Okay so I started to create my world and characters back in 2004. I drew pictures of places, events, and characters and messed around with story ideas and all that. The current story-line I'm going with is four years strong if you don't count the development which has taken seven years, mainly due to the fact that I am a student and have other matters to attend to. I have just about 9 chapters written out of about 20 planned for book one which is really good. It's the farthest I've ever gotten with this. In the past I used to only get up to three or so and then I'd get tired of my story and change something. However, this time is different. I have just been writing and writing and have, in some places, been less descriptive because the plan is to go back and edit when I'm done. The story feels so alive and the world seems so much fuller and complex. Yet it is so simple to write due to all the work done in the past. Every now and then i have writers block, like anyone, even though I know where the story is going. Do you have any tips? methods? I really just wanted to hear your thoughts on this now that I am nearly nine chapters in. One method I use is telling myself: hey the idea seemed amazing when you first thought it up. Don't change it, work with it until it fits better. That is how I have avoided making major plot changes that slowed me down in the past. It seems effective considering the chapters are usually 15 to 25 pages in length. I almost have 200 pages written With all that said...is there some sort of writing meditation that you do or something you do to take breaks? Maybe there is a method you use to quickly fix things on the go? Sometimes I highlight things that I want to fix in the future. i.e, if i don't know a place name but know where the place is located on my world map, I give the place a name like xxyx and put an xxyx on my world map. I mean I can always go back and make up a name later right? Anyways I know this is a lot but I appreciate any encouragement or advice. I have made a lot of progress on my book and need encouragement and counseling from more seasoned writers. Please note it's an exciting time for me right now. So don't try to destroy my spirits please haha
You're writing is just GOD AWFUL, WHY DON'T YOU JUST GIVE UP NOW? Naw i'm just messing...there's a writers block thread stickied at the top of the page, which i'm sure if you just take a quick look through you'll get a wealth of variety about how people deal with their own personal writers block. Me personally, i just abandon a story for a while, even for a couple of days, and I read what books I have in the house, I read newspapers, I watch films, I like watching sitcoms and study the writing, listen to music, and I suspect that's what a lot of people do. If I were you I'd be relaxed about this story in particular, as you seem to have it so highly detailed with your drawings and stuff. it sounds like you've really immersed yourself in that fictional world. So keep the head up and i'm sure you'll be fine As far as quick fixes go, just say to yourself, right i'm going to be ultra decisive now. you come across a name, you use it, you think of a word, you use it. It's superficial anyway as when you look back at it, you can always change it!
I recently took a break in my current project, because I had reached the end of the first major section (there will be two more) and wanted to be sure of how I was going to attack the next one before I actually did anything on it. I should mention that I have stopped to ponder several times during this work, a dystopian novel set 250 years in the future, and at one point actually stopped and went back and started over because the nature of the work had drastically changed. During my break, I read a lot - both fiction and nonfiction. Some of the nonfiction was related to what I'm writing, but most of it was not. None of the fiction was anything like what I'm writing. I also spent a lot more time on the forums here. I find that reading and responding to threads dealing with other writers' difficulties helps me focus on mine. I also devoted some time to my other pastimes. Now, I'm ready to get back at it. The key here is to be able to tell the difference between taking a break to clear your head and plain old procrastinating. If it's the latter, get back in there and keep pitching.
