Message Board Topic 9/1

[Comsie]

There have been many instances where a story that you love and support...might have suddenly 'fall off of the radar'. Maybe the author lost interest, or had life issues (either good or bad) that prevent them from writing it any longer, or just plain decided that they didn't like the story any more. And that can be frustrating for readers who are really into the storyline and have invested some emotion in the characters involved.

 

However...things may change later on down the road. Sometimes it's a few weeks, sometimes a few months, and occasionally...it might be a few YEARS, until the story is picked back up again. And voila, you find yourself staring at a brand new chapter! But...will it match the older chapters?

 

Do extended breaks from a story create a 'void' for you guys as authors or readers? Can an author pick up a story after such a long hiatus, and expect to really recreate the same feeling that was there originally, when so much drive and detail and momentum has been lost? And if so...will the new chapters end up looking more 'polished' than the older chapters, creating a feeling of disconnection between the two? I, myself, went back to 'Remix' "A Class By Himself" after a long break, because I didn't think the chapters would match up at ALL if read one after the other.

 

So what do you think? Can a long wait be overcome by an author, or does it do enough damage where the best an author can do is try to cover up the obvious shift between new and old? Let us know!

[Tiger]

I happen to think if it's been too long, the story does probably need a rewrite, but I don't think a story has to remain neglected altogether. It could be that an author is at a point where he or she is simply not into the story for a time and wants to write other stories instead. It could be that once the author is ready for that particular there's a new zest for the story that makes it much more enjoyable for author and the readers as well.

[Graeme]

I've seen stories where there's an obvious difference between the before and after break chapters. That is, a difference in style that somehow detracts from the story itself.

 

I think an author can certainly regain the emotion and enthusiasm for a story -- often by just rereading what they've previous written. I've done that myself -- one recent short story was started four years ago but only finished this year. I think it's one of my best It's different with a novel, but only in degree. It's the stylistic differences that come with experience that are harder to manage (I didn't have that problem because no one had seen the earlier parts of my short story, so my editor and I were able to go through and 'standardise' them).

 

As a reader, a long break takes me out of a story. I would have to go back and reread it to bring myself back into what's going on. Unless it was a really fantastic story at the start, I'm unlikely to put in that effort.