Subplot

I've had an idea for a novel for some time now, although it so far exists only in my mind and in the A4 exercise book I bought especially for its notes. Actually, I have also written the first three chapters (which already need changes, but we won't go there...yet).

A novel is the kind of writing I plan, being anal and all, and I have had a rough chapter outline in the book for longer than I care to admit. I have been grappling though, with the main subplot, trying to figure out how to do the research I need to do without actually doing the research. Not because I'm trying to avoid doing the research for the heck of it, I actually have good reason (this time). If I engage in the research I need to do, it is more than likely I will get hooked in and waste many many hours, not to mention develop anti-social behaviours.

In the car a few days ago, where many of my good ideas come from, the subplot all fell into place, in a way that won't really require any research. Now, that's the kind of idea I like. And now it's recorded safely in my A4 book, waiting for more notes to keep it company...