SOLVED - it finally worked. Don't know why. ( I tried to delete the original query but can't see anywhere to do that - is it not possible to delete posts once made?)
Using Windows 10 (Home) 64bit - just installed VeraCrypt and I'm trying to create my first container file (file size - 953gb) on an external USB 1tb SSD. Tried twice, the first time it hung at 25% (for many hours) and the second time it hung at 54% (overnight). It won't seem to complete creation of the container file. Can anyone offer any advice?