Today while trying to jump start my brain from “sluggish, mush, brains, can’t think” and springboard off yesterday’s series of brainstorms (particularly regarding a dragon story seed I found in another unrelated file), I stumbled across one of my more insidious complex PTSD triggers that has impacted all attempts to use any traditional/typical writing advice for world building or plot developing.
The way all writing advice has always read to me on world building and plot development is there is a point where you just start making things up, plugging them into a pre-made model of some kind. Whether three act model, seven point model, brainstorming, word association, heroes journey, etc., they all reach a point where you just “fill it in by what is expected next in the model.” Or at least that is what my brain always registered, and that triggers up one of my more unpleasant emotional flashbacks. Memories of Screaming, waves of pain, and waves of humiliation. And that is just the beginning.
My problem is always the same with these and all other writing advice I have ever received in this area. “How do I randomly select something random from the entirety of the universe?” And I’d go into a form of options paralysis mixed with PTSD trigger. Well today while trying to sort out some world building stuff (long story not included), I slammed right into this wall.
Well after several hours of the day lost to ever worsening anxiety and mounting blind panic, with no idea where it was coming from, I suddenly pecked the correct spot and realized I was having a flashback/trigger moment. One that apparently, comes with selective amnesia that blocks my memory of it. So as I was casting my wide net amongst many internet writing friends, I began to remember past occurrences, past bad trigger events, and realized what was going on, and changed directions.
Long story short, thanks to several writing friends, all of whom basically sent me the exact same advice for resolving the original world building magic system problem, I now have a solution to my plot AND world developing problem of “option paralysis.” Reverse engineer the world AND plot with character motivations, inclinations, and history in mind, to get the “moments” of the story I already have, desire, need.
Yes, this was duh level obvious once I saw this suggestion, but since no one else, that I remember at least, had ever suggested it before, I’m not the only one that missed it >_>
So basically, since the only way I can write any story is to know the beginning (state) AND the ending (or at least the climax), and as I chatter about these two or just have yummy brainstorms as I wake first thing during any given day, I can then reverse engineer the world setting and the plot bridges between those “moments” I’ve “ah ha!” and…
Well I don’t know yet, since this all just hit me today. I’ve taken notes. I’ve got some vague ideas (for what to do next with the high fantasy novelization in question). Gonna sleep on it now. And then see where this takes me long term, because short stories are easy for me to do, since I can see them completely in my mind’s eye, but novels are a whole other creature.
remusmdh 