Definitely try the "slap more on" trick.
This is the same idea that you use on a dry-erase whiteboard. If the
marker gets dried on, simply color over it and the solvent in the ink
cleans off the old.
Don't try sanding, what will happen is if you concentrate the sanding
on the areas where the excess stain is, you will sand the stain and end
up with a nice depression where you sanded... Also, keep in mind that
the stain soaks into the wood. It isn't like paint that is just on
top. To remove the stain, you will have to remove all the wood that
has absorbed the stain.