I have a really annoying problem: I think of scenes in a story before I even know what I want to happen in the story. For example, I'm brainstorming an idea where the CMCs go to a party and Diamond Tiara overdoses on cocaine (shut up, it's a comedy). First I thought of Diamond Tiara overdosing, and then I tried to build up a story around it. The problem is that that event is not all I want to happen in the story, but I can't think of what I want to happen. I can't think of what to build up to. It's infuriating! The only option I feel I have lleft to progress the story is to make stuff up as the story goes along-you know, "let the story unfold naturally," as I've heard some people say.
My question is how do you write a story? Do you start with the end in mind and then think of things that will lead up to that ending? Do you plan out stuff that will happen down the line-stuff that relates to things that happened at the beginning of the story? Or do you take the Breaking Bad approach and just make it up as you go along? I need advice, because I'm getting nowhere the way I'm doing things.

1269741

I know that feel.

1269741 I think of how I want the story to end, and pretty much improvise until I get to that point.

That's just me though.

1269741
Very, very carefully.

In the few stories I've written (none for MLP so none on this site) I came up with a few key events that I wanted to see happen and just winged it between them. I find that having a few set goals in sight but freedom to reach them however should take my fancy is usually easiest, as it means I don't often find myself having to trudge through long, dull stretches and thus don't lose interest in my own work. Just make sure to keep track of what you're doing; not particularly hard to write yourself into a corner if you lose track of some initially seemingly inconsequential statement or action.

1269741
I plan out the basic idea, brainstorm scenes, then put them together.

1269741 I get one idea and I build so much on it that I never get to the original point by the time the story is done.

HA! I can relate to this. All of my stories started and were written like this, and as a result, I had writers block for 3 months now.

Well there when you have your brainstorm sessions where you basically write down whatever comes to mind. dont judge it just write it down. then sort it out and stuff.

try jott notes for points of interest.

I have the same problem at times... So I get the idea what I wanna do, and when scenes come up in my head, I write them out. Then I go back to the chapter I am working on and continue... adding the scene that was in my head when it is time for that scene.

Generally, I do not do a lot of planning, but for one project I have in the works, there WILL be a ton of planning to do, only because of the scope of the project

Okay, I understand you. Sometimes I too think in a scene before to have a story idea.

What I do is try have a idea of story's plot and calculate how many chapters I think it will have. So I plan what will happen in every chapter. For example:

chapter 1: twilight have a bad feeling while reads a book, RD finds a strange artifact.

chapter 2: RD brings the artifact to her home, strange things happen

This is my method. I hope help you

1269741 I think of key plot points that I want to happen in the story, and then basically improv my way to them. Maybe not the best method for a long term story, but hey, work with what you got.

I usually start out with an idea I want to make fun of, come up with a few scenes I want to include, and then think of how to justify those scenes within the confines of a story. Unfortunately, somewhere along the line, the big picture changes into something I didn't initially have in mind. For my parody/deconstruction ideas, it often gains a life of its own, but it wanders dangerously close to (if not into), "Things That Should Not Be Written," territory. When that happens, I lose all motivation to write anything at all.

I'm pretty much in a perpetual state of writer's block

I map it out with a beginning middle and end than add bullet points of specific things I want to happen between those junctions. Then it's just connecting the dots with filler and random ideas that come along the way, possibly through my muse or reader feedback.

I plan it in arcs. I plan out a 'beginning' where the plot of the story is introduced. A 'middle' where the main conflict is introduced. And finally a 'conclusion' where everything is resolved.

Once I plan out my arcs, everything in between is easy to do.

1269741 Immerse yourself in the story. Become the characters, and live it. If you try and force the story, your writers will be able to notice the lack of passion, and you'll find it harder and harder to write. It's obvious you have a point that you want to get to for this story (as well as possibly something after it), but you need to ask yourself what you want to see happen beforehand. Write what you know and what you're passionate about...you'll have more fun, and it'll make for a much better story. Create the world as you see fit.

I think of key points, listen to some music to get the scene going and I use the crapper to help fill in the small details AND IT WORKS

Imagine a scene idea. Flesh out that scene a little in my head.

Then I start asking questions. What happened to lead up to the scene? What happened after? Each of those questions creates another scene. And then I ask myself the same questions about those scenes. Often I'll come up with a bunch of initial scenes, then find ways to link them together by thinking about what could come before/after each.

Then I jot my random ideas down and in order.

Finally (at least planning-wise) I go over each scene many times in my head, tweaking and editing as needed long before I actually write the scene.

Yeah, I tend to jump around a lot.

Example:
For one of my defunct story ideas I wanted to write a human X Celestia shipfic. I initially imagined two scenes: how and why the human gets pulled to Equestria, and what happens to initially hook the two up. I then had to fill in what was between the two - eventually coming up with the human taking her hostage, almost killing her while he tries to escape Canterlot, him spending time in the wilderness dodging guard patrols, and then her finding him and offering him a pardon and amnesty (I know that string seems to make little sense, but there's a whole bunch of other things going on at the same time as those scenes.)

Then I had to ask myself what came next. How does Celestia feel about a relationship that she has no choice in? How does the human feel? How do all the other ponies feel, and why can't/won't they help her out of it? I eventually came up with a smattering of intermediate scenes that show the reluctant progression of their relationship. It wasn't until a while later that I actually came up with an ending, but when I did I had to backtrack a little to show what the main antagonist was up to, and how said evil-doer almost brings down Celestia through her relationship with the human - nearly killing the human (and many others) in the process.

Finally I though up a short and sweet epilogue to show the fallout of everything and how the characters are piecing themselves back together.

1269932 You don't introduce your main conflict at the beginning? What goes at the beginning then?

Hmm, the very first idea I had for a fanfic (which is not posted, for the record), I was kept up until four in the morning writing it down with paper and pencil.

The way I came up with the idea for my current stories was more or less the same, though not quite as... energetically. They came to me, I wrote them out and mostly winged it in between events I'd planned out (and even those I've rewritten in an attempt to be more organic to the story).

Heh, I usually have the beginning in mind and the end, then I have to work out the middle. Which can be quite the trick sometimes...

I'll make references to a futures conflict. Maybe a suspicious character or two interacting characters will bring up a potential threat. But I don't usually introduce a direct villain right away.

In the beginning you'll see kind of a slice of life situation. You'll get to know the characters, and my versions of them.

1269741

I think everyone has their own way to deal with that.

Personally, whenever this happens to me, I forget the scene.

And I don't mean that I do so on accident.

I just let it go, because I know from experience that trying to squeeze a whole story out of one scene will take a lot of energy and turn out kinda crappy.

If it was really meant to be, the idea will come back to me in a fit of unexpected inspiration, and through that inspiration I will at least have a beginning, a middle, and an end to work with, which is enough. Sometimes it happens hours later, sometimes over a month, but I've never been happy with my writing unless I let it happen like that.

Think of a scenario.
Think of scenes.
???
Story.

1269741
I feel your pain, but here's the process I use. This may or may not work for you, but give it a shot.

1) Create a rough sketch of your characters. More specifically, this is scoped to your protagonist, antagonist, and any significant secondary characters. This part I usually do first because the characters are the most crucial part to cement in and the real emotional driving force of a story. The real advice I can give is to make them more than a face, name, and goal. Think about what they want out of life on a deep level, what they love, what they fear, how they interact with other characters, obstacles in the way of their goals, and how they can grow to overcome them.

2) Hammer out a basic conflict and setting. This step should flow pretty naturally from character creation. You've already stated the conflict since you know all the characters roles in the story, as well as their objectives and roadblocks to those objectives. The setting should also come naturally, especially here since nine times out of ten it will be set in Equestria. The important part of this step is to flesh out the conflict. Not only what is the conflict, but why is it happening and noteworthy? Same goes for bringing the world of Equestria to more life than just "a place where stuff happens".

3) Set a rough beginning and ending point. This is pretty self explanatory. Think of a good, attention-catching way to open the story that will tell the reader a basic summary of the setting and characters along with the conflict they will be facing as well as a satisfying ending that ties up the loose ends of the story and answers the questions the reader has been pondering about the plot. The order that you think these up doesn't matter so much.

4) Map out the major plot points. Think of any major important event that is crucial to the story progressing from its beginning point to its ending point in chronological order. I classify a crucial plot point as something that when removed causes the plot to completely unravel. For instance, say you are writing a fic about a war between the griffon kingdom and the ponies of Equestria. A necessary plot point would be the initial battle that starts the war.

5) Connect the dots. This is where your scenes you were talking about come into the picture. You've broken the story down into its bare skeletal points, but you need some scenes to make a path between them. These scenes could be of minor significance to the plot, or just stand alone filler. In going with the earlier example of griffon vs. pony war, a scene with minor significance could be a soldier writing home about the situation, which doesn't further the narrative, but does give a look into the soldiers thoughts or analyze the war itself closer. A scene that's just filler would be two soldiers, not mentioning the war at all, goofing around in a bar on leave for comic relief. Basically, keep using minor scenes to link points together until you reach the end.

And there you have it. Thats the method I use to create a story outline. Sorry if this post ran long or if it felt like I was babying you through it. This is the procedure I tell anyone who asks me how to write, so it's been recycled a bit. Hope this helps.

1269741 Two ways, some I set a beginning, middle and an end, and waypoints that must be achieved between, but other than that, anything goes.
The second is a series of event connected only by the characters going through it. Otherwise, totally random. Most of my stories have elements of both.

1269741look it up on the writer guild group thing

1269741
Mainly I think of scenes I want to happen as guideposts. Like I know I want this to happen, and I try to steer the story to do it. Sometimes it takes longer to get there then other times. But sometimes the story wants to head off in a different direction, and sometimes that works. Like my first story "Welcome home, Princess Luna" actually turned out far different then I intended it to in the end.

A technique I've heard is you write the scenes you want, and then kinda fill in the middle. I haven't used it myself, but I know some professional writers are reported to do this.

I guess keep in mind what you WANT to happen, but let the characters get there in their own time. I don't know any other way to put it.

What I've always done is I come up with an idea and then type up the first chapter centered around that single idea. Then I sleep on it for a night or two and suddenly the whole plot appears in my head during my dreams.

Beyond the beginning and the end, things can get very strange. One minute, I'll have a plan in mind, but when I sit down to write it and find that I literally can't. Instead, a whole new scenario types itself into existence. I can't tell you the number of times my carefully constructed storyline has been shattered like this.

My theory is that we writers merely record, we do not dictate. Multiple Universe theory. In all of infinity, there are goings on both before and after the events of our little fanfictions. We somehow link into that one version of reality and feel the urge to record it. The more 'alive' your story is (in my case the number of times it writes itself vs. the number of times I actually get what I want) [BTW the score is 99.99% to .01%] the stronger the link you posses.

Writer's block is nothing more than a combination of a temporarily frayed connection and minor lack of situational creativity. Or, sometimes, it just means that your window has closed and that reality has been recorded as much as it wants to be by you. There are such things as one-shots.

I outline OC profiles and set-up any systems that are original, then I get started according to the basic template within my mind.

I watch TV to get inspiration, like when i want to write a Power rangers related story i watch Sentai to get ideas for story.

Eh...I'm new to writing fics (Been on this site for how long? A year I think?) I just started recently and so far I just write like a few simple sentences for the begging middle and end.

Crappy Example: Guy get's flung to pony wolrd. Meets ponies. (Beginning) Ponies think he's bad. Finds out he can do magic. trains it. (Middle). Big threat comes. Ponies Powerless. Guy helps them and saves day. (End)

Afterwards I write a description on what will happen in a chapter.

EX: Dude wakes up. Is very confused, not seeing the apartment he's in, but rather apple trees. Gets up and dusts himself off. Looks around abit before coming to the conclusion that he's indeed lost. Walking mindlessly, he comes across farm. Smiles in relief, he calls out for help and his predictament. Sees Aj come and greet him. He passes out.

Then I put down what the characters are saying/thinking. Then afterwards I place where the descriptions will be and flesh them out some more.