Young Writers Society

Okay, so I have a bit of a problem here. I have several novel ideas, and I don’t know what to do with them. Should I try to focus on one until I finish it, or alternate regularly, or just kind of bounce back and forth whenever? If you think I should just stick with one for now, I need help deciding which one to write first.
I have lots of ideas piled up somewhere in the dark, dusty corners of my computer, but these are the ones that are currently in progress/my favorites (most of the titles aren’t really titles, just a way for me to tell them apart):


The Society
(I had the perfect description before, but I can’t find it and I don’t remember it. This one is less glamorous, but it should work for now… Sorry about that. :/ )
Life in the Society is perfect. A small group of families live together in perfect harmony, sharing every belonging and trusting each other completely. While outsiders struggle to keep up with taxes and increasingly ridiculous government demands, this small group is able to withstand anything together. Until certain members begin to mysteriously disappear. Suspicions arise and hostility grows as members begin to doubt the strength of their long-trusted circle of protection. Kira, a young girl who has grown up in the Society, has decided to discover what is happening before her world is torn apart by mistrust. But suddenly her mission becomes much more personal when her own little sister goes missing. Now, she must find the courage to go against her family’s wishes and face the wild, dangerous outer world for the first time, without the protection and support she has known her whole life. In the midst of evading detection from ambitious politicians and lurking dangers she never knew existed while she races to uncover long-hidden secrets before it’s too late, she suddenly finds herself with a much more difficult task as signs begin to tell that she may be the next to disappear. And she soon learns that unraveling the intricate web of carefully woven lies is much harder than it seems when it's the only thing under your feet.

Again
The narrator of this story is a girl from the future, but it is NOT science fiction. Basically, in the future, the world got so bad that an underground society decided to create a time machine and go back several years into the past in order to prevent it from getting that bad. The future has been erased from everyone’s memory but this girl’s for safety reasons. Now, being the only one with knowledge of the truth, she is on a mission. It’s her job to warn the people and prevent the future from happening. I’m planning to write it like nonfiction rather than a narrative adventure thing. It starts off with her saying, hey you, I’m here to help you, and this is what you need to do. Basically, it’s telling people, “You only live once, so live right and don’t do anything you’ll waste time regretting later,” only with a more interesting way of presenting it. (I got this idea because I was thinking, “I wish I could go back in time and undo all the mistakes I’ve made,” and then I suddenly thought, “What if I DID go back, and this is really my second chance?!?! :O “ )

Little Devil
This story is about a young orphaned girl who lives on the streets and has to steal to survive. She’s constantly evading the police, and has had to travel all over the country to do so, and by now she’s quite well known for being a “bad person,” a “criminal,” and a “little devil.” She doesn’t want to be all those things, but it’s the only way she can live. On the surface, this story is narrating a small part of her life, but really it’s full of wisdom, insight, unique perspectives, and jolting revelations. The mind of this girl is much more beautiful and complex than anyone could ever guess by looking at her lifestyle.

Through the Storm
I don’t even know what this story is about. I was having serious writer’s block and I wanted to write something so bad but I was stuck with all my novels so I started writing a story about a girl and her bird/dragon thing. And she has a friend. And an enemy. Other than that, I have no idea where this is going. But I like it, because the lack of plot allows me to write whatever I want, whenever I want, without messing up the story. But it's a pointless story, and it's trying its hardest to become the sole dominating, all-consuming factor of my life.

Welp, I've had this problem before, and as much as I want to say that alternating totally works, I find that generally, people seem to have an easier time if they stick mostly to one project? I know a lot of people who'll have a focus project, and when their brain is snapping and they can't look at their focus without falling apart at the seams, they'll switch over to flesh out a side-project, or chip away at it instead.

Basically: I'd pick one to focus on, but have a second favourite in the back seat in case you ever need a break. This way, you're always working on something (and thus, always being productive), but you're not going to start resenting the one you choose as a main project.

The Society was my personal favourite; I really, really liked the premise, and I really liked that we get to focus so heavily on your MC. If you go with this one, my biggest advice would be to be careful with the worldbuilding, to make sure you do your research for any technical aspects (weaponry, tech, investigation techniques, different legal/government systems, etc), and let us get to know your MC really well. Avoid melodrama, because I've found that action books like this tend to be riddled in it.

I wasn't a huge fan of Again; it seems like a really improbable, unlikely, unbelievable situation, but if you executed it really well, you could probably swing it. Not one I'd recommend focusing on, personally.

Little Devil is... alright, I suppose. The idea of an orphan trying to scrape by by leading a life of crime, not out of their own free will, but out of necessity, has been done repeatedly. Granted, these sorts of stories mostly take place in the past, so a present-day one brings up all sorts of possibilities for fresh spins. You could definitely swing this one as long as you avoid cliches and create a strong character. Also, do heavy research on laws and how they vary from state to state/province to province.

Through The Storm isn't one I can say much about, since you don't know anything about it It'd be a fun one to stop writing and flesh out while you focus on your main project, though!

~Ish

I "just kind of bounce back and forth whenever", as you say.

When an idea for a story comes to me, I type it down into a document which is just a list of ideas. When a full scene comes to me, I type that in a separate document. Most of these ideas and scenes will never be used.
I focus on only three or four stories at a time. If I get an idea for one, I work on that one. The next day, I may have ideas for a scene in a different story, so I work on that one. It's kind of like taking a break. If I lose motivation or interest in one, I can still practice my writing skills with a different story.

If you decide to do this, make sure the stories are different enough that I don't get confused about what is happening in which... A few years ago I tried to write two stories with the same theme, but different plots. That didn't work well and I decided to combine them.

Okay, so I have a bit of a problem here. I have several novel ideas, and I don’t know what to do with them. Should I try to focus on one until I finish it, or alternate regularly, or just kind of bounce back and forth whenever?

While it can be beneficial, and maddening, for a writer to sit down and devote her or his time to one project, it can sometimes be detrimental to their creativity. I believe that you should focus on what you want. They all sound like fantastic ideas and you have clearly but a great deal of time into them. Do what feels right. When the feeling strikes you, run with it. Whatever it may be. It may lead you to a completely different idea!