For me this happens a lot and sometimes it lasts for months. Sometimes I wonder if I really am a writer. In a way this is like a hobby and sometimes you just get bored with it and find another hobby. I'm still young and searching, so maybe this whole writing thing is just a phase and I'll have no interest in it two years from now. In general I only attempt to write stories where I can think of the ending before typing a single word. That is a pretty good method at preventing "useless" writing, e.g. stories that seem interesting at one point, but end up going nowhere. The more you can map out the plot in your head before writing, the more likely you're to succeed. When I began writing, I attempted too much too soon. My first short story was something that spiraled out of control, started out simple and grew so large and complicated that I simply gave up, so perhaps the answer could lie in writing shorter pieces.
All the time. It is disheartening when this happens because the passion you had when you first started writing is no longer there. This is what happens to most writers. You just have to work through it. Sometimes, sitting down and making yourself write the novel again will bring back the spark and your interest. I am assuming you have left it alone for some time now, which breaks are good when this happens too. As long as you sit down and try to write again, you will be fine. Sparks come and go. You need such a spark to start the novel or else there would be no interest in writing it. Keep with it. Do not give up faith on the book.
This brainstorming question seemed pretty straight forward. A bionic soldier's abilities are going to be revealed to his girlfriend but he doesn't actually flat out tell her. She figures it out because she sees something. Liz gives a few more details that would be relenant like what the soldier's abilities are (speed, hearing, sight and regeneration) and where the setting is (his apartment). There's the information ~ Go. What ways could she figure it out? What situations would allow that to happen? I don't think it's necessary and could get very long and hard to follow if she went into too much detail. Keep it simple. After all she isn't looking for us to write her story so there's no need to go into great detail. She just wants ideas she can use as launching pads, stepping stones that sort of thing. If you have a question, I'm sure she'd answer it to help you better understand what she's asking. My stand is ~ Comment if you have ideas that are helpful. Don't comment if nothing comes to mind. Ask questions if it isn't clear. But don't rake someone over the coals for asking for help on a forum that is designed for asking for help.
My problem is that, although I may be able to come up with some ideas, it's impossible to make them of any value with the limited amount of information provided - the point I was trying to make in my earlier post. We could list hundreds of possible ways for this gal to discover the guy's secret powers - most of which probably wouldn't be in the least bit appropriate based on the rest of the story.
This is why I always say passion is over-rated. Yes, writing can be exhilarating, it can be exciting - but it's also boring and sweaty and frustrating and infuriating. If all you have going for you is a 'passion for writing', your career will no doubt be short. If you accept that it means working your butt off even when you don't feel like it, then you stand a chance.
Get passionate about the story and this won't happen as often. (It will still happen, though. It happens to everyone.) But, if you're only worked up about a particular series of scenes and characters, you might find yourself treading water halfway through the book. Find a way to inspire yourself to get passionate about the entire story. Dig through it. Rustle your notes around and look for highlights that drew you to the story in the first place. Picture the scenes you haven't written and, for the boring ones, stop making them boring! If they're boring to write, they'll be boring to read. So, make them not-boring. If you've lost interest in the characters, chances are that the reader will as well. If you've lost interest in the plot, chances are the reader will too. If there are subplots that you're just not very excited about, yank them out of the book! Why? Guess... If that doesn't work, consider parsing your story down to a novelette or short story. Cut out the stuff that isn't interesting, remove the fluff that bores you, sanitize the story so that it is "boredom" and "mundane" free in its finished form. You'll probably find it's a heck of a lot more fun to write, that way. If those don't work, start writing something else. Gather your notes together, backup your files, dump it all in a storage directory under "Unfinished" and then stare at a fresh piece of paper or a new screen and think up another story. Write fresh and don't dwell on the unfinished work. Just leave it behind, for now. Later, when you're tidying up your workspace, you might want to revisit it in order to see if you can spark some new passion for finishing it.
I don't have a hell of a lot of experience finishing a novel, but when sag comes in any creative work, I might take a break from the point I'm currently at and approach it from a different standpoint -- one that might not make the final draft, or even be intended to do so. The idea is to turn the diorama in my hands a little for a fresh and interesting view.
You know if people spent as much time writing above-mentioned crappy work as they do complaining about writers block, they might have already gotten over it lol
I actually bought a little book called The Writer's Block for the occasions I find myself stuck for something to write. It's full of little interesting ideas, prompts and inspiration to write a short piece on. The solution for me is to go and find something to write about. Actively look around at everything around you, go to a library and write something in the same line as a book you like the look of. I find once I've started writing something for the sake of getting rid of writers block, I don't usually finish it but get distracted on a tangent about something that could actually fit with my proper work.
That is the one and only solution to so-called writer's block. The more a writer thinks "I've got writer's block - I can't write!" - the more they believe it and the less chance they'll start writing again.
Beware of getting caught up in this so called "writer's block". I think that in the very act of defining and detailing writer's block, you are inadvertently bringing your focus even further away from your task of actually writing. You begin to think of all the symptoms of writer's block, which I believe are totally separate from the symptoms of the actual writing process, such as inspiration, flow, clarity, etc. What I'm trying to say is to get practical and begin moving your attention away from writer's block (i.e. forget about it and everything that defines it) and think about ways to lead yourself into a state of inspiration or especially flow. You could try freewriting, coined by Peter Elbow, which is supposed to be an easy way to get words on a blank screen or paper and involves forcing yourself to write without stopping for ten minutes. Or you could identify what subjects are most important to you or that make your blood boil and write about that. images, music, titles, fantasies or communication with others could all help to ignite that flow that is so important for creative and even mechanical tasks. Personally, talking about writing with others, either online or in real life, helps give meaning to the task of writing, so I start there to get the juices flowing.
I go golfing, play poker, read books, hypnotize myself and tell myself to dream then go to sleep, get more coffee, watch star wars, and go to new places. All these seem to help me find the crazy ideas that I love and always looking for.
You could evolve those ideas by thinking about them and write down what you think is good. Then you evolve the idea again just to make it better
I have never had writer's block. I think it's because I only write when I am compelled to, and since I am a writer at heart (and know nothing else), I am always inspired to write. It's all I think about. Even when people speak, I see the words in my mind being written out in letters. When I go through life, I see everything as an idea for a novel, or a metaphor for a poem. Then I get these crazy ideas into my head to the point where I have a notepad in my car, desk, kitchen...just about everywhere I go. So I can't tell you how to cure writer's block (I don't believe in such a thing) however I can give you a few pointers that have helped me when I have trouble composing an idea that I think is great. A wise woman once told me that if the idea just isn't coming to words, write about why it isn't coming to words. Start writing about how it's hard for you to get this idea onto paper, why you want to write it, how you got the idea etc. She said that eventually, whatever you want to put down on paper will "accidentally" come out as you write. There have been times where I had to scrap the first two pages of nonsense, but on the third I had the most brilliant material that even I was surprised I wrote. If you can't write, do it anyway. It's going to seem childish and stupid, because the what will come out on that paper will be ridiculous nonsense and you will feel foolish for doing so. But I PROMISE that eventually you will get better material than you expected. I suppose that's why when we edit our writing, we end up only keeping less than half. It takes a lot of gibberish and exploring (through the writing process) to actually get to the idea. But sometimes it takes all of that nonsensical writing to be able to get to the core. It's funny because once you start to edit, you realize how simple the idea really was, and you will laugh at yourself because it took you so darn long to do it. You realize "Really? THIS is what I struggled with? Hah!" Hope this helps
I dont get writers block i get ADD so i write and seriously enjoy myself but i have severe ADD so i get distracted easy dang omputers having internet and stuff
I'm beginning to stall in my writing. I seem to have hit this wall, not a cliche'd wall of writers block where I can't think of what to say next, rather it is a wall of shit where every words that spews from my mind strikes me as the almost adorable musings of a second grader. I hate it, everything I write feels juvenile and I want it to stop. It's especially prevelent when it comes to writing the first draft, and yes I realize that first drafts are supposed to be terrible, but it's making it difficult to read and edit them when I can't even stand to look at my own work. I know I should just muscle through it, it will make me a better writer, but it doesn't change the fact that it is physically painful for me to look at the words I write. Is there something I can do to make this painful feeling go away? Someway I can convince myself that I'm not just a second grader trapped inside of a twenty two year old's body?
You are 22, and assuming that you have had even a moderately effective education, I can assure you that your writing does not read like a second-grader's. I'm guessing that you are comparing yourself to some established, published writer. That's a mistake. You need to understand what critiquing is. I would suggest that you get involved with the writer's workshop, critique the works of others and then, when you get the hang of it, learn to properly critique yourself. If you would like the opinion of an objective adult, PM me.
Your first draft is basically your ideas on a page. It's painful because you can see what you were writing, the language just doesn't match. It's not painful, per se. You cannot think of it as "your work". Instead, I treat it like a friend asked me to edit it, that way I am less attached to it. You can ask a friend to edit it, but I would say do the second draft by yourself first. You are like so many writers, including myself. I hate editing my first draft because I want to change so much and I miss words. But, I know that I was so set on getting out the plot and would be able to work out the wording late. Just plug through it; it will get better.
Well, first, first drafts aren't 'supposed to be horrible'. No reason they have to be. Second, if you're that unhappy with your writing, maybe it would be best to set that project aside for a bit, work on something else, check out the workshop as suggested, and then go back and look at the first work with a less jaundiced eye.
I'm gonna go against the crowd and say yeah, I've had writers block--and saying you've never had it or don't think it exists isn't going to do anything for people who are asking for help. It's obviously very real to them. Not getting writers block doesn't mean you're a better writer than those who do. For me, writer's block has one of a few causes. I'm trying to write the wrong thing--I feel I need to get another chapter in of a book I'm simply not in the mood for, and forcing creativity is like putting water on a grease fire. Or I'm overdoing it--I get burnt out sometimes. I run out of ideas and instead of taking a break and coming back later, I keep trying to finish that one last chapter and it seems the more I try to pull ideas out of thin air, the scarcer they become. I have a habit of making it up as I go along--not that it's a big secret, but any allusion of continuity is just that, an illusion. I can't see into the future. But that is sometimes a real pain in the butt. I think not knowing what's going to happen until the end of the story makes writing more fun. If I started out knowing the ending, where's the surprise for me? When I start a book, I begin seeing my characters largely as strangers. And just like you can't write an biography about someone you don't know, it takes a little time before I get to know them and that's mostly trial and error. But sometimes I get ahead of myself. There are some things you just can't write unless you know what you're talking about. That's a real story killer when I'm writing. When I have the block, what I usually do is just take a break and give myself some breathing space to think for a little bit. If it's a plot problem, I work it out with bullet points, giving myself an idea of what I want to happen in said chapter, instead of just relying on gut instinct as usual. Another way to get the creative juices flowing is writing character summaries, or short stories that have nothing to do with a book, just for fun. That way a book isn't at stake and you don't feel you have to worry about continuity and later chapters because there aren't any. Hope I helped someone!
“I only write when I'm inspired, and I make sure I'm inspired every morning at 9 a.m. - Peter DeVries. Practice > Discipline > Inspiration > Work > Discipline > Practice
Hey, noob here. Just want to share some insights. One of my favorite authors always says that in order to enjoy reading, you'll have to read what you want to read, not what you think you should be reading. I believe this goes the same with writing. You'll have to write what you want to write, not what you think you should be writing. It may sound too cliche, but I strongly believe that not until you were able to master your comfort zone will you be able to hop into another platform. With regard to first drafts, I think they shouldn't be considered as pain in the three-letter-word-that-rhymes-with-pass. Drafts, in a way or two, serve as an outline of what you want to write, the backbone of your masterpiece.
This. Seriously. This. I strongly believe that if one is writing for some form of approval, validation, or prestige, then they are in the wrong business. Even the writers who achieve approval, validation, and prestige--indeed, especially those writers--don't write for those reasons. How do I know this? Because those writers--the ones who work at that level--achieve it by opening themselves up honestly, connecting with readers in a meaningful way, and telling their stories in a voice entirely unique to themselves. If you are working from some presumption that you need to sound "authorly" (whatever that might mean), then the result of your work will be stilted and lacking oxygen. Connecting with a reader is an adventure in personal risk-taking, and to make it work in a way that is true for you, you have to send the second-guessing into "time out." There will be plenty of time to iron out your rough spots and to ensure that as you do so, it will still be in your own voice.
hey Your a warrior! get into the fight! this is where the fun begins The draft is where you learn your trade. now, with that said. "Go and earn your pay!" BASICALLY! YOU SHOULD ALREADY KNOW WHAT YOU NEED TO WRITE? Your a storyteller! What more inspiration do you need. When you have an imagination? Eccuse the typos
Ghoul, No offense but: "You'll have to write what you want to write, not what you think you should be writing?" Huh? How about what your target audience wants to read? Whoever that is, should be the PRIMARY focus of what you're writing. I know my target audience is the 18-34 age group, primarily male, who's tired of the vampire/werewolf/demons story. Throw in the one's who like a Space Opera, which is pretty to close to Weber's original writing. Your target audience is the key, not necessarily what you want to write. I'd love for my character to not have to run, shoot, blow things up, but that's expected in my target audience. Don't ever forget who you're targeting either.
