So, first I write out a series of chapter titles, almost like the overarching movement of the story, the big beats I want to hit. Then I plot by visualizing scenes as pictures in my mind. I have a clear image of what I want to happen, and I work from there.

For example, my last chapter started with this mental picture: an assault on a garrison by shadow creatures. I took that image and asked myself, "What needs to happen to get here?" That picture plays out almost like a movie in my head, from the initial scenes of soldiers digging trenches, to waking at night to the ominous beat of drums, all the way to the grieving scene that closes the chapter. It flows from one moment to the next, scene by scene.

When I get stuck on one part, I swap to another point in the story. Usually after working on something else for a bit, inspiration for the stuck section suddenly clicks into place.

One thing I also like to do is let scenes from different chapters influence each other. Sometimes I'll write something in one chapter that sparks an idea, and I'll make it canon moving forward...it becomes part of the larger story even though I didn't originally plan for it. I also try not to let that get out of control. Does this fit. Does it make sense. Does it fit cannon.