The Shiny New Idea

Shiny. NewShine. SNI. It has many names and another one is... Temptation. That's right. The Shiny New Idea is a temptation that many writers face. For those that work on one project at a time it can be hard to resist abandoning WIP for an SNI. Even those of us that write 4-5 novels at a time can become distracted by yet another new idea.

I have a Shiny and a NewShine. hehehe. Yep, that is actually 2 shiny new ideas on top of the 4-5 novels that I was working on. And the new ideas are so tempting.


What can you do if you are faced with this challenge?

There are a few options:

1. Give in. If the WIP isn't working at all and the shiny has more story, can garner more excitement that can be maintained throughout the whole draft, then go ahead. But be careful. This should be done rarely because if done all the time then nothing gets finished.

2. Note and Ignore. While it is possible to ignore the idea all together, there is no telling when an idea would be needed and if it's a really good shiny, you don't want to forget it. So, make a note somewhere (try to have somewhere that isn't easily lost, so napkins and back of receipts work for temporary but ill advised for long term). Then go back to WIP with the knowledge that the next idea is there, waiting. Plus, when done with one draft it's advisable to wait awhile, so work on something else like the Shiny.

3. Do both. If there aren't already 5 or so projects going and you think you can manage to do one more, then work on it. This works best for those that can write on more than one novel at a time. Those that can't may be better of taking notes and waiting till finished with current WIP draft.

Those are the top 3 but I'm sure there are other options of how to deal with a Shiny. Do sparkles get distracted by other sparkles? If shiny enough maybe keep in pocket to toss out if a zombie is around and getting in the way. But don't let your guard down.

Shiny New Ideas are out there, everywhere, just waiting to cause distractions.

You have been warned. (lol)