How do you write and organize your branching?

[wyverngem]

I've been having a hard time writing for the past few weeks. I find that I am trying to get away from the script and more into a natural writing for me, which means I don't think as a coder, but as just a story teller. My issues comes with how to format menu choices in documents.

I use WordPad and Word, but I'm finding it confusing to keep track of choices. I'll come back to a scene and I'm not sure if the writing I've done is for one choice under a menu or if it keeps going. I've tried tabbing, but it just looks so unnatural as a novelist. There are times when I branch and I am writing a route into a choice and I can't tell if I'm at another branch or in the same line. It feels a little chaotic and makes me not to want write.

I'm also dealing with personalities and specific conditions that change based on a stat builder within the game. I'm unsure how to mark them up so it's easy to tell that this is all the same response to the previous line it's just said in different ways depending on the personality.

How do you do it? What are some tips I can do to keep it organized? Do you write it all on the same document, color map it? I'm looking for ideas to keep myself motivated. Is there even a program that does this? Where you can write and when you branch off it will neatly collapse the lines so you can't get confused?

[Divona]

You could try write the script on Twine. Just need to learn some tag that link branches together, and you can use variables and condition for the stats tracking.

[Mammon]

I think that actual organisation tools like the one Divona suggested will be better than my suggestions, but from what I can tell you've either got too much choices that are too similar or too insignificant. What I'd do:

-Write an outline before you write the story.
That story idea in your head is more chaotic than you think, and the system you thought up is bound to be flawed here and there. You won't see those flaws in your head, you'll have to write out the outline to see and thus solve them. It's much easier to adapt the outline and keep oversight than having to do the same in the script.

-Limit the routes to a manageable amount. If you've got a hundred different combinations, you've got about 90 too many.
Especially if you're working with multiple factors it can pile up real quick. Assume that you've got the factor <main route choice= 3routes> <sub route choice= 8routes> <companion choice= 5routes>. So, you've got 3+8+5=16 routes? Wrong, you've got 3*8*5= 120 routes, assuming that you went into the system head-first and want to make a special combination for each. You can separate the events, make it so that each sub-route and companion choice has a variation depending on the main route, but that the main route is generally unaffected by the other two choices aside from maybe one or two scenes. That doesn't sound as good and as creative as you'd like, but it's manageable. If you want to make it more interactive, finish the story first and then start rewriting it to look like what you want.

-Don't do everything at once and end up doing nothing.
Just like how you shouldn't start rewriting the first scenes of the first draft until you actually finish said first draft, you shouldn't try working in some strange chronological order where all the branches are being written at the same time. Start with one branch, preferably your favorite, and write it all the way through. Then continue with the next branch. If you're indeed doing something like suggested above, write the three main routes with your favorite side and companion route first, and then start with the other stuff once they're done.

-Limit the interactivity using bottleneck scenes, lineair events and quarantining the side-events to singular scenes rather than allowing them to have effect throughout the entire story. Sounds like a terribly uncreative idea? Yes, it does. But it's one you'll be able to oversee.

I've tried tabbing, but it just looks so unnatural as a novelist.

Have you looked at its entire potential? I wish that Word had the headings system it has now back when I wrote my first script, it's so efficient and oversightly. If it's really looking unnatural you could change the blue color to black, but even with those bright blue headlines I see little wrong with it. And by using the headings menu (Press Ctrl+F and then select 'headings') you can keep an index of all your scenes at hand at all times without any fuss.
I need not scroll through my files looking for the scene no more, it's just one click away. I love it.

[TheJerminator15]

What I do for my current project is write the common route initially whilst adding some choices, go back to revise said choices and then work on each branch individually. I have a specific word document for each branch and a general overview document for how each branch goes.

If you need help organising branches and stats, Divona's suggestion is a very good one. Twine is quite easy to use and to organise your branches.

Don't work on multiple branches at the same time and do not have more branches than necessary. You're only one writer after all, so having a ton of branches will jst put even more pressure onto you.

[Scribbles]

As a writer before I got into VN writing and coding, I think it helps to just write in the editor, but to have a few word or .txt documents open with notes, and a story outline. I break everything up into events, and then separate per route as necessary, but still keep it under that event. I also have a physical notebook where I jot notes and work stuff out lol

I do think it helps to work on one route at a time, so the characters are more consistent, and to have events where the routes come together so they don't branch out too much.

summed up:
write an outline, make notes and keep them handy

[wyverngem]

I really appreciate the feedback and there's a lot of good information. I checked out Twine and I wasn't too comfortable with how they save their documents, even in the downloaded version they rely on the browser to store the story, which could get deleted by clearing cookies.

I have a strong outline and agree with a lot of what you all said. So it's really an aesthetics thing for me. Has anyone worked with Scivener before?

[Scribbles]

I really appreciate the feedback and there's a lot of good information. I checked out Twine and I wasn't too comfortable with how they save their documents, even in the downloaded version they rely on the browser to store the story, which could get deleted by clearing cookies.

I have a strong outline and agree with a lot of what you all said. So it's really an aesthetics thing for me. Has anyone worked with Scivener before?

I have, and I didn't like it. It's nice in theory, but I just like working in Word better. the program was just a little too buggy and unreliable for me. And exporting to Word was a nightmare.

[JessieK]

You could try write the script on Twine. Just need to learn some tag that link branches together, and you can use variables and condition for the stats tracking.

How did I not know about this tool, I love you! This is perfect

[Katy133]

I also use Twine (glad to hear you're a fan of it).

My basic process is this: After I have the loose premise and plot summary (a vague beginning, middle, and end), I'll start using Twine. At this stage of the creative process, I have some ideas here and there of plot points I want the story to have, but I many not be sure of which order they happen. In Twine, I'll create one "Twine node" for each plot point (examples are things like: "Detective snoops around. Gets caught by security guard" or "Car chase scene: Ends unsuccessfully."). The great thing about Twine is that you can easily drag and re-arrange those plot point nodes around until you have a clear idea of your story from beginning to end, including each branching path.

[Yunou]

I really appreciate the feedback and there's a lot of good information. I checked out Twine and I wasn't too comfortable with how they save their documents, even in the downloaded version they rely on the browser to store the story, which could get deleted by clearing cookies.

I have a strong outline and agree with a lot of what you all said. So it's really an aesthetics thing for me. Has anyone worked with Scivener before?

I absolutely love Scrivener and Scapple. I use them both in tandem. I'm also big on aesthetics and I have no real experience working with Twine, but after only 5 minutes of using Scrivener, I was hooked. It's so intuitive and perfect and really helps to see the overall picture quickly, collapse scenes and chapters, and choose from a ton of icons to keep track of what is written, needs to be written, needs proofreading, or is done.

Scapple is my favorite mind-mapping software to get my branching in order (and drag character art, character schedules, sticky notes, etc.), but Scrivener is where I like to keep track of my writing.

Also, both Scrivener and Scapple have 30 day free trials that only count on days that you actually use them which is really nice if you have to take a few days break or something. I knew I was going to purchase them both after the first few minutes of using them, though.

[wyverngem]

I'll have to look up Scapple. I started in Scrivener to finish up my outline the other day. It's really, really nice. At least that's been my experience. I also like how you can export it.

[Hazel]

Just a note, Twine 1 is still available for download on the twinery.org site. It lacks some of the advantages of Twine 2, but it saves your files right on your desktop (directly into Dropbox, even, if you're compulsive about backing up). You always have them available, and you can export the Twine file into a number of different formats, which lets you access the whole text for editing or proofing.

If the save mechanics on Twine 2 are the main thing that bothered you, it might be worth a try.

[SpeCTRL]

For the personality stat thing, I tried doing that, but for sake of simplicity, I changed it for choices being influenced by a series of menus at the start of the game where the protagonist recalls his interpretation of his past, thus giving some outline to the player's choice of the protagonists' personality, like how he remembers his parents from when he was a child, or how he felt at certain parts of his past, simplifying the check process of points, and making the branching a bit easier.