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My fantasy novel hit a wall at chapter 8 and I'm stuck on how to fix it
I was writing at my kitchen table in Portland last Thursday when my main character's motivation just crumbled and I realized the whole plot didn't make sense anymore. I tried rewriting the opening scene three times but it still feels flat and disconnected from where I wanted the story to go. Has anyone dealt with a big plot hole like this and found a way to patch it without starting over?
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wilson.joseph1mo ago
Three days I spent staring at my fantasy map trying to figure out why my character would cross that bridge, turns out she just needed a bathroom break. Sometimes I swear my plot holes are just my characters being more realistic than I planned.
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wesley_jones1mo ago
That's honestly the most relatable writing struggle I've heard in ages. Sometimes the deepest plot points are just basic human needs your character forgot to take care of, you know? Makes me wonder how many epic fantasy quests would've been avoided if someone just had a snack and a nap first.
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spencer9811mo ago
Lol plot twist: the deep character motivation was just a full bladder. I've wasted whole afternoons overanalyzing why my MC would pick a fight only to realize he's just hangry. Reminds me that writing is 10% deep storytelling and 90% tracking your characters' basic bodily functions.
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marywilson1mo ago
Last Tuesday I spent a whole evening mapping out my character's emotional arc only to realize I'd forgotten she was allergic to horses, which kind of threw the whole chase scene out the window. @spencer981 makes a good point, these little realistic hiccups always seem to hit right when you've got the whole thing figured out, don't they?
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