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Q&A Outlining the climax made me lose interest in writing the actual story

The only way to resolve it is to write. I'm a discovery writer too. I get excitement from just "imagining" how things could go, how the world might be, and how the character should react. Did you ...

posted 5y ago by Liquid‭  ·  last activity 5y ago by System‭

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#4: Attribution notice removed by user avatar System‭ · 2019-12-13T11:56:53Z (almost 5 years ago)
Source: https://writers.stackexchange.com/a/48921
License name: CC BY-SA 4.0
License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/
#3: Attribution notice added by user avatar System‭ · 2019-12-08T13:13:49Z (almost 5 years ago)
Source: https://writers.stackexchange.com/a/48921
License name: CC BY-SA 4.0
License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/
#2: Initial revision by (deleted user) · 2019-12-08T13:13:49Z (almost 5 years ago)
## The only way to resolve it is to write.

I'm a discovery writer too. I get excitement from just "imagining" how things _could_ go, how the world _might_ be, and how the character _should_ react. Did you notice? I used verbs in _conditional_ form.

That's because - no matter what your brain tells you - **a story isn't done until you write it.** It doesn't matter if you outlined the next 50 scenes perfectly in your head: if you don't write, they didn't happen. So put aside your outline for a moment, decide what you should write next, and start typing. As you write, allow yourself to "discover" new things. Sure, you have everything planned out; but maybe as you are putting your ideas on paper you'll find better solutions.

A discovery writer needs, in my opinion, to treat every outline as a "vague guideline". Sure, you know what the ending might be, but you need to trust your insticts as you write and let it happen in a different way, if that what's feels right.

#1: Imported from external source by user avatar System‭ · 2019-11-13T07:58:02Z (about 5 years ago)
Original score: 11