Desiderius Price

Of course, after thinking over it, couple small points to iron out, but yeah, writing will come.  (I actually got about 4k into it before I came to that realization that I couldn’t wing it like I normally do.)

lol sounds like you write kinda like I do. Twinsies! We can now start wearing matching outfits to the christmas parties. 

For Jefferey, I’ll typically have either a general premise or a key scene to an episode way ahead of time.   Then, when I get to an episode, I’ll flesh it out with a few bullet points to a rough outline, so I kinda know how it’ll go, and start writing it from there. 

For Episode 14, the basic premise is that the group needs Jeff to do something away from camp, so it’s a trip, which wouldn’t be interesting if it didn’t go wrong   I tried it my usual way, just winging it, got 4k in, however, the details started to bug me.  The adversaries trying to make the trip go wrong, they’re competent, I want to write them as competent, so no silly mistakes, and so there’d be contingencies for when it might not go according to plan.  So, I was considering having Jeff’s group send another contingent, to “save the day”, *but* they’d first try to contact Jeff’s party and abort the trip, because the task could easily wait to another day.  Jeff’s party is also competent, so if they suspected anything was amiss, they’d scrub and retreat.  I also need the venue to stay properly scoped, and fitted to those using it.  What I do really like about what I’ve written so far, is I started it from a different POV before I bring Jeff in; then I shift earlier to Jeff’s side for the trip; a mild flashback feel, but not too bad, and it lets me hint at the adversaries setting things up before Jeff shows up. 

With all of what I’m expecting from the Episode, I decided I needed to plan it more intricately.   First, explore it from the adversary POV, figuring out the details to their orders, their plans and contingencies for this, and the operational limits to the actions that they can take [this storyline, this universe, doesn’t have supervillains, nearly everybody thinks they are doing the right thing, even though their definitions to “the right thing” can vary].  Second, add in Jeff’s party and figure it out, how to get him into trouble, and the tough part, getting him out of it without relying on a deus ex (so tempting, so very tempting, it’d solve the issue, *but*….)

So, once I finalize the general layout to the venue, the rest should fall into place.  Or, just use the bullet proof coffin.

Obviously because you're planning your funeral and anticipate some less-than-happy relatives paying their respects. 

It’s always a balancing act, because a large chapter/episode makes each scene less significant to the overall chapter/episode, however, a short chapter/episode might not get much done or be fulfilling.  Also, there’s the take-a-break-and-come-back, easier with smaller chapters/episodes, tougher with longer.

Also, whether I’m doing a story as “episodes” vs “chapters” matters too.  In a chaptered story, where it’s one overarching main plot, I’m more likely to do cliffhangers, stretch it out; whereas in a serial/episodic story like Jefferey is, I kinda need to wrap up plot points in an episode, because that’s the episode allotted to it.

Yes when you were saying ‘episodes’, I thought maybe you were doing it kinda like a semi-self-contained mini plot in a larger overarching plot. I’ve tried to do similar things in collab fics. Makes sense that those would be a bit longer than chapters. 

Jefferey was intended as backstory whose story-wide overarching plot was just Jeff living his life.  So, it’ll explain why he’s okay with Jaimie preferring to be naked when brought on as a swimming instructor.   (I seem to like my main characters doing that, regardless of age.)  As the Jefferey story has evolved, it’s become a good way to portray the workings of a group that’s more “shadowy” and “implied” in the other stories; at least in the first part.  The second part… releasing a clothes-hating Jeff into the general student population of a typical high school   And on the plus side, he’ll be able to make a decent wage with bachelorette parties (not strictly legal, but common enough), supplementing his “college fund”. 

So, yep, Jefferey along with Dolbourne Chronicles are both episodic, which eases me from requiring that mega-plot.  Instead, they’re both about life, in general, in this universe that I’ve created.  I do have some very recurring themes, and some plot threads that are strung out between episodes.  I’ve even taken to doing some “mini-arcs” that are similarly related by a common plot that’s resolved toward the end of them.  Episodes 5-8 for Jefferey is a mini-arc and right now 11-[redacted] is the second of the mini-arcs.  And once Jeff hits high school, that’ll be another mini-arc (which is where I had stalled on the first attempt to write this story, simply from burnout).  I expect the same will be true when I really get going on Dolbourne Chronicles again, some mini-arcs, and parts – a rather complex structure for a story!