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Source: https://writers.stackexchange.com/a/35880
License name: CC BY-SA 3.0
License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/

I assume that this is your first attempt at a novel, and that you are suffering from a strain of "worldbuilder's desease".

Brandon Sanderson has dedicated [one of his lectures](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v98Zy_hP5TI) to the problem, you may want to check it out. Usually the affliction is worldbuilding too much, but in your case what has happened is that you apparently love plotting and characterization so much, that you have done it so excessively that you have lost sight of the story you want to tell.

Worldbuiling, plotting, and characterization are all fun and valid endeavours, but in writing they serve a purpose: that of telling a tale. There are jobs in other industries where all people do all day is create worlds (e.g. in game development) or characters (e.g. in animation), but we as writers have to always consider whether what we are doing will lead us to a publishable book (or short story) or not.

As the other answers have already pointed out, you now, that you have become lost in your plotting, have two options:

- prune your plot until you have a well-shaped story for one novel
- find segments that you can turn into individual novels in a series

What you do, will depend on you, the story, and what it means to you. I cannot tell you. But if you decide to prune or write a series, I can give you some advice on how it might be done.

### Prune

What you currently lack is distance for a good overview. You are deeply entangled in the details of your plot, and no longer see what its overall shape is.

To gain this overview, as J.G. has suggested in their answer,

- let your project rest for some time (a few weeks may be enough, three months are ideal); you can use this time to begin your next project
- without re-reading anything, after that hiatus sit down and write an outline of what you remember; this outline is not a draft, so don't worry about language and detail, just jot down the main story as you remember it
- this outline is your overview
- use this outline to write your novel; only look into your notes and what have you, if you need to remember something essential you forgot; do not use your notes to re-create your original mess
- after you have written your first draft, let it rest (and work on your second project again); if you can and want, give your first draft to beta readers
- revise your draft, submit, publish, etc.

_Now_ – and no earlier – go through your original notes and see which parts you can use for _another project_.

### Write a series

I won't go into writing a series, as the answer by @Pawana contains most of what you need.

Just remember that it is not necessary to tell one story in one book. You can have one book for each viewpoint character, or one book for each storyline, or one for each location, or whatever the elements you identify, and it doesn't matter if there is some overlap and repetition between books.

Instead, I'd like to address writing the book you have.

### Write a complex novel

There are many bricks of novels that contain complicated and complex tales. They are not easy to write, but it can be done.

How you do it will depend a bit on the kind of story you have. Is it a main storyline with many sidelines? Is it several parallel storylines? Whatever it is, try to draw a graph. And don't waste your time trying to find [the ideal software](https://writing.stackexchange.com/questions/34621/software-to-draw-plot-structure-charts) to do this. Simply grab a big sheet of paper and a pen and begin. If you make mistakes, erase or paste over or use another sheet.

This graph doesn't have to be perfect either. If there are some strands of the network that you don't know yet where they should go, make a note and then leave it at that. Your story will change in the writing anyway, so don't get caught up in another attempt at perfecting your plot. Just draw a rough map of what is where (or where you think it is), and then leave it at that.

And then start to write. If you story has a clear beginning, start there. If it doesn't have one, start with a scene that for you represents the kernel that made you begin working on this idea. Or simply start anywhere – novels don't have to be told chronologically, and they don't have to be written back to front.

Be prepared to write a few drafts and revise heavily. Add in things you forgot and additional layers of complexity at each revision. If your story is complex, then your writing will be a more complex process than that of other writers, but don't let that give you the impression that you are doing it wrong. Each novel and each writer is unique, and there is no wrong way, if it works for you.

Original score: 3