Over the weekend, I reached a point where I only have about a dozen chapters left to write in the first draft of Wicked Temptation. It's not quite my favorite place in writing a book, but it's in the top 5.
Only twelve chapters left means it's time to backward plan.
I do this every book. I pull out my series notebook, number out the remaining chapters, and starting from the end of the book, I write down what I think will happen and in which chapter it will occur. If I'm not sure, I leave the line blank with the idea of adding to it later.
Why is this one of my favorite parts of writing? It means I'm close enough to the end that I not only know what needs to happen, I now need to make sure I have room for it. It's like a reverse engineered blueprint for the remainder of the book.
Along with this backwards momentum plotting also comes a moment of panic. I have so much story left to tell. How can I hope to fit it all in the chapters I have remaining?
This happens every book, and somehow it all always fits. That allows me to relax a little because been there, done that is reassuring.
Once I mapped out this loose map, and identified the chapters where I know certain things will happen, I can write forward more confidently.
I love it when a plan comes together. ;-)
