Despondent, my friend moved in with his parents while he contemplated what to do next. Can't have a solid foundation without a foolproof set of plans. And he was right. And you shouldn't. You can decorate it to your heart's content, but without a solid foundation, it's bound to fall apart.
Any moron knows that.
We've all seen enough movies and read enough books to know that you've gotta start somewhere, end somewhere else and that a bunch of stuff has to happen in-between. The trick is knowing where to start, where to end, and what to put in-between. If you're laying a foundation with a faulty plan or substandard material, you'll still have your beginning, middle and end, but there's a pretty good chance that your story won't stand up to much scrutiny. Several years ago I read an article in Writer's Digest by a writer named Gary Provost. Mr. Provost wisely compared a story to a basketball game, in which the players have an overall goal-to win the game.