Abandoned Stories are like Exes
For one reason or another, things simply didn’t work out between the two of you. We all know they want you back, but It’s more important to ask if you want it back. Was it a case of right story, wrong time, or was there something deeper holding you back from embracing the story wholeheartedly? once you revisit the story and figure out what went wrong between the two of you, you can decide once and for all weather or not this endeavor is worth your best efforts.
Revisit and Reread (talk it out)
Go back to your story and take a good, long look at it. Think of yourself like the woman in the coffee shop reading the comics in the official music video for Take On Me by A-Ha. Is it something you can work with? Does your story attract you as much as Morten Harket attracted her in the video? Is there something you could do differently to yield that level of attraction? As put so eloquently at the end of the Epic Rap Battles of History , you decide!
Can it change? (Revisit and Revise)
This is often asked when considering weather or not to get back together with an ex. With a story, of course it can change. More importantly, do you want it to? Does it need to change for you to want to write it, or did you just need some time and space from it? How would you like it to change, and what would you want to stay the same? If you implemented such alterations to the text or plot, would you want to write it? You are returning to the conception phase of brainstorming by revisiting this old story. (To learn more about the phases of brainstorming go here)
When it’s too little too late
You have the agency to decide to keep it set aside for a later date again (or keep it set aside) based on what you feel towards the story at hand. Alternatively, if you realize it is more like an old lemon that you need to haul to the junkyard, you can scrap it for parts you could use in a different story. Maybe you have a well fleshed out character in there whom you can’t seem to get off your mind. Maybe you came up with a compelling twist for the story but don’t like anything else about it. Take what’s good and use it elsewhere.
All’s Fair in Love and War
At the end of the day, whether you have rekindled the passion between your story and yourself or not, you’ve learned something along the way. Life is a series of blessings and lessons, and lessons are just blessings in disguise. In these cases, the ends do justify the means as long as you keep writing and flexing those creative muscles. It’s your craft, so write whatever lights a fire under you even if you had previously scrapped the idea.
While there is no cut and dry answer on whether or not it’s worth revisiting an abandoned story, I hope this gave you something to chew on if you’re struggling with this. Will you be revisiting an old flame? If not, what did you learn from your scrapped story and what made it stick with you?