If you don't have a complete story idea to start with it's hard to just write until one comes to mind. That's why many writers lay out their stories a head of time. Self-discipline is key and often that's a matter of developing good habits.
By keeping writing. Plant your butt in your chair, focus, and do it. For me, the hardest part is planting my butt in the chair. I can always find a hundred excuses not to write. But if I do, after about two minutes, I'm captivated by my story and by my prose, and even though it's difficult, I'm excited to keep going. My imagination can amaze me if I push it to, but I have to push it. The hours after the first two minutes are fascinating, sometimes joyous, sometimes filled with discovery, and occasionally, disappointing. But the reward is always there at the end of the session. If I can survive the first two minutes, I'm away to the races. So do it. Plant your butt in the chair and push through those first two minutes. Creative heaven is on the other side!
I let the idea run a natural life and if it's one page that's OK. Then I move onto the next idea. When I've got the story together, I find I need to come back and add bits so the original one page turns into a few.
I finished the second draft of my story a couple of days ago and now I just don't know what to do. I want to keep writing, maybe start on a new story, and I've got plenty of ideas but yet none of them really appeals to me atm. I can't seem to feel any enthusiasm for them at all, and for some strange reason all of the story ideas I've come up with lately are of a kind that I don't want to write= too depressive and sad and low energy, but those are the only ideas that I get. I start on one and then i get bored, because they fail to keep my interest long enough to get beyond the first few chapters. Is this some kind of writers block or is it just my brain needing a rest after finishing the first story? Should I keep trying to write one of the existing ideas or wait until something new and fresh comes along? what do you guys do when this happens? DOES it even happen to you? that you want to write and have ideas but somehow can't work up the necessary energy and devotion to write them. It feels like my heart has been left with the characters of my previous story and I know there is still some heavy revision needed to be done, but I also think I need a rest from it before I take up the work again. Just that my brain can't seem to let go of it.
For me the start of a new novel length story is always tough. I kind of feel like I am the person at the party who doesn't know any one. The first few chapters are often slow going until I get into the new pace and new characters. I'd expected after my first novel that starting a second one would be easy because I had a better idea of what I was doing. That didn't happen - I'd been so used to being in the flow of the characters that it was a tough slog for a little bit. Keep going you'll connect with these ones just as much. I've now got another set of characters I love writing just as much, and another that are waiting to be developed better.
I know! At the start of my first novel I didn't have any fears at all, I was forgiven every mistake because I was a beginner! if all I produced was a pile of garbage that was totally logical because I didn't have a clue about anything, I just wrote! With the second one it was all just a game, I was just writing down these ideas to this little story I had in mind and it wasn't supposed to turn into anything serious. Just that it got serious along the way and now I'm actually considering it just as valid as the first (which I have rewritten to the stage where it's unrecognizable!). At the third attempt of writing a novel I feel I should start knowing what I'm doing but instead it just feels more difficult and challenging each time. gaah! I hope you're right and I just need some time to connect to these people, actually it's pretty logical that i don't "feel" anything for them yet, the characters of the first story I got to know like 20 years before i started on the actual novel. The characters of the second one I had known for over a year before writing it. Your comparison to not knowing anyone at the party is actually spot-on.
It doesn't sound like writers block to me. You just finished a project and your mind perhaps needs time to distance itself from it before you can dedicate yourself fully to a new story. Don't try to rush it! Take your time~ I often need a good couple of weeks/months between finishing one novel-length piece and beginning another. Actually, I finished my last novel at around 185k in July 2011 (I've written at least 14 in total) and I still haven't started a new one yet despite having plenty of ideas. Even now I'm still thinking about my old cast every single day.
It is like having children - each one is different and a leaning curve. With child one I have thought I have the hang of parenting and then the other comes along and proves I'm not even close lol Each story and genre, idea involves learning new ideas.
I don't normally feel I have to write something. I write when I have something to write. If I haven't got something then I do something else. Do some graphics design, build a book case, research the history of a culture, and many others things. Usually by the time I'm done with any one project I'll have several story ideas.
I had this feeling when I finished the first draft of my first novel. I felt like I'd shot my bolt. I'd poured everything I had into it and then I was empty. I wanted to write something else, but I was out of gas. There was nothing there. I had ideas for stories, but I just didn't have the oomph needed to get going on them - I felt like I would just be repeating myself, and I would be bored before I even got started. I took some time off. My batteries got recharged. My well filled again. I thought some new thoughts, absorbed more of my worlds, grew some new characters, and got enthusiastic about writing again. I guess lots of writers go through the same kind of thing. We all need to rest and let the juice come back. And the juice always comes back.
Agree with the others. After each ms I finish, I am absolutely drained. It's the only time I break the 'rule' of writing every day. It's like getting home after a vacation - you need time to readjust and get back in the mindset for working. Take some time off, do some reading, relax and enjoy other things for a bit. But give yourself a time limit - I've found the longer I take to readjust, the harder it is to get started again.
wow, thank you guys. i didn't know this was so common! Guess I'll give it some time and use it to read more. Maybe that'll recharge the batteries. Minstrel, you described the feeling so well.
hmm, from personal experience, you walk a dangerous path right now. Especially if you find you want to expand on your previous story. Of course this may not be a problem for you but in my case, the only way I can move forward from a lack of interest in writing what I have to write is to clear my head through exploring storytelling in other mediums; for example watching movies and playing video games which are particularly compelling. The problem I run into is often times I end up taking a step back from writing and not returning for months. If it does turn out that I decide to continue with what I was working on before it tends to come out disjointed for me, almost as if the voice telling the story has suddenly changed and another now in control.
Sometimes you need to set some constraints for yourself before a writing exercise to get you going. For example, try setting a 10-minute timer and challenge yourself to write a new, complete story in that amount of time. It's tough. Another idea is to find a writing prompt or make one yourself. I like to write drabbles as a warm-up before writing my main work-in-progress. A drabble is a short fiction story of exactly 100 words. It's not easy, but it's great practice and a wonderful method to break that writer's block. Here are some of my examples of drabbles: The Drabbler
Have patience and remember that it takes time to write a story. Not everything will come to you right away and it makes it worse when you try to force it! So the next time you have writters block take a breather and step away untill you have a breakthrough again
Ever had one of those moments where you just want to write a scene out, but feel too embarrassed to do so? What do you do with that?
Write it anyway and hide it somewhere on the computer, and hey, why not even pass word-protect it too?
lol. Well, I'm writing it and...it's not well-written yet, but I hope it at least captures the mood I want to set it in. xD I could post it for critique, but it's too short and I'd have to do a lot of background explanation as to who those two characters were.
It will probably get better as you get more comfortable with the subject matter. (I read your previous edits so...) But I know the feeling, I write everything on paper and I feel like every eye is on me, even though logically I know no one's paying me a lick of attention. Then I decide it's not necessary and skip it to save myself embarrassment.
I've had writer's block for months until yesterday! I tried to write every day, but deleted every single thing I wrote, which was sometimes two sentences, sometimes five pages, sometimes more. I stopped writing altogether for a week, and then yesterday morning I woke up and HAD to write because I just happened to dream up a good idea. How lucky is that!
I am in the same boat. I am already stuck in the funk and whatever I write I doubt myself and erase it. I have a feeling my story ideas are weak.
Writer's block? I'm having a constant problem. I get about 2/5ths of the way into a story, and lose motivation. Either a new story idea comes to me, or I simply lose interest. What's going on, and how do I prevent it from happening? lol I know this is really vague. I think it's writer's block, but it's damn frustrating when I got a good story going and I just can't go on... I usually can start for a week typing about a page or two a day, but eventually I just can't write anymore. Can anyone offer advice?
Sit butt in chair and write. Doesn't matter if you toss it all when you're done. Writing is hard work. It's frustrating. It's irritating. But it doesn't get any easier if you don't write - it just doesn't get done. And somewhere in all the garbage you write when you're not 'motivated' is going to be the phrase or sentence or paragraph that gets the story moving again.
Well, unless you've got the will power to work through two different ideas, jot that new idea down quickly and go back to your story. That way you have the idea saved and you're still working on your original story. I'm with Shadow, except you need to sit down and figure out why you just stop and can't go on. Somethings stopping you and it's not a new idea popping into your head. Are your bored with your plot? Have you planned the plot out? Are you bored with the characters? Are you doubting some decision you've made regarding your story? There's a lot of questions you can ask yourself to figure out why you've stalled and why the motivation is not there. Otherwise, if it's just plain old blahness, sit down and do what Shadow says.
