The Best Plans....

Today, my plans did not work out. My plan was to go to this store in Illinois, that sells tons of Doctor Who and other British stuff.

(Yes, I'm one of those people. Hi, how are you?)

Sadly, after stopping for breakfast I find out that this store is closed on Mondays. The only completely free day I have a week. Lovely. So, I look around for another plan. I find out that there is a Doctor Who warehouse located in Indy.

YAY.....but you can only visit by appointment only.
Not yay...

So, I look at my sister. She looks at me. And she says, "Want to go to Chicago?"

Why not?

And so, we drive out to Chicago, get lost, and after an hour of turning down random streets, head on home. We didn't even get out of the car once in Chi-Town. But we had a lot of fun. Just seeing the sights from the car and having an adventure.

(Chicago drivers are the scariest things out there. Death grip on the steering wheel and lots of "oh Heavens, OH MY GOSH WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!?!)

The same goes for writing.

You can plan all you want, you can have big plot lines and an ordered timeline. But things go awry. Your characters develop a mind of their own and they go off the beaten path you had for them. And it's better this way.

This way, you discover a new side to your main character or side character. Even your villian. Or you unearth a plot point you didn't know you needed. You'll have to drive your novel with a firm hand, but don't be afraid to take a new turn every now and then. Maybe do something drastic once in a while.

There will be unseen blocks, and disappointing news, but if you keep at it, set your nose in a different direction, you might find something fantastic. Something better than you thought it could be.

"Allons-y!"
-The Doctor, 10