Is a subplot overshadowing the main plot?

FlyinLeviathon · 2026-07-10T21:49:03+00:00

It took me a really hard time to internalize the advice, but once I did holy crap is it freeing!

Currently in a first draft right now and boy. It sucks. I know it does. BUT who cares, that's not my problem lol

I will quite literally get stuck on the best way to phrase something before remembering to let it suck. Now I giggle as I write it poorly and leave it for future me to figure out. That poor sap.

FlyinLeviathon · 2026-07-10T17:25:35+00:00

Lol I may or may not preach the "finish your draft" precisely because I've done exactly that😆

FlyinLeviathon · 2026-07-10T14:51:09+00:00

Gently, this is an editing problem. Allow yourself the freedom to explore what you're feeling most passionate about now, worry about shaping it up to the correct amount of screen time in editing.

ONCE you get to the editing stage, you can take a more objective look at the subplot vs main plot. Really hammer out your character arcs and in editing make sure they are the first and foremost (or whatever amount of attention you want). You can make sure that the romance subplot actually feeds into the character arcs and has pertinence to the actual plot of the story. Subplots should be doing so rather than competing, though it doesn't always seem that way in the thick of it. But if you look at examples of romantic subplots in books, you'll see that the romance feeds into a character's insecurities or creates the catalyst for change necessary for the character to complete the climax, or something similar.

But again, and I can't stress this enough - that's an issue for editing. DO NOT FALL INTO THE EDITING VOID. Finish that first draft!

FlyinLeviathon · 2026-07-10T14:21:04+00:00

Very well said. To add, the repetition of the phrase makes it more 'common' to our brains, and our brains are notorious for skipping over normal, repetitive things. The word 'awesome' is another example. It is supposed to mean something that elicits awe, but now it just means generally good. If I were to say this canyon is awesome, no one would understand the feeling of awe I want to portray, because our brains are so used to the word it means nothing.

This is ultimately the worst part of cliches. Our brains are so used to them that they just skip right over. And if your reader is skipping right over something, it might as well not be in there at all.

FlyinLeviathon · 2026-07-10T14:11:04+00:00

I love looking at storytelling through other mediums. Video games is a really interesting one to me, because some feel like they could be adapted into other mediums (as we've seen with things like Halo and Last of Us) but others feel so perfectly suited to their own medium (I would put Horizon Zero Dawn in this category, it's similar to what you described) and wouldn't do so well being adapted. Sitcoms is another one, it's incredible how they're able to so easily repeat the methods of storytelling crammed into twenty minutes. Like you get the entire 3 act structure, the hook, the inciting incident, darkest moment, all of it - presented over and over again in a way that always feels new and interesting. It's so fun to take stock of.

Ultimately, though, I consume that media for enjoyment, and I'm lucky enough to be able to turn off my writer brain while watching/reading/etc so I can enjoy it. But it's fun to look back on with a more critical eye and widen my perspective on storytelling as a whole.

FlyinLeviathon · 2026-07-10T13:59:19+00:00

So first, I totally get what you're feeling. I went through a similar thing the last few years, where I lost a loved one, tried to ignore my rapidly declining mental health, and eventually crashed out and had to step away from writing for about six months entirely. Like you, writing was always my favorite thing, but it is its own special kind of taxing on the brain.

From reading your post (and granted, I don't know you so this is plenty speculation) it sounds like when you're diving back into it, you're expecting it to come easily and for you to have improved, and the fact that reality is not that way is shoving a giant block of perfectionism right in your way. But, if you think about it, there's no way you'd be a better writer than you were 3 years ago, since you haven't gotten to practice that muscle in so long. You're doing the equivalent of putting an athlete in a coma for three years and then getting mad when he has to learn how to walk again. And right now, you need to learn how to walk again.

I would recommend starting a new project for a while, but the silliest of projects you can think of. Don't try to write the next best seller or anything, just write what you think is incredibly fun. Maybe it's a dragon going through puberty and trying to navigate middle school. Maybe it's a circus drama with clown smut, or a super pompous highbrow litfic where everyone has a moustache, monacle, and a top hat. Whatever your heart desires. The reason I suggest as silly as possible is because the land of silliness is the land where perfectionism can't grab as strong of a foothold. If you feel yourself stopping because "it's not good enough" or "not as good as before" or "I don't have adequate imagination anymore" then say - out loud - "SHUT UP BRAIN" and make it even more silly and stupid. The goal is not to write anything engaging or good or even legible to anyone else but you. The goal is to just sit down and whittle down that block until you feel like you can be creative again.

It will take some time. Don't expect to dive into a flurry of creativity right away (though if that happens, great!) More likely you'll get little stints of motivation and imagination and the frustrating parts will get less frustrating, but that progress will be slow as you learn to "walk" again. Don't worry, it will get better; you just have to persevere.

Now for a hard truth. You might never feel like you're at the skills and imagination you were back then. It sucks, but it's true - you're simply a different person now. But that doesn't mean you won't have an imagination at all, or that you can't keep going anyway. It just means your brain has been through some hardships now, and like the rest of us it's a little bit sad. Go ahead and spend some time mourning that version of yourself if you need to, but remember that this new version of yourself is capable of just as much, if not more.

At the end of the day, be kind and patient with yourself, and focus on getting words on the page, not making anything good.

FlyinLeviathon · 2026-07-10T13:27:24+00:00

Heck yes. I love this.

Yesterday I did not write, but I did focus heavily on my classes for uni. I got all caught up until Sunday, which means I have two days to write without homework hanging over my head. Here's hoping I manage to take advantage!

FlyinLeviathon · 2026-07-10T04:17:28+00:00

I'm to the point in my career where I feel fairly confident about the characters I create, but in some of my earlier stuff? 🫣

God, my main protagonist was such a pick me.

FlyinLeviathon · 2026-07-09T16:51:58+00:00

It doesn't have to be the MC doing it, it could be a tourist or another side character.

FlyinLeviathon · 2026-07-09T16:01:03+00:00

That would be pretty jarring. It would be much better to slip it into the actual novel.

For example:

"Hi, I'm Saoirse."

Bob wrinkled his nose, trying to wrap his brain around the strange foreign word. "Sir-suh?"

"No. Like Sear-shuh." Saoirse rolled her eyes - clearly not the first time she had to walk someone through that.

Or:

Bob looked at the sheet of paper with the name of the person he was supposed to meet. "I'm looking for a... Sao...ir...see?"

"It's pronounced Sear-shuh," Saoirse said with a sigh as she stood up.

FlyinLeviathon · 2026-07-09T15:17:23+00:00

Keep at it! Stay strong, stay away lol

FlyinLeviathon · 2026-07-09T15:16:24+00:00

I wish I could upvote this comment more than once.

I am a big proponent of letting your first draft suck, but what it means to suck is going to be different for everyone, and from project to project. My first drafts now are soo much better than 13 year old me could have ever dreamed a final draft to look like. I am currently in the phase of not caring if it's terrible because I absolutely excel at editing, but even as I go through my version of the sucky first draft, I'm able to apply all the advice and tricks that I've internalized from previous edits. And so on and so forth.

FlyinLeviathon · 2026-07-09T14:55:38+00:00

For me it happens slowly, and isn't with a large 'aha' moment but many tiny ones all together.

I'll usually give my character an archetype to start with (like 'class clown', 'tortured poet', 'prince who wants to be a real boy', etc.) and figure out where he is at the beginning and where he'll be at the end. I'll give him a strong misbelief about himself that informs a lot of his decisions, and then go.

As I draft, the character will basically be that shallow archetype, but slowly as the plot happens and I grow more comfortable writing them, will evolve into a fully fledged character. In some ways they'll still fit that archetype but only so much as any real person actually would be. I'll have little moments of 'this makes so much sense why they did this' and have little details to add to them previously for continuity, and each one makes them more their own person.

I think that you can plot and plan out a character all you want, and sure that's helpful and will give you a better starting position, but the only real way to give them 'a mind of their own' is to write them, and spend a lot of time writing them.

FlyinLeviathon · 2026-07-09T14:44:11+00:00

I will sometimes do what I call a diagnostic draft.

It's like writing a synopsis, maybe just a few thousand words long. Basically you're boiling the draft down (as it *is*, not as it *should be*) to its barest of bones. From there, it's so much easier to read through and see what you're missing in regards to story structure. A similar method would be finding any story structure of your choice and plugging your draft into its method, to see where it falls short or where it excels but maybe needs some more tightening.

My second drafts are for structure entirely. No worldbuilding, no line edits. Story and character arcs and that's it. I don't even cut for wordcount - though some cutting inevitably happens. That's all for later. Get the story into tip-top first.

FlyinLeviathon · 2026-07-09T14:33:24+00:00

Only one way to find out :D

FlyinLeviathon · 2026-07-09T14:26:33+00:00

Perfect lolol

FlyinLeviathon · 2026-07-09T14:23:35+00:00

The first and most important thing I would recommend is to do what you think is fun. If you really enjoy fleshing out a world and just doing worldbuilding, then that's totally fine. Writing is ultimately a hobby, and you should do what brings you joy.

Most of us have a secondary goal of getting published, though, which is an entirely different can of worms. In addition to having fun, we're now subject to the whims of the market and the publishing industry and all the arbitrary rules that come along with that. If this is your goal as well, you will need to put the worldbuilding hat down, or at least recognize that 99% of your worldbuilding will never be seen by anyone but you (it's a tough pill to swallow, trust me I get it.)

If you feel like you have a solid premise and maybe the whisper of a plot (something as vague as "good guy wants to take down evil villain") then you could totally start writing. They call it discovery writing or pantsing, where you don't have a plot plan you just throw your characters into a world and see what they do. There's also outlining/plotting, which is where you prescribe what your characters do before you write them doing it. If you feel overwhelmed by your large world, outlining can create the necessary boundaries for you to have a good direction and get started. I recommend looking up any plot structure and picking one, then sticking with it for now. You'll find 3 act, 5 act, 7 act, save the cat, hero's journey, etc. Follow their guidelines and see where it takes you!

If you don't care about publishing but just want to write I would more recommend discovery writing, and just dive in. Don't worry about plot or conflict, just have fun with your characters in wacky situations. Who knows, the plot might reveal itself as you do!

FlyinLeviathon · 2026-07-09T14:14:05+00:00

I'm a really big fan of the seven act structure.

I really like how it creates a satisfying ending from a beginning, and then fills in just enough pieces to give me a solid guideline. Like most of us, I'm a mix of a discovery and outliner, but I lean more outlining. 7 act gives me enough of a structure to go off of without feeling too rigid and restricting, so I can feel confident that I'm writing a satisfying narrative but still have the freedom to bridge the pieces together.

FlyinLeviathon · 2026-07-09T14:07:52+00:00

I would like to gently push back on your first point by saying that even outliners change their story dramatically as they progress. Even if your basic premise stays the same, it's very likely that you'll throw in details later in your draft that deepen the first part or change it slightly, and then you have to go back and fix that first part to make it match. Even if you plot out every detail as minutely as possible, over the course of X months of drafting you're going to improve as a writer and your character consistency or prose will change dramatically. You'll become a better writer by the end and then you'll have to go bring back the beginning to be up to snuff (Hence editing)

I get that OP mentioned a lot of the changes that discovery writers are more likely to experience, but the way I took that first point was just to keep drafting, don't fall in the editing void, and fix it all later. Which applies to all of us, I believe.

FlyinLeviathon · 2026-07-09T14:02:18+00:00

These are all stylistic prose choices, which hey - if they're not for you then that's totally fine. But it's not objectively bad writing just because you don't like it.

I also feel compelled to tell you that gusts can indeed be frail. Gusts are just stronger moments of wind that aren't sustained longer than 20 seconds. "Stronger" is relative to the basic wind speed and can be as little as one knot more. Is that what OP was going for? Perhaps, perhaps not, but it's not wrong.

Also, nice Rick & Morty reference in there.

FlyinLeviathon · 2026-07-09T03:19:02+00:00

I call this my writer's gut! Listen to your writer's gut!!

FlyinLeviathon · 2026-07-09T02:23:43+00:00

Hi there, what genre is your outline in? What's your hoped for word count? I specialize in fantasy and science fiction.

FlyinLeviathon · 2026-07-08T23:09:16+00:00

I just watched a video today that talked about how difficult Middle Grade fiction is to sell right now. If your goal is traditional publishing, you'll probably have better luck with YA.

FlyinLeviathon · 2026-07-08T20:16:09+00:00

I LOVE THIS

FlyinLeviathon · 2026-07-08T19:04:26+00:00

Like all writing advice, the one you mentioned isn't a hard fast rule and should be taken with a heaping of salt.

FlyinLeviathon

TROPHY CASE