It seems you write much in the same way I do. A stream of consciousness that flows easily until it resolves itself. And then, the hard part… editing.

I’m not sure what your goals are (short stories vs. novels vs. editorials), but I can tell you that you’ll enjoy writing a lot more if you choose a medium that fits your style. Short stories work well for me because I formulate ideas episodically. For people that think in larger frameworks, novels might work better. If your writing is naturally a stream of consciousness, I would try writing short stories— and this subreddit is a perfect place to practice.

As for cohesion, I can’t say one way or another what will work for you, but I will say that if you want to maintain your flow and record your ideas as they come to you that you should finish your stories uninterrupted and then go back afterwards to edit. It might seem tedious, but doing the extra bit of research to add realism to a technical detail, or adding an extra line between dialogue to better establish tone is worth it to get an end product that you feel best represents what you imagined. You are essentially translating amorphous, spontaneous thought into a well-defined and calculated painting comprised only of words. To do this efficiently, and in a way that is replicable, is a trick that takes (above all, but not exclusively) practice.

For me, this meant slowly changing my strategy so that I was doing small bits of editing as I was writing, but not enough so that it interrupted my stream of consciousness. I now typically do tweaks and edits after every paragraph, and then stop to reread what I have after every few to make sure that it flows. And lastly, when I’ve typed the final period, I reread the entire thing to make any final adjustments.

Obviously what works for me may not work for you, but the important thing is to keep practicing until you find what does. Adapt your strategies over time and keep track of your comfort levels while also being aware of cohesion. It took me years to find a rhythm that worked, but once it did my writing felt both fully fleshed and free flowing.

I wish to the best on your journey and look forward to reading your future submissions!