How do you defeat writer's block?

Question

I have a story or, six half finished. When I reach a certain point I don't know where to go. What do I do, when I've run out of ideas?

Answer 1

I love reading! Nothing gets me thinking more than reading someone elses work. There's a power in your own writing, but a greater power in being part of a community of writers. People think differently, have experienced things differently: Great writers can use this voice in their writing and it can inspire. Try plays (especially from other countries, browsing through the local bookstore, and even browsing Fan Fiction forums on-line!).

Besides this, I like to read non-fiction. I love architecture, ancient history, and textbooks about a range of subjects (I love linquistics, personally). Often, a twist of words, a surprising fact, or something will just jump out at you--because your own voice is just looking for expression and finds it!

Write everyday. Good, bad, impossible, keep fighting! And when you reach the end of the manuscript, rejoice! Actually, I find that writing block isn't a problem so much as going back and editing! Eeek!

When I've hit the point you have, just feeling lost in the story, I've gone back to the beginning and just read it. It's liberating because when you read other people's work and you find something you don't like you can't change it--but you can change this! I take notes about plot twists I can add, about coming back to information, about sudden ideas. And the best thing is that when I've reached the end of my reading, I'm usually ready to write!

Good luck!

Answer 2

Lots of good suggestions here. This has always been a significant problem for me. I've discovered three tricks that usually (not always of course, but usually) help.

1. Psychologists tell us we always write in ten- to fifteen-minute cycles. We may think we extend writing longer than that, but if we do, we stop every ten or fifteen minutes to daydream for a few minutes, reread what we've just written, gaze out the window, walk around the room, or (too often in may case) head for the refrigerator. SO one way to break a block is to make ourselves do a ten- or fifteen-minute nonstop writing. If we can't think of anything else to say, we simply repeat ourselves or write gibberish for a minute or two. Something else will come along. I do three of these, relaxing a few minutes between them. A block is often caused by the enormity of the task our psyche sees for itself. This gives it an excuse to think smaller -- just ten or fifteen minutes. The juices usually start flowing.

This used to be called "free writing" and, to my knowledge, was first introduced in a little book On Becoming a Writer written in the 1930s by Dorothea Brand.

2. If I'm at the begining of a project, my tendency is to keep doing background research and planning and taking notes and . . . so on and so forth, to avoid the task as long as possible. I've learned that I can't start at the beginning. I have to start with a part of whatever I'm writing that interests me most. Once I get underway, I can go back and fill in the beginning. I usually write several beginnings anyway.

3. If I'm already into the project and am having trouble getting back to it, I find that rerreading, NOT editing, but simply reading and highlighting a line or passage that needs further development works. Once I've identified several of those, I do the nonstop writing thing again, focusing on one or more passages that I have identified.

And sometimes I just go back to the refrigerator again. That's not a beer belly, I have. It's a writer's block!

Answer 3

i take a break for a weekend then i come back
and try a couple of different thought games.

Game #1 I think of my hero as he/she will be at age 60 and write their biography as if they were a real person. aka Maggie former hedgwitch age 65 grandmother of seven, three times winner of regional broom making competition then see how her story would lead her to such an old age.

Game #2 I take a book off the shelf open to a random page
and choose a paragraph and parse the paragraph
then a couple hours later rewrite the paragraph in terms of my story.

for example a random sentence from longyear's elephant song reads
Little Will touched the boss elephant man's arm. "Packy?"
it parses as
character 1 action-verbs character 2 "says something"
in my story it might read
Maggie kicked dirt at the Shepherd . "I do not give refunds!"

Answer 4

This happens to me a lot I would suggest rethinking the story and your characters what is their motivation and why are they making the choices that they make you may want to tweak some elements so that they work in your favor also do some brainstorming and just write down ideas regardless of how crazy you might think they are write it down sometimes you can come across an idea this way that you never thought of before Good Luck

Answer 5

Just start to write and don't worry if you like the content at the time... just write anything to get you back in the grove. You can edit later!

Answer 6

This website is great! Try free writing or planning the next step in the story.

http://www.sfwa.org/writing/

Answer 7

keep writing.
anything. your diary, the shopping list, anything that keeps you fingers/hand moving and writing.

eventually, the creative part of your brain will kick in again.

BTW, the woman who wrote the Thorn Birds said that as she wrote, the characters did things and went in directions she had never planned.

Answer 8

i go do things that will inspire me....when i have any kind of writers block.. the best thing to do is walk away for a period of time... after that your mind will be refreshed...good luck

Answer 9

Just try taking a nap

Answer 10

i smoke a little and go out to the mountains. nature has a way of being my muse