Current Events > "They're making it up as it goes along" is a dumb complaint for a plot

(+) Yeah! (+)

The narrative can still be bad but the complaint in itself is stupid. Everyone makes it up as it goes along. What's the alternative?

Theres a difference between planning something out and just blindly coming up with things on the fly.

Backstage gossip is never good criticism. Its just gossip.

PuppetPalClem posted...

Theres a difference between planning something out and just blindly coming up with things on the fly.

there is. but you can't tell which one is being done without external information

If you make shit up as you go along it's easier to be fair

If you plan everything out from the start then the DM starts playing favorites fast

Source: my bias

averagejoel posted...

there is. but you can't tell which one is being done without external information

You can have a very good guess. Most manga is made up on the fly, and you can tell. CW shows are a mix of planning and hoping. Most movies have the plot well in advance of filming.

PuppetPalClem posted...

Theres a difference between planning something out and just blindly coming up with things on the fly.

This is why the Disney Star Wars was so bad.

If you make something up on the fly, as opposed to planning out all the story beats before you start production, you are far more likely to create plot holes, write yourself into a corner, or flame out before the series ends. Lost and GoT (TV) are great examples of this--GoT specifically, where everything prior to the last few seasons had already been meticulously detailed in the book, then when the writers had to step up and finish the story on the fly, it all fell apart.

Literally happened in lost. Writers admitted it.

ChocoboMogALT posted...

You can have a very good guess. Most manga is made up on the fly, and you can tell. CW shows are a mix of planning and hoping. Most movies have the plot well in advance of filming.

still, that's ultimately all it is. a guess

PuppetPalClem posted...

Theres a difference between planning something out and just blindly coming up with things on the fly.

While true, a lot of critics throw that narrative out simply because they don't like something.

The original Star Wars trilogy was made up on the fly and it shows. Same with the prequels, and sequels. People just don't mind with the originals because the first two individual films were so mind blowing and iconic, and they don't notice with the prequels because they've either been gaslit into thinking they were "good, actually, so its fine/didn't happen", or they grew up with them so they have a personal attachment, so its fine or it didn't happen.

It's honestly usually pretty easy to tell, honestly. Properly planned plots will have good foreshadowing and pacing, while stories that are just made up as they go will be more abrupt and clunky.

Admittedly, I probably over-plan when I write, but I personally can't really imagine writing without full planning in advance. I usually dedicate a full notebook to longer stories that I write, and I meticulously plot out everything in them well before I begin writing.