When the Good Idea Fairy Strikes

 I'm sure I'm not alone in visits from the good idea fairy, many of which result in horrible ideas that cause us to expend far too much thought and effort in trying to realize the craziness thought up in those visits. And while many of those ideas lead to nothing substantial, there are those rare moments when they yield good ideas that you actually want to do something with. And thus starts the fun... sorta. 

I was struck by the good idea fairy a week or so regarding a possible new plot enhancement for the story I'm currently working on and I have to say it checked a lot of boxes and helped neaten up a lot of loose ends I wasn't entirely sure what to do with just yet. BUT it also caused a bit of a dilemma in that it didn't fit the overall flow of the story as I'd envisioned it up until that point. And it also put a line I thought was going to be pretty key to climax of the story in question. So, what do I do? Do I take the net gains of adding in that new plot element and rethink the whole ending and possibly drop the favored line or move forward with the current somewhat ambiguous ending I currently had in mind, keep the ending, and pull things together in a secondary storyline I've been toying with adding in (though with no clear idea how to add it in gracefully, so there's that, too).

Well, I decided it was worth adding it in. I liked the net gains and I wasn't so far into the story that I'd really need to rewrite much, if anything, that I've come up with thus far. I'm actually at a point where I can drop in some supporting plot points that will help build that new addition into the overall fabric of the story. Awesome, right? Well, not entirely. Because the ending that this allows for seems to be pushing some characters to take actions and/or have reactions that seem a touch out of character, at least with the way they'd likely be acted out on the current trajectory. For example, would a character that has had anger issues throughout the story thus far be okay with just shrugging off someone sleeping with his girlfriend and skipping off to the local flower market to get some daisies? I think not. But he might not kill the guy and actually show some restraint if I add in mentions of his going to anger management classes, etc. so it doesn't seem as out of leftfield. But would those classes be enough? Wouldn't it still stand to reason he'd lose it? I dunno. It's a delicate balance and it will really depend on the character's overall development by the time we get there. I hate to admit it, but sometimes the characters take on lives of their own as the story progresses and just don't fit the ending envisioned anymore by the time we get there. So what do you do then? Force it? Or spend hours, days, weeks, or longer trying to figure out an ending that works? 

So, rather than get to the end and be frustrated or stumped, I like to try and attempt to anticipate what direction things will go and how characters will handle the new situation(s), which can sometimes stop all forward progress in my writing for a while, but makes the final stretch a lot smoother. But, if I'm being honest, that stop to think through things can also bring my writing to a stop on a story forever (yup, I have about 20 unfinished stories sitting on my hard drive at any time). Though there's always the hope that I'll return to them one day and finish. Maybe. Hopefully. Probably Not...