Questions

Writer’s block is a play on words that I find doesn’t not really apply because if a writer did have block in front of them, they’d be able to write about the block wouldn’t they?  All joking aside, there are times when writers just can’t get the creative juices going and find themselves staring at a blank piece of paper or blank screen with nothing but a glare in their eyes.  I’ve listed here a few suggestions that can help alleviate this situation.

What’s really going on when you can’t write?  Quite likely it’s because there are a lot of things going on in your mind that are vying for your attention that quite probably are more exciting than putting a story on your computer screen.  Even though writing does look like it could be fun and interesting, it does require a lot of effort.  And the first requirement for writing great articles is a great attitude.

1.    Work on your psyche. A sense of tiredness will pull rank on any thoughts of writing.  Swing your mood over by thinking about all you will be able to do if you get all your articles written now.  Something like, you won’t be pushed for time later when something of a recreational nature comes up.  Maybe you can think of rewarding yourself when you’re done with something you really like; maybe your favorite desert or a night in front of the TV watching your favorite movies.

2.    Set yourself up for success.  Find a spot in your home that’s conducive to writing and make that your favorite writing area.  It could be your kitchen or dining table, your den or office, the back porch overlooking your garden.  This way, when it’s time for writing, you can grab your laptop, go to that spot and let yourself be inspired and start writing.

3.    Accept imperfection. During your first draft, treat it as such.  Don’t be the editor and the writer at the same time.  It’ll prevent your creative juices from flowing.  Instead, just type away, even if you have run-on sentences or the grammar and spelling just isn’t quite right.  Come back later when you’re finished to clean it up.

4.    Do more research. If you just can’t come up with something to write maybe you need to do a little more research on the topic.  So, switch hats and get into the research mode.  You might have a lot of good information but you’re missing out on that one little piece that will really capture your readers’ imagination.  You can never do too much research, if nothing else; you’ll have information for future articles.

5.    Take a meditation break. An active mind doesn’t lend itself well to writing.  You’re trying to focus on a subject matter to write your article about and your mind keeps drifting off to other areas.  Or maybe its anxiety, you’re not sure if your article will be well received or you don’t think you have what it takes to be a writer.  Again, meditating will help you with that.  Take a few moments to meditate, to calm the mind and refocus it on the subject at hand.

So, if you find yourself hitting the proverbial brick wall when you try to write, just try these ideas to get those articles on paper (screen).  You’ll probably surprise yourself at how well you do.


- Bert Godin

I am doing the NaNoWriMo this year and I already have a plot but I want something to write before November as I am resisting the urge to start now.

So I would appreciate if you listed some random words that may inspire a story or two.
For those who do not know what the NaNoWriMo is, it’s a writing challange to write a first draft of a novel in 30 days from scratch so I can not start until November.
- Ariana

Copyright (c) 2007 Christine Jones

A story can be fictitious or fact, in some cases both. I believe everyone on this planet has a story to tell in some form or another. So many times people say to me, ‘I could write a book about my life’. I reply, ‘why don’t you’. They usually come back with, ‘wouldn’t know where to start’, followed by, ‘I don’t have the time’.

Okay, lets start with, where to start. I say anywhere! Could be yesterday, last week, last year or five minutes ago. Start anywhere! You can rearrange paragraphs, chapters etc later. Don’t stunt your thinking with once upon a time…. Let’s say you want to write about your life. You can start with, I’m sitting here without a thought in my head, but five minuets ago, I got a phone call from Joe blogs. Another salesman trying to sell me a mobile phone. Keep going, what happened before that? I was sitting there talking to my friend Betty, before rudely interrupted by the phone. Before that, I was moping the floor. Before that, eating breakfast and my son, daughter, dog, cat, whatever, knocked a pot plant over, messing up my floor. Work backwards if you have to, jump all over the place. Just get your thoughts down, can be 5, 50, 100, 200 pages of just thoughts, then do the rearranging. I call this my first draft. Second, the filling out, third, rearranging, fourth and a thousand times over, proofreading. Some writers would not agree with me on this, everyone is entitled to there opinion. If I’m wrong, why is there such a thing as writers block and the question, where do I start?

Okay, scared to tell people your life history, but want to? Turn it into fiction. Tell your story, giving yourself and others fictitious names, places and settings. Pour your heart out; make readers laugh and cry with you. Don’t want dear old mum and dad having a heart attack if they read it, give yourself a pen name. Don’t want your girl friend getting her nose out of joint because she does things you aren’t game to tell her, make she into a he, the snotty nose two faced snob or the Aunty from hell.

Want to go further; turn your work into a full-blown fictitious novel? Your best mate suddenly becomes the miracle worker, who not only saved your pot plant but your kid, who supposedly fell out of the highchair! The man, who rang you, becomes a stalker. Mobile phone sales were down, the boss was on his back; your refusal of the offer was the last straw. He blames you for being sacked. Add, add, add, use your imagination, it’s your life, mix fact with fiction, do what you will with it. Give it a twist; you eventually leave your hubby for the stalker. The stalker teams up with you to get rid of the Aunty from hell. The stalker is really an alien, teaching you a lesson in something. Imagination and fact is wonderful and anything can be done with it.

One thing I always suggest to writers, forget who is going to read it. This will free you up to write what you want and not what you think others are going to like. Remember, you can never please everyone and don’t even try to. If you don’t love what you’re writing with passion, you leave yourself open to beat yourself to death over the slightest criticism.

I personally believe that in every fiction book is part of the author’s personality, life, loves, hates, family, acquaintances and all written within the words of a poem, short story and novels.

Haven’t got the time? This to me says, I don’t want to write, so don’t. Better to be honest and say it than to have someone like me trying to convince you to do it. If this is not the case and you really do want to write a story, would it really kill you to dedicate 10 minutes a day to writing one paragraph? Or like some do, jot down a daily note in a diary. Just think; one day you can hand it down to a family member, who might make a million dollars out of it. Take the bible for example; it is a book of letters and private notes. Stones and scrolls exchanged and collected. One day they stuck it all together and whammo, the worlds best selling book. So, there is no reason for people not to write, only if they really, really don’t want to be a writer and not everyone wants to. Alas, the reader and the world needs them just as much as writers.


- Christine Jones

Your story, be it novel, short story or novelette, is finished. Or is it? Before you send it to a publisher, check firstly that your story makes sense!

Maybe you read my article about The Final Draft. Well, before you reach that stage there’s this one to go through. It can be hard and you need to be tough with yourself, castings an editor’s eye - not that of a writer - over your work. So what is there to look for when editing and how do you go about it?

The first thing to do is to print your story out onto paper. Don’t ask me why but editing just doesn’t seem to work the same if you do it on your computer or word-processor. Then read your story. You might think this a waste of time - after all, you wrote it! - but I assure you that you’ll find mistakes, typos and a host of other little mistakes.

They’re easy to correct. Mark them in pencil as you go along. When you have finished your read through it’s time to begin editing in earnest. You will have almost certainly noticed plotting errors and the usual howlers present in every first draft (I speak from experience!) but here’s a rundown of vital points to check off during the editing process.

1. Do your characters behave as they should? Remember that, in fiction, people seldom if ever act ‘out of character’ - if your character has changed, this needs attention.

2. Do your characters react to each other as they should? Events in your story may well change the feelings and emotions your characters display towards each other. Do they mention events that have happened to them within the story? Real people would - your characters should follow suit.

3. Will it be obvious to the reader what the characters are doing - and why they are doing it? This needs to be made clear to the reader otherwise the ‘thread’ of the story may be lost altogether, your reader will become confused - and the story, for them, is over.

4. Do your characters react believably to circumstances? Again, this goes back to character action - don’t have a character brush off a situation if their character sheet says they would go berserk with rage at a given event - if this is evident, your plotting needs to be looked at. Don’t change your character’s reactions to paper over cracks in the plot!

5. Does your story timeline run true? It’s very easy to have someone in two places at once if you’re not in control of this critical thread. If you have a sub-plot, or, worse still, several sub-plots running, this can rapidly spiral out of control. Use a timeline record to help you control event timing, i.e. ‘10 pm Monday - Jake and Sally at Harry’s bar. Big Mike robbing bank.’ This ensures that Jake and Big Mike don’t ‘meet up’ somewhere at that hour!

Checking the above points will take time, effort and dedication. However, if you do not ensure that your story makes sense according to the points above, the only time you waste will be your own. Why? Simple. Editors today do not expect - and indeed will not tolerate - stories that simply don’t ‘hang together’. The days of droves of sub-editors making good your sloppy work are well and truly gone.

So - edit and re-edit. Be brutal. Be honest with yourself and your work and you will be streets ahead of those who do not take the time and effort that you do. Writing fiction is hard work - it’s up to you to make certain your work is the best it can be. I look forward to seeing you in print!


- Steve Dempster

So you want to publish articles and write letters for your niche but have no idea how to word things?

You want to learn how to effectively explain something or make a sale but can’t think clearly?

Even the best writers get something we like to refer to as “Writer’s Block”. Writer’s Block is the inability to effectively communicate thoughts into words or sentences due to the portrayal of the following characteristics:

1. Perfectionism. You must absolutely produce a

masterpiece of literature straight off in the first

draft. Otherwise, you qualify as a complete failure.

This is a common mistake among those with little experience. You want to be a great writer? All writers started somewhere; and they didn’t create a masterpiece on the first try (or else they’d STILL be working on it).

2. Editing instead of composing. There’s your

monkey-mind sitting on your shoulder, yelling as soon

as you type “I was born?,” no, not that, that’s wrong!

That’s stupid! Correct correct correct correct?

Over-thinking is easy to indulge in when you have not unleashed your inner-ability to type the flow of your thoughts. Compose first; edit later.

3. Self-consciousness. How can you think, let alone

write, when all you can manage to do is pry the

fingers of writer’s block away from your throat enough

so you can gasp in a few shallow breaths? You’re not

focusing on what you’re trying to write, you’re focusing

on those gnarly fingers around your windpipe.

Stop thinking about what other people will think. In fact, stop thinking about anything at all. Find something you love, learn it, and express yourself. Try it out!

4. Can’t get started. It’s always the first sentence

that’s the hardest. As writers, we all know how

EXTREMELY important the first sentence is. It must be

brilliant! It must be unique! It must hook your

readers from the start! There’s no way we can get

into writing the piece until we get past this

impossible first sentence.

Don’t try to impress or shock your audience. Just write your first sentence based on what you want to say first. Again, you can edit it later if it’s not catchy enough.

5. Shattered concentration. You’re cat is sick. You

suspect your mate is cheating on you. Your electricity

might be turned off any second. You have a crush on

the local UPS deliveryman. You have a dinner party

planned for your in-laws. You . . . Need I say more.

How can you possibly concentrate with all this mental

clutter?

If you can’t concentrate, don’t write. Come back later when the time is right. The important thing to remember is to get your thoughts on paper as soon as you have them. Carry sticky notes around or do whatever you need to do to remember your inspiration; but write when you “feel it” and don’t write when it feels forced.

6. Procrastination. It’s your favorite hobby. It’s

your soul mate. It?s the reason you’ve knitted 60

argyle sweaters or made 300 bookcases in your garage

workshop. It’s the reason you never run out of Brie.

If you have to procrastinate then maybe you aren’t even into what you supposedly want to write in the first place. I’m talking about business in these articles, not college term papers. You should WANT to write on your subject. Procrastination shouldn’t be a factor; if it is, get a new product.

Ok; I’ve summed up the main constraints of writer’s block. Do your best to overcome your insecurity of your own abilities. Anybody can write; you just have to WANT to write. The rest takes care of itself.

The real difference between great and mediocre writers is that the great writer can accept writer’s block and effectively rid of the constraints listed above. He can freely type without over-analyzing his sentences or how he words things until the letter is typed and ready for editing.

So you want to be a great writer? Get a love for what you are writing, schedule some tentative time frames to write within (so you get it done), and write when you feel it; not when you have to.


- Derek Huizinga

i had to write a short fiction story for my english II class
so now, after spending the better part of this week, and scrapping 7 stories before this one, i have finally completed a first draft
i still have lots of editing to do, but what do you think:

[it wont all fit, so you can find it on my livejournal]
http://xkillerpiratex.livejournal.com/
- plastic_trees

i had to write a short fiction story for my english II class
so now, after spending the better part of this week, and scrapping 7 stories before this one, i have finally completed a first draft
i still have lots of editing to do, but what do you think:

[it wont all fit, so you can find it on my livejournal]
http://xkillerpiratex.livejournal.com/
- plastic_trees

Years ago at a presentation at the UCLA Extension Writer’s Program, I promised an audience to teach them to conquer this beast once and for all. Later, another instructor approached me and said “why did you say that to those people? It’s not possible.”

Poor woman. All she was saying is that SHE cannot break writer’s block, which told me all I need to know about her career. In all likelihood a promising beginning, perhaps an award-winning poem or book…and then pain.

It is not only possible to end writer’s block forever, but you can actually use it to your advantage!

First, let us define it in some useful way: Writer’s block is the inability to: 1) Produce new text. 2) Edit and polish existing text 3) Finish projects on a reasonable schedule 4) Send those projects out for editorial judgment. 5) Continue sending them out until they are sold.

Accepting the above, I’m going to give you a definition of the root cause of Writer’s Block that will actually help you in every arena of your life.

“Writer’s Block is nothing more than a confusion of two different states of mind: the Flow state, where you produce new text, and the Editing state, where you evaluate and polish what you have written.”

The reason WB is such a killer is that most of us have done far more reading than we have writing, and spend far more time in critical analysis of finished, polished work of the masters than in experiencing our own early drafts. So when we try to create text, we measure our first draft efforts against the polished work of the world’s great writers. Immediately, that “this is garbage!” voice goes off in your head, and you have a block.

It is said that novice writers must work through a million words of garbage before reaching their true voice. How in the world will you ever get through it if you constantly judge every word? If you will learn to turn that voice off, you will learn a massive and important lesson about the structure of the human psyche.

But what exactly is “Flow”? It is the psychological state where time seems to vanish, where you “fall into the page”, where the rest of the world floats away as you concentrate. This is similar to the “hypnogogic” state experienced just prior to sleep, and the first thing in the morning. It is experienced in distance running, dancing (remember the lyrics to “Flashdance”? “She’s moved into the danger zone, where the dancer becomes the dance”) and, to be perfectly frank, it is experienced during sexual relations in the moments just prior to orgasm. It is the dissolution of the subject-object relationship sought by numerous schools of meditation.

1) Alternate days (or work sessions) between flow and editing. If necessary, wear different hats, or sit in different chairs for each. NEVER DO BOTH IN THE SAME SESSION

2) Set yourself a daily output that will get you to your goal of one million words in less than 5 years. 1000 words a day will do it in three years. That’s roughly comparable to earning an AA degree. Not too shabby!

3) Explore and specifically study “Flow State” as a discipline. Do your internet searches and find a physical or mental activity (running, dancing, meditation, Tai chi, yoga, etc.) that opens a doorway to this inner world.

4) Listen to largo rhythm, sixty-beat per minute string music. Vivaldi is perfect for this, and induces “Alpha” (flow) state rapidly and effectively. Stay away from music with lyrics, but soft jazz is also terrific.

5) Practice making pictures in your mind, and then writing down what you see WITHOUT judging the quality of your descriptions. You want to enhance the connection between your deep consciousness and your typing or writing.

6) If you can’t find a good meditation technique, just sit and “listen” to your own heartbeat for 15-30 minutes a day.

There are many other ideas, but these will get you started. The most valuable thing you will learn is to “turn off” or ignore the negative voices in your head. And an artist who learns to do this on demand is on the way to integration of the deep levels of the unconscious…and greater joy in the act of creation.


- Steven Barnes

If you’ve always wanted to write a novel, but found the traditional structured process too frightening or overwhelming, maybe your imagination works in a more organic fashion like mine. In that case, start with your main character and the idea the character gives you for the plot. Then close your eyes, grab your notebook or computer, and watch the main character. Sooner or later she or he will begin talking and moving around. When that happens, start writing! I guarantee what you hear and see will thoroughly surprise and delight you.

Even though my books are considered literary novels, I’ve always admired the mysteries of Tony Hillerman, and the way he laces his novels with information about the Native American tribes in his area. I call books like these “info novels,” and they are great fun if you’ve never read one. That is also a goal I try to achieve with my Occult novels. With these I’ve been able to weave information about contemporary Pagan life, as well as real spells, chants, or rituals throughout every chapter. This series also provides a wonderful opportunity to add data of interest to my women readers about holistic healing, feral cat rescue, perimenopause, fibroids, and much more.

Anyone who would like to undertake a big project like a first novel should know the sky is the limit. If organic structure development, experimental formats, and “info novels” appeal to you, go for it! Don’t worry if your ideas differ from the traditional novel. And don’t be afraid to seed your novel with information. Just make sure it occurs naturally within the flow of the storyline. For good examples, read the “info novels” written by novelists who excel in this form.

Also, don’t let your first draft scare you, because all first drafts tend to be utterly frightening. A first draft has only one purpose: it’s the place where you put your ideas down on paper. The editing of the first draft is where the magic happens. When I create the first draft of each chapter, it is an exhilarating experience. A real adrenaline rush! But I am first and foremost a poet, and like most poets I love to edit. It’s the polishing of each scene, sculpting it to sail smoothly into the next that gives me the greatest joy.

In fact I am currently working on a new novel, which is proving to be the most organic and intuitive one I’ve ever attempted, making it great fun to write. All I started with this time was the main character and her cats. She never told me her idea for a plot, so I just followed her around, writing down her thoughts, words, and actions as she moved from scene to scene. Suddenly, other characters appeared, and exciting subplots began to emerge.

Now I am six chapters into this novel. The first five chapters have already been published or accepted by literary journals, because I always submit each finished chapter as a short story to gain publication credits for the novel. Yet the main character still hasn’t revealed the plot to me. No problem. This novel seems to be following its own organic, information-rich course, and those who’ve read several of these chapters have enjoyed them immensely and can’t wait to find out what happens next. Me too!

Don’t let fear stop you from writing the novel that’s been bubbling around in your imagination for days, months, or years. Most of all, don’t let a lack of money or education stop you. I never took a writing class, and nineteen years later I’ve published more than thirty poetry books and novels. My poems and short stories have appeared in over seven hundred literary journals, magazines, and anthologies worldwide. How did I do it? I used what was available to me. I found my high school and college grammar books and studied those. And then I read the poetry books and novels of writers I admire, and that’s how I learned to write.

Sometimes if your mind works in an organic fashion this may be the best way to tackle your first novel. Then all you’ll need to do is let go, give total control to an imaginary character who lives in your head, listen to what she or he says, and start writing!


- Laura Stamps

What is writer’s block?

Everyone who has tried to write has experienced this phenomenon when we absolutely have to write something, particularly on deadline.

Writer’s block is the irrational (?) fear of the blank page. You may think you know EXACTLY what you’re going to write, but as soon as that blank screen appears, your mind suddenly goes completely blank. I’m not talking about the sound of one hand clapping kind of blank.

I’m talking about hot sweat , anguish and panic and suffering kind of blank. The tighter the deadline, the worse the torment of writer’s block gets.

Usually, the cause of the block is FEAR! You are terrified of that blank page. You are terrified that you have absolutely nothing of value to say. You are afraid of the fear of writer’s block itself! It’s a vicious cycle.

It doesn’t matter if you’ve done a lifetime of research and all you have to do is string sentences you can repeat in your sleep together into lucid paragraphs. Writer’s block can strike anyone at any time. It raises our doubts about our own self-worth.

Below is a list of what may possibly be causing this terrifying condition.

1. Perfectionism. You MUST produce masterpiece of writing in the first draft. Otherwise, you are a complete failure.

2. Editing rather than composing. There’s your little man sitting on your shoulder, yelling as soon as you type “In the beginning,” no, not that, that’s wrong! That’s stupid! You get the point.

3. Self-consciousness. How can you think, when you’re not focusing on what you’re trying to write, you’re focusing on your writing problem (or lack of).

4. Can’t get started. It’s always the first sentence that’s the hardest. As writers, we all know how VERY important the first sentence is. There’s no way we can get into writing the piece until we get past this impossible first sentence.

5. Broken concentration. You’re pet is ill. Your power might be turned off any minute. You have a crush on the Postman. How can you possibly concentrate with all this mental clutter?

6. Procrastination. It’s your favourite pastime. It’s your soul mate. It’s the reason you’ve knitted 60 woollen scarves or made 200 step ladders in your garage workshop.

How Can YOU Overcome Writer’s Block

At this point I hear 90% of you saying that writer’s block is absolutely, undeniably, scientifically proven to be impossible to overcome.

Get over it! Well, I guess it’s not that easy. So try to sit down for just a few minutes and take this in. All you have to do is listen and you don’t have to write a single word.

I am here to tell you that WRITER’S BLOCK CAN BE OVERCOME.

Here are some tried and true methods of overcoming writer’s block:

1. Be prepared. The only thing to fear is fear itself. If you spend some time think about your project before you sit down to write, you may be able to thwart the worst of the debilitating panic.

2. Forget perfectionism. No one ever writes a work of art in the first draft. Don’t put any expectations on your writing at all! In fact, tell yourself you’re going to write absolute garbage, and then give yourself permission to just dump your thoughts on the page.

3. Compose instead of editing. Never, never write your first draft with your little man sitting on your shoulder making cutting editorial comments. Just sit down at your computer or your desk. Take a deep breath and flick that little man off your shoulder. Write, scribble, scream, howl, let everything loose, as long as you do it with a pen or your computer keyboard.

4. Forget the first sentence. You can work on the all important firsts sentence later . Skip it! Go start at the middle or even the end. Start wherever you can. Chances are, when you read it over, the first line will be blinking its little neon lights right at you from the depths of your writing.

5. Concentration. This is a hard one. Try creating a space, perhaps even a physical one, where nothing exists except thesingle present moment. If one of those irritating worries gets by you, stomp on it like you would an ugly insect!

6. Stop procrastinating. Write an outline. Keep your research notes near by. Use someone else’s writing to get going. Rant and rave incoherently on paper or on the computer if you have to.

Just do it! (Where have I heard that before?). Tack up anything that could possibly help you to get going: notes, outlines, pictures of your cat. Put the reward you will allow yourself when you finish your first draft within sight but out of reach. Pick up the same type of writing that you need to write, and read it and re-read it. Soon, trust me, the fear will slowly fade away. As soon as it does, grab your keyboard and get writing!


- Cameron Johnson