Worlds vs. Stories

I'm a world builder.

I get so involved in the building of my worlds, it often distracts me from the story itself and I don't get anything done. I'll have files upon files of notes, brainstormings, maps of the dance club everyone works at, character bios writing by the characters themselves (not always helpful), and resumes of vampires wanting to join a new kiss, but never actually get anywhere on the story I was asking myself all these questions for in the first place.

Not very conducive to finishing a story.

Funny thing though? I don't think I care too much. I am coming to the realization that I don't write for the story, so to speak. I write to know the world.

NaNoWriMo was great for making me actually sit down and tell a story, one complete story, without getting too lost in the side tangents. The funny part is that I sat down to write that particular story because it was the backstory of a girl who seemed to know EVERYONE in the stories I was working on before that. It seemed like a great way to go world digging, while actually getting something done.

50,000 words later, and I'm not even close to finishing the "story" I set out to write. I know now loosely what happens, how she meet most of the people involved, and more or less how to get from A to Z from where my NaNo started to where the inspiring stories are in "present" time. But I still don't have a finished story. And knowing me, I probably never will. I'm not interested in reading Rain's story beginning to end as a "finished" product. I was interested in it as a gold mine, and boy, did I hit the jack pot.