We spin yarn from a ball of material, so the image is apt. Starting with details, a thread continues out from the ball and it is connected to whatever came before. This is perfect for a story told in actual sequence, with no jumps in place, time, or concept. Many short stories fall into this category. However, as we all realize, while life itself may spin out sequentially, daily events are often disconnected from a logical chain of daily events. In fact, occurrences in place and time often work against whatever came before. Thus, especially in  novels, the “spinning yarn” notion has to be set aside. Instead I like to think of a crystal. You (the author) can hold a crystal in your hand or mind, rotate it in any direction, and study its startling variety of facets. Each face of the crystal reveals part of the light or image reflected within. Applying this to fiction, the author might start with a character’s description and then rotate the crystal slightly to reflect two or three images from the past which clearly illustrate the character’s background and motivations. Rotating the crystal even further might place the character in a situation involving another character or characters, each of which are reflected in other, related, facets. For further developments, the writer may consult still more facets, characters, situations, and so on. The beauty is that the author chooses what the crystal’s facets reflect, but can’t ignore that they relate to other aspects of the same crystal. Even though the writer is freed from the sequential nature of a “yarn,” she or he can view the novel as a dynamic, free flowing entity in which actions and facts relate to each other in dynamic ways and the entire process is in the writer’s control as long as relationships among the facets are preserved. So give crystal writing a try. And have a ball while you’re at it!