Young Writers Society

So after a night of plotting, i have a trilogy that i would love to write. But, my problem is that the last book seems to be the one I want to work on first, can you do that with out ill effect on the other books? Any one ever do that?

Personally, I see that as a bad idea.

So, you write the last book and go back and go to write the first one. You're writing the beginning, and characterization and plot begins to happen that you didn't foresee. So you have to go back to your last book, change some info here, some info there. It doesn't seem pleasant.

Why don't you just try to take the concept of the third book that you like so much and try to arrange it so it's its own story? Own novel?

But, really, it's whatever you want to do in the end.

I've never had experience writing trilogies, but in my opinion it depends on what kind of writer you are. If you're the kind who has strong, consistent characters, then I'd say go for it. But if you're like me, and have your characters grow the more you write with them, then it might be a bad idea to start at the end, because your character's would end up being shallow in the last book, and then more developed in the first two books, if you wrote them afterwards.

I'm not sure If I'm making sense exactly, but I feel that by starting at the end, you'd miss an innumerable amount of stuff you'd discover and develop by writing the books in sequence. Eh, can't say where I'm going with this, but my main point is that it depends on your abilities as a writer to have things completely planned out to the point where you could start writing at any scene and it wouldn't matter.

If I were to do this, then I know I would cause ill to the other two books, because there are things that you plan, and then there is what you actually end up writing. From my experience, they can be radically different in the end. So the way you think your story ends now might be different once you write up to that point, because along the way your plot may have grown and developed and changed to the point where its probably better, but doesn't match your original plans. So yeah, I would just consider all this and ultimately you need to decide for yourself if you can successfully start writing at any point and have it all coalesce at the end. ^_^

[s]BlackGhost[/s]

I think that it wouldn't be the best idea to start with the last book although it wouldn't hurt to write down the most important things that would happen so that you don't forget them. Starting at the beginning, as others have said, is extremely important because this is the time that your characters make their debut. If you were to start from the end then you might won't get the chance to really make them grow from the beginning to the end. So even if it might be the last book you are looking forward to and even though it might be the most exciting to write you might want to save it for last. Also think of this, you have something to work towards so after you get through the messy part you are at the home stretch.

The other thing that you might want to think about is whether what you are writing really should be a trilogy. If you are so excited about writing the last book does anything really happen in the first two books, because if you are bored by writing those then the reader is going to get bored reading them.

Well the best of luck to you in writing these and hope I helped,

Cait

It can't hurt. Draft out your final novel, and you'll be able to lay down hints as to what will happen later on in the story in the other two. If any major plot changes occur while writing the other two, then you can go back and rewrite the final book. Trilogies are hard because you have to have consistency throughout all three books, and they all have to tie together well.

I think that if you've been thinking about this plotline for a while, and you have the story planned out well enough, that it's a good idea. Personally, I write all of my stories out of order. I'll write whatever scene I want to at the moment. It keeps me from getting writer's block, and it also prevents me from getting stuck in those scenes I don't really want to write (for whatever reason) and procrastinating to the extreme. Sometimes I have to go back and fix things, but that's just a part of the editing process.

I understand that this doesn't work for everyone, but you could always try it. If it doesn't work out, you can always put the third book on hold and start back from square one. You still gained more writing experience, and you got a good feel for how your characters and their situation will grow over time.

J.K Rowling did it- I can't really see why not.

Here's my advice: Outline all the little tricks in the trilogy and know them inside and out. Then you can drop little hints all around.

Well, I did end up starting at the beginning, but do some times write those parts in the other books that beg to be written.

Well, Think of star wars as a book. I think you can do it but it'll be hard.

I'm with Rabbit on this one. As long as there's consistency, logic and good planning, it could work.