DISCUSSION: What Part Of Your Story Do You Start On First?

[Juliko]

I didn't see a topic like this anywhere, so I thought I'd make one myself. If there already is one, feel free to delete this if you want. So...we all have ideas that we mold into something more polished later on. But there's so many layers to a story. Conflict, characters, setting, the whole package. Some people can bang out the whole thing at one time, while others tend to start on one part of it and then make the rest later. This topic is about that. When you have an idea or come up with a story, which part of it do you start on first? Do you write out the plot first, or do you focus on creating your characters?

For me, whenever I start a new story or find myself with a new idea, I always always always always find myself creating the characters first. That's usually how my ideas come about: Characters first, everything else later. Or the basic storyline along with it. I create characters, design them or describe their overall appearances, flesh them out, see how they work or don't work in my story, explore potential character development ideas for them, and then create the plot around them afterward. Of course, everyone has a different way of polishing their ideas or starting their stories, so how do you go about the beginning of your ideas? Any and all discussion on the matter is strongly encouraged!

 

[UselessBytes]

I have a horrible habit of basing entire stories around a single scene I have in mind - Usually the climax of the story, but sometimes its just a random moment I liked and want to build a world around. I end up starting by writing random scenes, most of which don't usually make it in to the story, to get a feel for both my characters and the world they're inhabiting

 

[Snuggle Tier List]

Is "theme" an acceptable answer?

For prose, I don't force myself to write. That goes double when starting a fic. New fics are born out of ideas I find interesting enough to explore. And then I make characters and settings and plots that, when put together, test that central theme.

For instance, currently the only prose I have posted on these forums is "Pokémon but they're giant monsters". That was spawned from a plot hole I've seen Pokémon fans and non-fans discuss:

If Pokémon are intelligent, why don't they rule the world?

I didn't feel clever writing a story criticising a made-for-kids franchise's logic. So I dug the hole even deeper ("they're intelligent AND invincible!"), then built the characters and setting and plot in no particular order, all designed to play that theme as straight as can be. However it turns out, I gain a new perspective on Pokémon, which means I have something to "take home" even if my fic gets completely ignored. And that means I enjoy writing, no attention or publicity needed.

So, uh, theme. Find an interesting thought, write prose as if it's a thought experiment. Couldn't recommend it more.

 

[Beth Pavell]

Hard to say, for me. I think I usually have a skeleton of a plot in mind before I start a story. It's rare that I'll try and spin out a scene into a full story if a plot doesn't occur to me soon after conceiving it. That means I'll have a vague idea of who the characters will be and where it will take place. I'll usually come up with a firmer outline to the story after that, which usually leads me to developing the characters and setting, pretty much at the same time

 

[Snuggle Tier List]

Related question that came to mind while reading these replies; when is the "start" of the story? Is it the initial concept? Storyboarding and planning? First words put to paper? First words of the final draft? Publishing?

I.bring it up because, for me, a lot of work goes into a story before writing anything, planning included. Sometimes, ideas just hit me and I need to write, but those ideas usually don't come from nowhere. I have to put myself in the right mindset, read a lot, research, consume media in general. For instance, I find ideas "hit me" more often when I'm listening to music, so I find time to listen to music. And that in itself can be a time investment, one that may or may not lead to a fic down the line. From my author's perspective, that time investment is often the "start" of my fic. But it's a start most readers won't know about.

Point being, stories might start sooner than we give them credit. Or later, from a reader's perspective.

 

[Beth Pavell]

To my mind, a story starts when it becomes practical enough to put ideas onto paper. It's a pretty damn arbitrary definition, but it does serve to draw a line between vague ideas that (Often talked about) never actually make it into even a first draft, and something that is a a tangible work in progress

 

[diamondpearl876]

I define it the same way as Pavell does.

The first part of any story I figure out is characters and plot, the former of which comes naturally and the latter is like pulling teeth. Themes weave themselves in; I don’t think of them intentionally except to make sure they’re portrayed throughout consistently, and appropriately, in edits. Worldbuilding comes in as I write, like small details, or often ties in with me figuring out plot, for bigger things like culture and locations I want characters to visit.

 

[unrepentantAuthor]

Varies.

Different Eyes has had a weird history. Started out as "I want to write angsty pokémorphs to vent my issues with being unable to connect to other people" and ended up as "I want to write about the possibilities emerging from synthetic sapient nonhuman life in a way nobody else seems willing to". But in practical terms, I tend to start with the following:

What do I need my reader to read? What scenes, character concepts, plot elements and moody narration do I need this fic to be a vehicle for?

Everything else falls into place more or less as and when it becomes necessary. Most of my long term planning ends up crumbling before I have the chance to use it. I've tried writing achronologically and it's pretty difficult for me to manage, to the chagrin of my beta.