Every writer has their way of writing. Many can start from the beginning of their story and take it straight through to the end. That's something I've only been able to do once or twice in all the stories I've written. I can get so far into a story then I have no idea what comes next. My hero or heroine might have a problem or be caught in a jam and I have a difficult time getting them out of it. And they don't always care to help.
I'm a patchwork writer. When I get a story idea I can write the beginning and ending. That's the completed quilt top and backing. I know what the gist of the story is going to be, the over all pattern. The rest of the quilt is done in blocks. Every block or scene represents a single idea that has to be assembled just right so it forms an interesting pattern. Some patterns end up being more complex than others, have more pieces to them. Some blocks have missing pieces and I end up having to go back a few times until I find the right threads to use to finish the block. How many blocks I make depends on the size of the quilt I want. A lap quilt is great for a short story. I can usually come up with enough to create a twin size, not too small, not too big. So far I haven't been able to manage a king size quilt. That takes a lot of room, material and imagination to complete.
Once the blocks are designed and ready to be assembled it's time to figure out the logical order. If one block is out or order, it can ruin the whole pattern. It's like playing a game of solitaire. If you don't notice that one misplaced card you don't get to properly finish the game.
Next comes stitching all the pieces together so they form one cohesive unit. The colors blend together, the small design pieces work to form a larger design. Sometimes in the sewing, the edges are slightly off and I have to go back and figure out the best way to solve the problem. If the bridges that join the blocks are off, even slightly, there's no getting from one scene to another without getting wet. Nobody wants to get wet like that.
Sometimes, when everything is put together in the right places I find the pattern is a bit smaller than I wanted. Then it's a matter of how to fix that problem. The easiest way is to make a few more blocks in the direction you need to go. With written blocks, it's not so hard to expand the scenes I have in order to make the story longer. Sometimes I come up with a whole new block to add in. It either clarifies something that's already going on or it's a new idea that takes the plot a bit further. When I figure I've got a completed story then I just dress it up with a border, then bind it off. Once the quilt stitching is completed, then the story, for better or worse is finally done.
I'm sure there are easier ways to do it but I never could see my way through other methods. My brain and imagination have always functioned on a more complicated level. Believe me, sometimes that can be frustrating. On the other hand it's allowed me to come up with late-in-the-story twists that I didn't see coming. It's more fun that way.
Would I change my method if I could? Probably not. As long as there are folks who like the results then it's worth sticking with.
That's the way I work. It's my story and I'm sticking to it.
