removed from my manuscript almost immediately, shoved into the depths of my outtakes folder, but if I want to focus on my main story again…
These scenes tend to be character development scenes or character backstory. It was my brain's way of telling me something that I didn't know about that character. And more often than not, it suddenly explains why my character behaves a certain way.
(For those of you who read my personal blog, The Rabbit was one of those scenes.)
Give yourself permission to at least make notes
If you talk to another writer about the Shiny, New Syndrome, they will probably nod and smile. It's a feeling that writers know well. And most writers that I know will give you the same advice.
Make notes about that idea. If you need to, write the scenes you see clearly. Do whatever you need to do to entertain the idea enough so you can put it aside and get back to work on the manuscript that you need to finish.
On that note, it's time for me to turn my attention to my own current manuscript. Time to torture my characters some more.