When the Dead Guy Talks Back: Characters Who Refuse to Follow the Outline

 By Eloise Corvo

I am a plotter, or at least I intend to be when I start a new novel draft. When I sat down with my handy-dandy outline for Off the Beaten Path, red herrings and murder mechanics galore, I planned to diligently stick to that outline. As I started writing and digging deeper into these characters; however, the dead guy talked back and took the story in a new direction.

I’m not the only writer who experiences this. As we explore our characters, delving into their personality quirks and motivations, they often surprise us and take us to places we weren’t anticipating. Let’s look more closely at what this means, why it’s a part of our creative magic, and how to handle it.

How he talks back

When I say that the dead guy in my story talked back to me, I don’t mean that literally. My fingers were not possessed by some outside influence that took over his storyline. What I mean is that I found myself surprised by where I took his storyline. I deviated from my plan and now had plot holes to reconcile.

In Off the Beaten Path, the body of a tourist is found in a massive state park by Maudy Lorso, the head park ranger. Without giving too much away, I had the relationship between the tourist and my killer clear in my outline. As I spent time in his head while drafting, working on the nuances of what motivated him and how he treated his relationships, a brand new facet of his relationship to the killer formed on the page. This new element was BIG. I’m not talking about a little side quest or fun detail. This changed the entire motive behind the murder and the clues that needed to allude to it.

Whether or not to listen to him

Once you start veering one of your characters away from your plan, you have to decide whether to stick to your original outline, or follow this detour into uncharted waters. You are in full control, but it can feel like your characters are just pulling you along for the ride.

Here’s what to ask yourself when you’re in this dilemma:

1. Will this new element complement, or be a distraction from my core plot?
2. Do I have time to weave this in cohesively through edits, or am I on a tight deadline? Do I have future books in the series to play with this new idea?
3. Do I simply like this new idea, independent of this particular story? Would it be better suited for its own story rather than this one?
4. What does my gut tell me?

If your gut is screaming at you to follow this idea and you have the time, you should go for it. If you’re working on tight deadlines or unsure about its place in this particular story, perhaps keep it in your back pocket and proceed as originally planned.

You can always add it in later if you just can’t let it go. Writing is a process after all. In my experience, the book is only done when my editor forces me to stop tinkering with it.

 I won’t always choose to follow these detours as I’m drafting, but I’ve become more flexible in entertaining them and trusting my own creative process.

In the instance of Off the Beaten Path’s dead guy, I listened to him. I reworked the plot, reconciled the holes, and spent countless extra hours weaving this element in. It’s a better story because of it.

While working on a separate book (a speculative fiction work-in-progress), this happened to me again. I veered off track, fixated on the thought that my villain should, with technology, open every door in the country, never to be shut again. I became fixated on this, and possible consequences of this simple problem. In the end though, I decided that I was pigeonholing this into this novel, and it distracted from the plot. Instead, I made it its own short story (“The Myriad Consequences of Unhinged Doors and Women”). It’s a much better fit here than in that other novel, even though that's where the idea originated.

 What he’s taught me

Listening to my imagination, as heard through my characters, has undoubtedly made me a better writer. It helps deepen motivation, create more realistic and flawed characters, and let emotional truth shine. These books aren’t just about solving murders; they’re about believable, empathetic characters that compel readers. The way we get to know our characters is the same way we get to know real people—by listening to them.

Author Eloise Corvo finds inspiration and peace of mind while skulking around her home library which her husband affectionately (?) says embodies an "Edgar Allan Poe meets Applebee's" aesthetic. Eloise has short fiction published in literary magazines like The Corner Bar, and her debut novel, Off the Beaten Path, just released in April through Level Best Books. She loves mint chocolate chip ice cream, appreciates a good puzzle, and is terrified of clowns. To learn more and purchase signed copies, visit EloiseCorvo.com.