Friday, November 13, 2009

Stuckedness: Getting unstuck in Writing

Here are some helpful ways to brainstorm:
1. Ask yourself what is the absolute worst thing that could happen, and what is the absolute best and why?
2. Is there another logical way the story could work?
3. Does the story need to change in some small or large way?
4. Change location. Write some place or time you don't normally write.
5. Change media. You'll be surprised the diffence changing the way your write makes-- I sometimes write longhand in a spiral notebook--just make sure you don't lose the notebook *g*
6. Go back to you character GMC sheets for inspiration. Is there anything you missed? Anything new the character has revealed to you?
7. Interview your character. Ask him or her questions a reporter might ask, Who, What, Why, Where and How? Keep an open mind and leave the questions open-ended and let the character answer. You'd be surpised how well this technique works!
8. Read the chapter that's bothering you before you go to sleep and let your subconscious work on it. Make sure you keep a pen and pad by the bed--I do this one all the time.
9. Skip ahead and come back to it. If it's really giving you grief, leave three xxx's as a place holder so you can easily search for it later, make a note in your master notebook, and move ahead. Let your subconscious and the characters work on it while you're moving forward. The wonderful, magical thing about writing every day is the characters start doing some of the work for you. Let them do it!

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Barnes & Noble Round Rock Signing

Barnes & Noble Round Rock Signing
My friend Pantera with Tahoe & Me

Tahoe and a new friend at the signing