Coping With Writer Block
by Lucinda Siverling
If I find myself with a case of being stuck on a point in a story, I do one of two things - a) I work on a different point in the story, something that I know I want to have happen later (or sometimes earlier) in the story or b) I work on a different project entirely. Sometimes it's good to have several stories with different moods to choose from.
A prolific author* once had a character in one of her books explaining this very thing, and it made a great deal of sense to me - to paraphrase, have more than one project at a time, so if you are stuck on one, you can probably make some progress on a different one. Talk to someone about it, because talking about a problem with someone can sometimes make it come unstuck all by itself, or maybe their perspective will find a problem that you were simply too close to notice for yourself. From my own observations, go somewhere that you won't have your computer, or notebook, and that will help. I've had more ideas come to me when I'm driving down the road, trying to fall asleep, or in some other variation of I can't write it down right now than I could easily number.
Sometimes, even those things don't really help though, and I find myself jotting down the plot, where I want it to go, where it's been so far, and how it got to where it is right now. I note down who my major characters are, and why they're doing what they are or aren't doing. I figure out what's going on in their heads, which can sometimes be scary if they aren't nice people. Sometimes, the problem is that I haven't figured out why the character is trying to do this difficult thing. If I don't know why they want it so badly, I can't really write any more until I figure it out. Honestly, sometimes I write a section from someone else's perspective while I let the main character's stuff stew in the back of my head, in the hope that a little more time will help my subconscious sort out what should happen next.
What does the mystical what's-it actually do? Why does everybody want it so badly? How far are the characters wiling to go to get it? How did they find out about it?
Why do her/his friends think that this new relationship is terrible? Is there unmentioned bad history or hidden feelings? Do they have good reason to worry? How far might they be willing to go to keep or force the couple apart?
What happens if they fail in the great quest? Who will pay the price of failure, and how big is it? How many sacrifices have already been made, and by whom?
How do I cause these groups of good guys to trust each other? Why are they reluctant to do so to begin with?
Generally, when I know all of these answers (or at least all the ones that apply to the situation), I can do a better job of getting something on the screen. Sometimes, it isn't perfect. The flow may be awkward, or it doesn't sound quite right. That's okay, just keep going for now, you can go back and revise, tweak it a little later. Get the scene or encounter down first, and then you can play with it later. Maybe you can show it to someone else and get their opinion, maybe you look at it and say `It's just not right, but I don't know where it's wrong!' and when you show someone, they say, `Ah, here, this just doesn't fit what this character was doing last chapter.' Or `Maybe if you put this happening first, and then that." and it suddenly makes sense to you.
Above all else, remember that quality is more important than quantity or speed. Your readers will appreciate ten good pages next week more than ten mediocre pages tomorrow. More importantly, you will be happier with ten good pages when you look back in three months than you would with ten mediocre pages.
by Lucinda Siverling
* that prolific author is Mercedes Lackey, and the character in question is Diana Tregarde, who holds the bill-paying job of professional romance writer. She offers a few bits of advice for young writers in the novel 'Jinx High', as she had been invited to speak in front of an advanced English class. Read the book if you want to know the whole story.
About the athor,
Lucinda Siverling is the mother of two children and has wanted to be a writer ever since hse figured out that books didn't magically appear in stores, someone actually wrote them. Knowing that there is more to becoming an author than just deciding that it sounds like a nice idea, she has been writing for a while, though some of those early efforts will mercifully never be inflicted on others. Lucinda has a short story contracted for 'Lycantropes' and another contracted for 'Tavern Tales', Comstar's werecreature and fantasy anthologies.
email: lucindasiverling@hotmail.com