Stop Fighting Your Brain: Write Your Novel Out of Order

That scene won't leave you alone, will it? You know the one - it's perfect in your head but you're "not supposed to write it yet."

Write it anyway.

People get weird about writing rules. Like we all signed some sacred contract promising to write every story from Chapter One to The End. But your brain doesn't care about that contract. Mine sure doesn't.

Look, some writers will probably call me a monster for what I'm about to suggest. Fine by me. Take what works, ignore what doesn't. Tuck the rest away for a rainy day when your usual methods aren't cutting it.

I fought this for years. "I'm a linear writer," I'd insist. "I need to know what happens first!" Meanwhile, I'd sit there staring at a blank screen while this amazing scene burned a hole in my brain. The first time someone suggested writing that scene first, I laughed in their face.

Then they hit me with this: "Maybe you need to see where you're going before you can figure out how to get there."

I hate when other people make sense.

What's Chunk Writing?

Think about making a sandwich. Nobody cares if you slice the tomato before the cheese. Your sandwich tastes the same either way. Your story works like that too. Write the pieces that are ready to come out. The order can come later.

When you stop fighting your brain's natural flow:

• Your creativity keeps moving
• Writer's block becomes rare
• Ideas stay fresh
• You actually write instead of just thinking about writing

Three Ways to Write in Chunks

✨ The Shiny Scene Method
You know those scenes that play like movies in your head? Write them while they're hot. I keep a voice recorder by my bed now. Had to after losing too many midnight inspirations to "I'll remember this in the morning."

Spoiler alert: I never remembered.

💭 The Dialogue Catcher
Your characters might ambush you in the shower with the perfect conversation. Grab your phone. Talk-to-text that dialogue. It doesn't need context yet - just catch it before it slips away.

Fun fact: I once knew an author who wrote entire first drafts in nothing but dialogue. She'd fill in the rest later. "The talking shows me who they are," she'd say. "Everything else is just setting the stage."

❤️ The Emotion-First Method
Writing angry? Perfect time for that fight scene. Feeling soft and romantic? Write the first kiss. Your real emotions will bleed onto the page in the best way.

Tip: if you're the type of author who can write to music, find playlists that fit your writing for the day and use that as your soundtrack. If you need instrumental music, think about movie soundtracks to inspire you.

Keep Track (Without Driving Yourself Crazy)

For you beautiful chaos writers - this is your permission slip to embrace the mess. Write what calls to you today. Patch it together later like a quilt. Those scenes that don't make the final cut? They're not wasted - they're bonus content for your newsletter.

All you really need:

• A folder with your project name
• Quick labels like "Jake-FirstKiss" or "Sarah-QuitJob"
• Maybe a note about what happens next

That's it. No color-coding required (unless that's your jam).

Your Mission:

That scene that's been haunting you? Open a fresh document. Write it. Slap a label on it so you can find it later. Done.

Nobody's going to know which piece you wrote first. Your readers don't care. They just want the story.

So give yourself permission to write your way. Your story's waiting.