When my fantasy novel outline fell apart mid-chapter, I had to pick a side

So I'm writing this urban fantasy set in Chicago, and I had the whole plot mapped out in a notebook. Then Wednesday night, my main character was supposed to save the city, but she just sat down on a bus bench and started crying instead. I froze for like 20 minutes just staring at the screen, trying to force her back on track. Finally I decided to let the scene go sideways and rewrite the next three chapters around her breakdown. Now I'm wondering, when a character rebels against your plan, do you stick to the outline or follow the mess? Has anyone else had a scene just derail and turn into something better?

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nathan54526d ago

Messy scenes are usually the ones readers remember. Your outline was just a suggestion, not a contract.