Light bulb moments, or times you changed the story and shocked yourself?

Leyelle 2024-03-05 15:08:03 UTC #1

I have quite a few twists and things I added that I hadn't initially planned but probably the biggest one is the twist in the chapter "Black Bile."

I won't share how it goes now if you don't already know, just the original plot point:

{Alicia says meekly, rather defeatedly that she'll send him a "something beautiful" every day...}

AmysGames 2024-03-05 19:45:33 UTC #2

There's a couple of moments where my own characters surprised me, but the most notable is that I had a dream that inspired a story concept that ultimately ended up completely changing how the story ends. Fun stuff!

TheBlacKat333 2024-03-05 20:40:14 UTC #3

I think it was when I designed the upper ranks of the Clockworks. They were a very nebulous idea, but when I finally got CWG on paper, it became so much clearer

kyupol 2024-03-05 21:04:16 UTC #4

Originally planned these guys to just be normal humans... not super soldiers with zanpaktou...

Leyelle 2024-03-30 15:08:05 UTC #5

I'm adding some details in upcoming chapters of "Damsel in the Red Dress." to make Alicia's mother a little more sympathetic as a character. Alicia doesn't see it that way, but hopefully the readers will lol.

Leyelle 2024-04-14 00:47:47 UTC #6

I legitimately just added an extra chapter to "Damsel in the Red Dress," it originally was just another opportunity to add some more flirty slightly spicy parts to the story but then it got DEEP. Like I can't let any moments just stay light-hearted or something. If they start flirting it's going to end with childhood trauma.

This chapter won't be coming out for some time yet though, like, not until June.

Leyelle 2024-05-09 15:44:21 UTC #7

The ending I just came up with for" Rigamarole." It feels dramatic to call it a light bulb moment, but honestly it feels like such a beautiful and sweet way to end the story that I'm really attached to it. It kind of just came out me randomly, so it's weird how perfect it feels.

this is free to read on my Patreon public posts:

Leyelle 2024-05-23 23:34:24 UTC #8

This legit just happened again with the new story I'm working on, so I guess the moral of the story is to trust the process and your own creative head? You'll have a eureka phenomenon even when you're feeling really stuck on a part of the process as long as you don't just give it up altogether (this doesn't mean to not take a break, breaks are good.)

But I was stressing about the climax which was just feeling kind of flat and meh, and then a new ending came to me randomly. it did mean have to re-plot the end chapters, but in the end, I think it's a whole lot better than it was before.

skidiggy 2024-05-25 20:13:11 UTC #9

Oh, man, I'm constantly having light bulb moments for Apparent Secrets, to the point where I can't tell where the "original" idea ends and the revelations begin. As I'd been plugging along for the True Love on Tapas contest, Apparent Secrets underwent significant plot changes, several new characters were created, and entire chunks of story were removed or reworked throughout the first draft. I honestly don't recognize my original notes from 2014 anymore... It's just a completely different thing altogether.

Leyelle 2024-05-25 20:17:46 UTC #10

I didn't have a whole lot of notes for DITRD when I started it, as I was just pantsing, but "Sun with a Paper Crown" just keeps getting new twists and turns XD

SumireHime 2024-05-26 03:03:44 UTC #11

I decided recently that my book "Every Day is Beautiful With You" would be about a cancer journey. I personally went through what one of the MC's is going through ten years ago. I was shocked at the realization that it'd been ten years. I thought I'd share that, but also place the healthcare system under the microscope. What's good, what needs to change, what modern advancements there are. I've been talking to people, and their ideas about cancer treatment and survivability are so outdated. Even my one reader is crying because he thinks my character's leukemia diagnosis means he's going to die. "Oh, I'm so sad that this couple's time together will be so short! Crying face" So now the book is about what they went through during the pandemic when everyone was scared of illness, and this couple and their friends bring scared again of this cancer like they're in a strange bubble of the pandemic again, those same scared and worried feelings, comparing. The story wasn't supposed to be about this. But well, now the story surprises me and I'm excited to write it. It has meaning now. My one reader is also so much more engaged and emotional with the characters. I'm excited to see what he thinks when the MC receives his simple treatment lol. I can't wait. I just up and changed what it was about at like chapter 30 lol.

Leyelle 2024-05-26 12:41:54 UTC #12

Wow, I don't think I've ever overhauled any of my stories that much, I guess I just added more things it was about.

You didn't feel it had meaning before?

roguemonte 2024-05-27 12:27:33 UTC #13

My character blaming everything on his hunger and fatigue, when I initially plan him to walk out on the role as the chosen one.

Leyelle 2024-05-27 16:46:59 UTC #14

wait, i don't understand. he's blaming what on his hunger and fatigue?

Leyelle 2024-06-12 13:44:03 UTC #15

Making Essence's mother more sympathetic.

She was originally just mean, and the sort of character who everyone would hate without feeling very sorry for her at all, but as I wrote her, developing her personality in an almost bratty childish sort of way, makes her feel more real, and fragile. She's simply overtired, if you will, and it's showing through the tantrums that, unfortunately, her daughter has to deal with.

Leyelle 2024-07-08 16:40:50 UTC #16

The chapter "Sidewalk Chalk" took a very dramatic turn in the middle that was not originally planned to be in the chapter. the results are one of the most emotionally intense chapters I've written so far, by far one of my proudest works.

The chapter was originally just supposed to be a cute interaction between Alicia and her new boyfriend, but when she encounters a trigger, the memories that come along with it are almost devestating

Ansies 2024-07-08 18:31:11 UTC #17

When I first started writing I honestly thought this was a myth. Like I'm creating the character how could they surprise me. Boy was I wrong.

There were times I decided to just put my character in a pressure cooker to see what happened. There is an entire twist I never planned in my planning phase that came out of this which drastically changed this character. I'm so glad I let that happen because I think the whole story is better because of it! Long story short one of my more selfish characters decided to give up, for all intents and purposes, his life and livelihood to save the party!

For reference I just finished my first draft and am now working on revisions and edits for the final draft.

Leyelle 2024-07-30 15:13:15 UTC #18

I added a cat.

Two cats actually.

They aid in the downfall of the universe.

supriyashukla2398 2024-08-01 07:20:13 UTC #19

My original story was a love-at-first-sight. Then, I changed it to a forced mafia marriage plot. Eventually, I added a child to the story, who was never meant to exist.

Leyelle 2024-08-21 15:12:36 UTC #20

I gave Mora a super sense of smell and it's drastically shifting the way I write her narrative. Normally, I don't dwell on smells very much in my story, but because it's her strongest sense, it's going to take a level of dominance over the senses I usually use to describe things and people.