There are many times when I am writing a story that I come to crossroads in the plot. Several directions are possible, even equally possible, but the story has to pick one. I ask myself why, other than the fact that I can't continue writing if I didn't pick a direction to stumble forward. This time I decided to try a simple branching narrative with a couple different paths to conclusion. I've started the process with the Charter School Series, and have submitted the first several path options. I'm trying to make the results (and kinks along the way) a little different for each path. I've started with the idea for 4-6 story line variations. If the concept seems to work, I might add variations. It has been fun to plan and write so far.
UPDATE
Apparently the experiment with branching story lines is more fun to write than it is to read. Based on how readers are responding, I won't be trying this experiment again.