How do you write?

[joanjunkmail]

ok, so i'm nano-ing along and realize i've painted my character into a ridiculous corner.  it's not critical to the plot (whatever it'll end up being) since it's just background, but...

do you folks stop and correct the mistake, which will take more hours than i technically have available (patrick, your fears about a new job and nano in the same month are beginning to look extraordinarily rational!),

or...

do you just plow ahead, figuring 1) you'll fix it later and 2) the solution will come to you as you're plowing?

thanks.

[detail for those interested:  the character, a mousy, pliant bookworm, was given a fellowship she didn't apply for and whisked away from london to san fran in two weeks by her parents/undergrad profs.  she didn't put up a fuss until waiting at the luggage carousel at SFO.  she needs, logically, to say 'no' in london plus there's nothing in her backstory that would suggests she's THIS pliant.  right now, i have the 'convincing' being done 2 weeks later and halfway around the world.  kinda stupid]

[Abigail]

JJM,

If it is something I can fix right then...I'll do it (but of course, you have to have ideas for the fixin...).   

If I have no ideas for fixing my problem and lots of ideas for moving forward with the story,  then I just throw in a random string of letters so I get a really obnoxious red underline in my word document.  this way I have a reminder that I have somehing to fix and where it is in the story. 

The one thing I wouldn't do is panic over it...it happens to everyone.  Just move on and come back to it later.  Something will inevitably pop.

Good luck,
Abi

[Chelc]

I'd say just keeping going and see what happens.  ;)

[joanjunkmail]

abi, i love the string of letters idea - i had set the type in color, but since that's what i do for words that need thesaurusizing, it didn't feel great.  i think i'll do your trick.

thanks, too, chelc.

[Legionsynch]

If it's something that's going to derail the story for awhile, I'll take the time to rewrite.  If it's anything else, I'll leave it and pick up later.  I'll do minor edits along the way, just when it's a matter of 'add this in here, to cover that part later' but not if it's a rewrite.  Most rewriting I'll leave till edits time.

[DaveKuzminski]

I analyze the problem to first see if it can be fixed. In one case, I started a sequel with a premise that totally went against the characterization of a major character in the previous book. Because that was prevalent throughout the entire sequel, it had to be discontinued in its entirety because there was no way to fix it without contradicting several other books that were published. I set it aside in case I could use it later for a different set of characters in a new book not related to the others.

In two other instances, I found myself with a story that didn't have a beginning that made sense and a second one that I couldn't end. Shortly after I set the second aside, I realized that changing the character names in one would permit me to marry the two into a seamless whole story. So setting aside can be a valid option.

When I find more often that I've veered into a situation where the character isn't behaving according to the character's personality, thankfully not often, then I usually have to rewrite that portion from where it veered unless I can reasonably explain the change.

Essentially, if you continue writing, you risk finding yourself with even more to fix.

[gypsygurl]

I'm a horrible example.  I stop and rewrite the whole thing.  Usually I change from first person to third person.  Then I rewrite it again to change the verb tense.  Then I realize it doesn't make any sense and rewrite it again.