Which story do I write?

[Anders Ämting]

I have two story concepts, both are on the planning stage and I want to write both equally much. One is a fish-out-of-water adventure with martial arts themes and a plot concerning alternate dimensions. The other is a cosmic fantasy saga about time travel, with some minor science fiction elements.

How do I choose? What does one do when one has two stories one wants to write exactly as much?

 

[Jabrosky]

Could you possibly alternate between both during the same time period?

That said, I like the martial arts story more personally.

 

[Anders Ämting]

Could you possibly alternate between both during the same time period?

That's going to take forever. Seems like a good way of getting frustrated with both stories twice as fast.

Plus, my condition makes it so that I can pretty much only focus on on thing at a time. I'm seriously, pathologically bad at multitasking.

 

[Anthony]

I've just started two stories of completely different genres and audience. I write which ever i feel motivated to do. When unsure about where to lead with one particular stream, it can be relaxing to write about something else.

 

[Cmbcody]

How I woul do it is get a coin... Assign heads and tails to one each, throw it up in the air and then while its falling you'll know which one you would rather write first.

 

[Philip Overby]

I would say if you plan on writing both of them anyway, it doesn't really matter which one you do first. Just pick one and start writing it.

 

[shangrila]

Flip a coin.

No, seriously. If you can't decide, let the universe do it for you.

 

[Helen]

I have two story concepts, both are on the planning stage and I want to write both equally much. One is a fish-out-of-water adventure with martial arts themes and a plot concerning alternate dimensions. The other is a cosmic fantasy saga about time travel, with some minor science fiction elements.

How do I choose? What does one do when one has two stories one wants to write exactly as much?

I would start detailed outlining each.

One will be easier than the other. You'll get much further with it.

I'd go for that one.

Now, I'm for focusing on one project at a time. But having said that, I always allow myself the indulgence of writing a page or two of another story whenever the inspiration suits me. So you can kinda work on the second in spurts. The danger, of course, is that you'll stay in limbo on both.

 

[Anders Ämting]

How I woul do it is get a coin...

Flip a coin.

No, seriously. If you can't decide, let the universe do it for you.

Eh. I prefer not to leave decisions of potentially vital importance up to chance.

I would start detailed outlining each.

One will be easier than the other. You'll get much further with it.

I'd go for that one.

Now, I'm for focusing on one project at a time. But having said that, I always allow myself the indulgence of writing a page or two of another story whenever the inspiration suits me. So you can kinda work on the second in spurts. The danger, of course, is that you'll stay in limbo on both.

See, this is a reasonable suggestion.

 

[Shockley]

In my opinion, it sounds like the second story is the more complex, depthier work. If that's the case, I'd say do that one second and let the first prepare you for the greater task.

 

[Caged Maiden]

If you start fleshing out both options, you will probably find one captures your interest more. Then begin writing that one, and save the detailed outline for your next project, or when you need some distraction. I frequently work for while on one thing, then go back to another. I manage to complete things for the most part, but I still need to edit manuscripts, so I guess they're not totally done. I think it's easier to not force things. If you see which you're MOST interested in writing right now, you will still have all the work you did on the other.

 

[wordwalker]

Unless one story seems like a much better next step for your career, the only things that matter are which you want more and which you can pull off better... which are pretty much the same thing, unless one involves a whole style of writing that trips you up.

If you start fleshing out both options, you will probably find one captures your interest more. Then begin writing that one, and save the detailed outline for your next project, or when you need some distraction. I frequently work for a while on one thing, then go back to another. I manage to complete things for the most part, but I still need to edit manuscripts, so I guess they're not totally done. I think it's easier to not force things. If you see which you're MOST interested in writing right now, you will still have all the work you did on the other.

This might be the best test for which one your heart is with, and like she says, it gives you a whole other setup for your next thing or when you need a break before the first's later stages. If you relate most to "interviews with your characters," background facts, just plain getting into a scene, or whatever, be sure to get a taste of how that might work for each.

There's even something to be said for the coin-toss: you sit down and think what you'd most like and dislike about writing each, toss the coin, and try to see whether your very first reaction is "Oh yeah!" or "Do I have to?" Or maybe you don't need the coin, if preparing for it helps you bring the two experiences to mind clearly enough (deciding at the edge of throwing something away? how many of those characters have we written?).