Stuck: Writing It Out

If you've talked about writing on your blogs in the last couple months, you may have gotten a whiny comment from me about how my writing is not going. I may have mentioned chapter 20. Or I may have said something about "if I ever finish..."

I've been stuck. Since around the beginning of April. And now it's time to get unstuck.

As I was sort of sketching out this week of blog posts, I had it in my head that by Friday I'd be able to say that I was once again writing. But, things didn't quite work out that way.

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But such is life, right?

So, maybe this weekend I'll pull out my WBW file and just see what I can do...

What? You don't know what a WBW file is?

WBW stands for Writer's Block Workshop. It's a thing I started years ago for days when I wanted to write, but for one reason or another, I didn't have anything to write. It's where I whine about how I don't know what to do.

I moan about characters. Plot. Things that are not working. Or things I want to be writing. I just write out what I'm thinking and what I'm feeling.

The funny thing is, once I give myself permission to just write about the things that aren't working, they suddenly do.

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It's just a matter of sitting down and starting. Again.

Have you got any good tricks to get you started?

Stuck: Writing from a New POV

If you've talked about writing on your blogs in the last couple months, you may have gotten a whiny comment from me about how my writing is not going. I may have mentioned chapter 20. Or I may have said something about "if I ever finish..."

I've been stuck. Since around the beginning of April. And now it's time to get unstuck.

I think my biggest problem is that I know exactly what needs to happen in chapter 20. You read that right. I do know what I need to do. For some reason, that's more freezing than not knowing what's going to happen next.

I took chapters 18 and 19 to my writing group. They had a few suggestions...

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(This is why I have a writing group. They pointed out things that really didn't make sense. Things that had been in the story since the first draft but that no longer belonged in the story that it had become.)

I rewrote chapters 18 and 19. I completely gutted chapter 19 and started over. Those chapters are now stronger. But that means that chapter 20 has to change. In a good way, but still.

So, I cut chapter 20 and went to restart it completely. And couldn't figure out quite how to write it.

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I knew that my main character had to go and explain to the king that she did something that went against his wishes. Then I get to introduce the MC's cousin, who is going to play a significant role in the rest of the story. And to lead into the chapter 21 I already have, the cousin upsets the MC so much that she gets rotten, stinking drunk.

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But it wasn't happening. The cousin wasn't mean enough.

I finally got around to sketching out a chapter. I rearranged scenes. Realized that one chapter is too short to get the MC that drunk, so I'm going to have to insert a new chapter between the dreaded chapter 20 and the already written chapter 21. Doable.

But the cousin... So, it was time to sit down and write out what's going on from her perspective. Why does she hate the MC so much? What's her damage?

Then I had it! I had her voice. I knew what to do...

(And then I caught a cold and needed a few days of downtime...)

Well, it's progress. Of a sort.

How about you? Making any writing progress? (Or are you with me? Stuck, too?)

Stuck: A Cold

If you've talked about writing on your blogs in the last couple months, you may have gotten a whiny comment from me about how my writing is not going. I may have mentioned chapter 20. Or I may have said something about "if I ever finish..."

I've been stuck. Since around the beginning of April. And now it's time to get unstuck.

And that's what I was going to do on Monday. I was going to sit down and work. It was going to be the perfect day for it. I had installers coming... (Satellite TV. Long story.) ...and since I had no TV and nothing but time...

Then I woke up Monday. With a head cold.

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(Also the reason there was no post on Tuesday.)

Sometimes it feels like the universe is out to get me.

But it isn't. Not really. It may feel like that, and that's perhaps why it happened. Other things have been going on, so the minute I had some down time, my body decided it was going to get its rest first.

And that's okay. Because if I feel like I'm never going to write again, I'm never going to write again. But I know my time is coming. I got back here to write a blog post, didn't I? So, success!

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When it's been a while, and when I feel the world is pushing my away from writing, any little progress is good. An avalanche only needs a little bit to get it going. Just a little start can get me moving again. I know it can.

So, start small. A blog post. A page of some random thoughts. That's all. Just a bit today. A bit more tomorrow. Soon, it'll be flowing again.

Stuck

If you've talked about writing on your blogs in the last couple months, you may have gotten a whiny comment from me about how my writing is not going. I may have mentioned chapter 20. Or I may have said something about "if I ever finish..."

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I've been stuck. Since around the beginning of April. And now it's time to get unstuck.

One of my big problems has been time, or rather, lack of it. I get home from work, and the time I could be writing vanishes before I even realize it, rather like the cookies I'm munching on as I write this. Blogs. Technical issues (I will not bore you with my internet woes). Family favors (my niece needed a bit of help with her algebra--usually at the worst time). I'm sure you're familiar with the story.

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So, what to do? When can I squeeze in time to write?

I could schedule a time to write. A time that is my writing time, kind of like an appointment I make with myself. Block out the world.

I used to be able to do this pretty well. But lately... Life happens. I can learn to be flexible. And forgive myself for not being able to keep these appointments with myself. For now. Things will change again, and my writing appointment time will become easier and easier to do.

I could carve out some extra time, by waking up an hour early or going to bed an hour later. Make that my writing time.

For me, the waking up early never worked out. I'll go so far as to set the alarm, but when it goes off, I convince myself that I don't want to write that badly. I'm more of a stay-up-an-hour-later gal. Which wasn't working out when I was so tired I couldn't keep my eyes open. Those pages end up getting tossed later due to incoherence.

I could try to find little bits of time to write during the day.

I used to do this all the time. I could find odd down times at work where I could jot a few ideas down. But lately... It just wasn't working out for me.

So, I whine. I know perfectly well that if I really wanted to, I should be able to find a way. But perhaps now isn't the time. And it's time to stop shoulding all over myself. Because the time is coming when I will get back to writing, and this time stuck will be a terrible memory.

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Dear Writer Not Writing

Dear Writer Not Writing,

Sometimes we have the time to write and want to write, but we can’t. Sometimes it doesn’t feel like writer’s block because we’re writing blog posts, book reviews, journal entries, poems, etc. but we’re not working on the one thing that matters the most: our book.

What should you do when you’re not making any headway on your WIP? Try this:

1. Write one sentence every time you think about your story.

I got this one from Claudine and think it’s a fabulous way to get back into writing, because what writer doesn’t think about their story at least a dozen times a day? If you write one sentence the odds are you’ll write another one to go with it. And soon you may have a paragraph!

Image from Wikimedia

2. Change your scenery.

Writing in the same place can kill our creativity. Try writing outside, at the park or beach, in a book store or coffee shop, in bed or even in your car. Words may flow better if you have different surroundings.

3. Change your medium.

If you always work with a computer/laptop, try to hand write your WIP with a pen and paper. This can free your words just like changing your scenery.

4. Free Write

I admit to having trouble with this one because I tend to edit as I go (a nasty habit), but there have been times when I free wrote scenes and the outcomes was so much more raw and better than it would’ve been if I second guessed every sentence. Try to write freely by pouring every thought that pops into your head onto your paper. Don’t think about making anything flow or adding vivid prose. That can come later. Just write! 

XOXO, 

Chrys Fey

QUESTION: What gets you writing when you’ve been struggling for a while?

Have a writing-related question? Leave a comment and I may turn it into a post right here!

See Also:

Dear Withdrawn Writer

Dear Time-Strapped Writer

Dear Un-inspired Writer

Dear Blocked Writer

Dear Degree-less Writer

Dear Young Writer

Dear Aspiring Author

Dear Confused Facebook Author

Dear Scrambling Writer

Dear Writer Not Writing

Author of Hurricane Crimes, 30 Seconds, Ghost of Death, and Witch of Death. Blogger. Reader. Auntie. Vegetarian. Cat Lover.

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