Writer's Fallout Shelter

I understand that principle, but sometimes you get those "AHA!" moments and you just need to put it down on paper. I keep a legal pad with me at school, and I have paper at work I can use. While I find the computer to be much simpler, and definately cleaner in management, I also find that jotting a couple of things down on paper can make a difference. I go to work and school, and while I do get busy, there is always at least 2-5 minutes where I can jot down one thing or another. From there, when I get home, I have about a half hour between getting home and going to bed. I pull out my scant words and just do some fast writing. I just write out everything that comes to my mind, whether its nonsense or not. Then I just set it off to the side. I get about 1 day every other week that I have off, and I spend that time going over all the scribbles. If I can't decipher anything, I just add more pieces to the puzzle. An example is that I have 8 main characters and their families. When I dont have anything to write in the actual story, I write about these characters histories, backgrounds, their families, where they come from, what they do, etc etc. Right now I have about 2 paragraphs on each character, and a fleshed out timeline of where I want them to go. I dont know how they get to each point, but I know what I want to happen, and having it on paper helps. I find myself adding points in the timeline from time to time, but it helps me pace myself. If I want to write about something in the middle of the book, I can just note it as such, and then when I get there, just plug it in (after some editting I am sure.) George R. R. Martin says that writers are gardeners or architects. Some plant seeds and watch their creations grow, even if they dont know what seed they planted. Others build a framework, dot all their i's and cross all their t's. They make blue prints and stick to such. A good writer has an amalgam of both types. So this is what I pose to you. Make the back story. Jot down ideas that may have an irrelevance to the story at hand, but are there in case you need them at a later time. Make a frame, but let vines creep as they will from left to right or up to down. As long as your thoughts are on paper, the world you create is your oyster. Lastly, don't get frustrated. I took a 2 year hiatus on mine, because I got addicted to videogames. Your story will always be there. Even if your computer crashes and you lose all your information, you still know what you want in your head. If you can't remember, maybe it wasn't meant to be. It is your intellectual property, and as such, only you have to conform to your OWN rules. If anyone needs any other pointers, or if this just didn't help at all, write me. I will be glad to talk further.