Writing Struggles

The Question:

Do I build my own whole new world or do I use contemporary/Earth as the framework to build my story on?

Thoughts:

One of the (many, many…) hurdles I face when I write is choosing the world.

If I build my own world the possibilities are endless. But sometimes I get so bogged down in the details I lose track of the story. Then I wind up exhausted with zero interest in the WIP.

On the other hand, by using the world in which I live it’s already fleshed out. But the risk of too grand of creative liberties or getting something so grossly inaccurate looms large. I know the latter can be offset with appropriate research but you’re only as good as your sources.

So when I’m faced with this sticky quagmire of indecision, what do I do? Well… Nothing, really. I waffle for awhile and then I decide to write and hope I can figure it out later. I choose “contemporary” because it’s easier - I can make easily informed decisions about the world/my characters and plow on. All the while I know it’ll be a real bitch if later on I think the other option is the best option and have to re-write. But since I’ll have to re-write anyway, maybe it won’t be so bad… Unless, of course, it opens me up to plot holes, which it’ll probably do.

Still, on I write and hope that I don’t ditch the setting OR, since I’m the creator of this story and this alternate world, I just figure out an organic way to make both of the things I want happen. If it makes sense to do it.

Shit… I hope it makes sense to do it.