I didn't really know where to put this (insights? progress journal?) so if this is the wrong place, I apologize. So I've been having a seriously hard time writing these last few days. I've been trying to figure out a certain scene, how to make my character find out about something important. I have notebooks that I write my ideas down in (helps my thoughts flow better than typing). And I've pulled them out and stared at them for hours... only to write "fuck" over and over when nothing came to me. So I went to Barnes & Noble to look for a writing book, something to inspire me and help get me out of my writers block. I found a book called "For Writers Only," and while I didn't end up buying it, I did skim the pages. It's basically a book with a bunch of subjects (Starting, Publishing, Writers Block, Reviews), and a bunch of authors give their thoughts and advice on the subject. There was one person in the Writers Block category that said they often get writers block when they are trying to tell the story instead of letting the characters tell it for them. So last night when I was laying in bed, I tried that. I pretended to be my main character, and I let her do whatever she wanted to do. And I discovered that she isn't the Mary Sue I've been trying to write. She's rebellious. She wants to do what she wants and doesn't want other people telling her what to do. So when she was supposed to be in her room sleeping, she's sneaking out and hearing a conversation she isn't supposed to hear. And that's the start of her finding out about that important thing I need her to know. I've been working on this novel longer than I want to admit. And the entire time, she's been the exact same. Everyone else has changed, the story has changed, the world has changed. But she's always stayed the same. And I think that's why I've been so stuck. Yaayy to new character developments.
Congrats on your breakthrough! And your girl sounds way more interesting now too - sneaking out and overhearing conversations and being rebellious, good stuff I say!
Where there is life, every story rests there! I think, your character is you yourself, because everything is changed except yourself. We never get changed for us. One question always comes in my mind and I do not have the answer for that. " Why some stories are re-told and why some stories are never told?" Nice try, nice character, go ahead..... Let her (your) imagination go beyond current situations, add some dreams in her life, show her passion, show exact what she feels and why. Do you want to finish it? Frankly speaking, if that character is you please never ever try to complete it. If your character is feeling the same what you are feeling, then please never hurry to complete it. Unless, you have achieved what you have always wanted in your life. (Without that your life is nothing) Have you tried to live other's life? Opposite sex's character? Little challenging but very interesting. Take care!
I tried this method last night, and it worked surprisingly well for me. I often very often always get bogged down in sentence structure, flow, etc. It slows down my writing rate considerably, but it came out more naturally with this method--and it was still good quality. Thanks for sharing.
Ever since I started writing with @KaTrian, this has been our favorite way to write. It doesn't suit all situations of course; for us, sometimes planning is necessary (especially 'cause we both need to know where the story is going, more so than if we wrote alone). When the characters go "You want me to do this? Well, fuck you, I'm doing this instead," writing is at its most enjoyable to us. Oddly enough, often the unplanned, character-driven improvs turn out to be the best parts 'cause they're all inspiration. To quote Jonas Blaine: "Inspiration is the momentary cessation of stupidity."
Sounds great. This was how I started my first novel. It took me 7 years to finish the story but I made the mistake of writing it all by hand... So there it sits. I found I had the same problems too. With other stories I try to force a character into this ideal I want and then I get stuck. I have to let the character speak for itself. Being comfortable with the characters I create on the other hand is another story...
Oh, I do love those 'eureka' moments, when everything falls into place! That's the good thing about blocks. It's such a rush when they UNBLOCK! Enjoy your moment, enjoy your accelerated forward motion, and good luck.
We'll do our best to get you the last two parts asap. I've found that carefully crafting our characters helps a lot, coming up with all their quirks, personalities, likes, dislikes, fears, desires, and any other details, the vast majority of which never make it into the story, but which can affect the characters' personal development and hence e.g. help reinforce and maintain their psychological plausibility and that way help bring them alive so that they can start evolving from finger puppets to people.
Last two parts.... there's no way it's near the end though, right? The time you and KaTrian put into the story shows a lot. I can't wait to find out what happens next.
