More particularly, what things do you get 'stuck' on and how do you get yourself un stuck. I have a couple of types scenes I dread writing because to be blunt I suck at them. It's not too often where I actually get like, writers block but when I do I have the hardest time getting out of that slump. Especially when I finally get to write a scene that I've 'rehearsed' a bunch in my head.
I'm not sure I understand the problem. If you've already rehearsed a scene "a bunch" in your head you already know it, so why not just throw the words onto paper (or the screen), then walk away from it for a couple/few days and then come back and clean it up?
I tend to just get that sort of scene down on paper as best I can and then go back and edit it sometime later. Often I brainstorm them first, to figure out what actually needs to happen (or what needs to be said, since it's often scenes with a lot of dialogue that I have issues with). If it's writer's block, I usually set the whole thing aside, do other things or read a book or two, and come back to it with a fresh brain. Again, depending on the circumstances, sometimes brainstorming helps.
I get how that is. Sometimes, these are the worst. One strategy that can help me when I'm stuck with this particular block is write in bits and pieces. First, state what happens (needn't be proper sentences, just like in outlining); then go from 'this happens and then this happens' to a line of dialogue in between that just jump through your head, or a particular detail that needs to be in the room, or make a note at the end about what it all means. Go from bite-sized pieces to connecting these into paragraphs.
The problem isn't knowing the scene itself, the problem is executing. Usually I have it rehearsed so many times that I get anxious writing it cause I think about proper execution too much. Rarely do I do the rehearsed scenes exactly as they pop into my head, sometimes it just doesn't feel 'right' to do them the initial way
If I'm stuck and it's lasted a couple of days, then I slow down and pay attention to why I'm feeling that way. Most often, it's a deep gut feeling that's stopping me from continuing with the original plan, because deep down I know it's not quite right and the scene/chapter/sentence/dialogue line needs to be tweaked or thrown out altogether. Sometimes by habit I've chosen the most obvious way of doing a scene -- where actually I needed to dig a little deeper. Other times, I just need to do the obvious. I had a scene where one person needs help but the other person was avoiding it. Instead of continuing on as normal and making Person B be all pleasant (#thanks but no thanks# etc), I just decided to have them be totally honest about how they felt and make them straight up whinge about how they 'didn't wanna talk to anyone tonight' and that they 'didn't wanna do it' and 'please leave me alone i just want to die'.
Write anyway. Even if it's absolutely completely terrible and I end up having to rewrite 100% of it, I always end up with a much clearer idea of where it needs by forcing myself to put down words (even dreadful ones).
This happens to me all the time. I can especially relate to your comment about ‘rehearsing’ it beforehand and then finally getting there and coming up dry. For me, it usually happens during what I call ‘trailer’ scenes. You know, if hell froze over and they turn my book into a movie, this would be one of the scenes that would wind up in the trailer as a selling point. It’s easy to get hung up on scenes you’ve rehearsed in your head time and time again, especially if they’re load-bearing “Bilbo finally encounters Smaug” type scenes. Sometimes, no matter how many times I’ve rehearsed it, the story will change drastically from what I saw in my head. But honestly? I think that’s okay. I don’t think too many writers will claim that “Scene X” was the epitome of perfection (and if they do, they should probably read their reviews more often, lol). My best advice? Don’t cling too hard to what you’ve rehearsed. Don’t lock the story in a box so that it can’t grow on its own. Maybe it’s not what you saw in your head, or even what you necessarily wanted. But once in a while you have to take your hands off the reins and let the horse have a go. And like alw86 said, even if it turns out to be a hot mess—well, at least you now know what isn’t working. And that can help guide you to “Hmm. Maybe if I….” But if you’re well and truly stuck you have lots of options. Go back and re-read your work—remember how it is you got to where you are. Listen to your characters—get in their heads and try to find a route that seems natural to them. There’s also nothing wrong with taking a break. Listen to some music or watch a movie. Heck, even taking a step back to go do some dishes just to clear your head can help, lol.
One thing you can do is write the scene in a new POV. Bring in an unimportant character (the Amazon delivery guy, Russian undercover agent, local pimp . . . those could all be the same person, haha) that your story has never mentioned, and have him/her relate the scene in 1st person. Make sure they have a dynamic personality because it accelerates the writing. They won't give flat lines. They are invisible to the action, of course. When you're done, you'll have a new angle on things, and then you write it again in one of your characters' POVs. You'll probably even be able to steal some of the lines directly from your fly-on-the-wall character.
I've been doing weekly writing exercises to keep my imagination stimulated. I got into doing this after reading Now Write! which was gifted to me at Christmas. I read the scifi and fantasy one which had a lot of interesting exercises. It's not your typical writing prompt. I found this helpful for me and started compiling a list of writing exercises and try to do two a week for fun. I always take the exercises seriously, but I have fun with them and defer judgment with any idea I'm writing. It's merely exercising my brain. I find it really helps me. It may not be for everyone though. Writing Exercise: Seed Words Use a random image generator for this exercise. Use the first two images you see. These are the seeds of your new idea/concept. Avoid "topic images" such as a picture of a starship. pick one element from the image. Say your first image is a picture of birds in a tree without leaves. I'll choose to focus on a single bird. If the second image is a picture one a dandelion with a single fuzzy seed left on it. I'll focus on the last seed. Force those two focuses/ideas to come together. Let them color whatever genre you like writing in. Come up with a concept or image all your own based on those two focuses. Twist the idea if you would like. Ask why to your concept. Why is X doing Y? You can get deeper like why is the concept a central problem to your character? Is the image/concept part of the problem or a solution to the problem? My random concept based on those two images: I chose to focus on the seed and a bird. Concept: a bird has to help the last seed find good soil to be planted in. My idea has some issues with logic, but I wanted to share something to show you an example. The idea isn't earth-shattering, but I could easily create a story with obstacles and conflict. I have a beginning and a resolution. I have character motivation and a problem for the character to solve. I could see this almost being like an animated Pixar short like PIPER. I usually like to free-write the concept. You could simply outline the idea too. My Idea: A flock of birds is living through a period of drought. The land is dry and food is scarce. One of the birds notices a plant that attracts his flock's favorite insect has one last seed. The bird hears rumors of good land miles away and that a lot of birds are going there in search of food. The journey is dangerous, but it could be rewarding. The bird decides to bring the last seed with him to plant in the land they are traveling to. The bird will endure some sort of obstacles while flying to the new land and will ultimately plant the seed in the ground. The bird ensures that his flock will be able to eat their favorite insects. See inside the book for this exercise to read it more in detail. I kind of paraphrased: https://www.amazon.com/Write-Science-Fiction-Fantasy-Horror/dp/039916555X/ref=pd_sbs_2?pd_rd_w=PwiIe&pf_rd_p=527ea27c-adf6-4b67-9c5f-265eb29e0622&pf_rd_r=SX5N4PZQFE67FGXRQEEG&pd_rd_r=a465fcc3-ebdc-4233-8f49-56a5dbc74b50&pd_rd_wg=IYyuw&pd_rd_i=039916555X&psc=1
