I'm glad you were able to pull through to the finish line! Even if it was a struggle, you never gave up, and that's what counts! ^^ True fans will always wait patiently while you figure things out, and most of us understand that a good vn can take years to develop. As a solo dev I almost never set "release dates", because I never know how long it's going to take me to finish a project. It could be weeks, months, or years depending on the length, complexity, real life events, and my fluctuating motivation levels. ^^;
But I can share one piece of advice that helps me with the writing process ...
For me, I find writing an outline before I even think of starting on a script or announcing a project makes the development process so much easier and less intimidating, because I already know how the story's going to end before I start writing it. In fact, because my vns tend to be on the longer, more complex side, I actually do two outlines: one for the bigger picture and more detailed summaries with branching storylines for individual chapters. It really helps me and I strongly encourage others to do the same. Think of it as like a rough draft or summary of the plot. Or a brainstormed list of scenes, themes, and settings you want to explore at some point in the story. I know other writers who prefer to just write them in their heads ... which is fine so long as it works for them. Every writer is different. The format doesn't matter, but the point is that you at least create some sort of guideline as to where you want the story to go (including the intro, rising action, climax, falling action, conclusion) before you start writing the actual script. It helps with so many important aspects of storytelling when you've already got all the parts neatly planned out such as pacing, structure, foreshadowing of future events, and most importantly it can help ward away writer's block by providing direction when you feel stuck.
Outlines aren't set in stone, you don't have to stick to it 100%, so much as just use it as a guide when you're uncertain of where you want the story to go. Of course every writer is different, it might not help you as much as it helps me, but I would definitely recommend giving it a try in the future to see if it makes the process a little smoother for you.
Just some friendly advice from one dev to another, feel free to take it or leave it. But I do very much enjoy your stories and characters and am looking forward to seeing more from you in the future! ♥
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Hi Gales, thank you for the kind words and for sharing your process! I think it's solid advice, and I do incorporate a version of it in my own writing. ^^
My issue is usually not so much with the story, but with 'closing up' stuff. I generally have a pretty chaotic way of writing and always write out of order, but my general process goes something like this:
🧾 daydream the story until I have a good idea about the scenes and the order of events (this usually takes a while as I like to explore different possibilities and outcomes) (absolutely no writing at this point! it ruins the flow lol)
🧾 write the outline (quick and basic, just to showcase the timeline)
🧾 start writing the juicier parts and things I'm inspired to write at the moment (this part is usually pretty quick, too, because 1) I have a ton of dialogue from step one and 2) the motivation makes a big difference) (but! it leaves me with a script that's full of holes, so…)
🧾 fill in the gaps from the previous step and 'close up' the script (this is where it starts to get hard because the motivation goes down and there's less room for spontaneous writing)
I usually get stuck in that last phase, and the only way to get through is to sit on it and give it time, maybe work on some other parts in the meantime. (it also doesn't help that english is my second language lol)
So, yeah! I still appreciate you writing this out, and I hope it helps someone who might stumble upon it here 💕