WIP Challenge Check-in, Day 30 -- Tuesday

[linaewen]

Hello on Tuesday!  What kind of a writing day has it been today -- or yesterday, if today hasn't gotten going yet?

•     I thought about my fic once or twice
•     I wrote
•     I did some planning and/or research
•     I edited
•     I've sent my fic off to my beta
•     I posted today!
•     I'm taking a break
•     I did something else that I'll talk about in a comment

Discussion:  How do you know when a story or a chapter is complete?  Do you follow a plan/outline and stick to it no matter what, or do you just have a feel for the right moment to stop writing?

Comments

[linaewen]

Yesterday went a bit out of control, so I did not even think about my fic! Perhaps today will be a bit more hopeful for accomplishing something writing-related.

I am very keen on outlines and plans, so I follow them pretty closely -- but I have learned to trust my inner sense of "this is enough, the story is over" -- even if I haven't included everything in my outline as yet. I try to set down plans for how to end it, but the story usually takes over and I end it when it "feels right."

[samuraiter]

... car ate my money, so I'm pretty bummed today ...

I stick to my outline when I do a longer piece, but I'll admit to making the outlines pretty convoluted in order to incorporate stuff.