Many people state the hardest part of writing is getting started. Perhaps I’ve never experienced this or my issues differ, but I can always get started. I never have a plan when I write short stories, I always come up with a scene or an idea and it simply flows from that simple start. My problem seems to be keeping consistent, as well as finishing a task. I believe every writer will have his or her own issues while trying to write. My problem is I get sidetracked too easily by other ideas and it’s very hard to settle with the main one I’m already working on.

For instance, I was working on a story at one point where the main character was a knight who is slain by the very King he served. He ends up in Hell despite his fight in the name of God, and after a short while asks for a chance to avenge himself. Seeing this as an opportunity, the Devil sets him free upon the world again but much time has passed. The King is older, governs many smaller kingdoms and has a massive army. The fallen knight decides that he needs to somehow break into the castle. (Here’s where I got sidetracked) Upon entering the castle through the sewers, he stumbles upon a single sorceress who is one of the last magicians alive. Now great, the knight’s story is going well and he’s getting close to his goal, however I now have this girl who I wish to add more back story to. And thus, I begin.

The Sorceress is the last of the Magi, a race whose magical ability is second nature to them and most of which were wiped out in a war several hundred years before she was born. (I am already getting sidetracked by the thought of war of the magi) As she looks human, she has been raised by an elite group of assassins to hone her skills for sneaking and killing. However upon her arrival at the castle it was discovered that the King himself has a single trained Magi of his own, locking the two in battle. As they fought she was quickly overtaken by the battle trained Warlock and she was sedated and placed into the dungeon.

So now I’ve got two characters on the go, and I find myself drawn to the idea of the War of the Magi. Thousands of years ago the Magi were a race of people who lived harmoniously with the land. They were feared by humans as their innate magical abilities drove the minds of men wild with thoughts of destruction and their eventual extinction at the hands of these Witches and Wizards. The Magi however were peaceful and kept treaties with all neighbouring countries so they could remain within their country, secluded and protected. One day the Prince of the Magi wished to visit the human worlds despite it being forbidden by laws in both Magi and Human society. As the Magi kept spells to keep Magi in their country and keep Humans out, the Prince turned to dark magic to attempt his escape. His decent was quick, as in less than a month he was finding out how powerful the dark magic really was and began sacrificing his own people for more power. Eventually he broke free of the walls of the Magi kingdom and began his innocent exploration of the Human worlds. However the darkness had taken its toll on him as he felt the need more and more to sacrifice, almost as if being recharged every time he cast dark magic. Eventually he was caught as a serial killer and jailed, with his kingdom wondering where he had gone to. One of the Human guards who caught him caught a glimpse of the Magi Prince’s signet ring and reported it to his Captain. As the Human Kings found out about the Prince, it was deemed that the Magi had been a threat far too long and to war they would march.

So now I have three stories I could go into. Sure I could intertwine the two characters but for every character I create suddenly from their back story comes a whole world I could write about. The chain continues on and on, until I’ve drifted far enough away from the original concept that I almost forget where that story was heading. I also find when I write short fiction, I write in episodes. One page can have so much happen, and I also have the tendency to over or under describe. I remember the first time I tried to get published I must have changed some of my descriptions over twenty times. “Too Much” or “Too Little” were always the comments from the editors, no matter what I changed and then eventually the description changed so much I think I had gotten away from the characters I wanted. For me I can be inspired by the slightest thing and I have to be careful and diligent or I will fall straight off the point and onto something else. It’s one thing to know your issues and a completely different thing to be able to overcome them. Anyone out there find something hard about writing? Or do you have the same issue I do? Let me know in the comments below!