What if? for a stuck story

This is my favorite advise for writer's block:
On a separate shee of paper write: What If. Now write five ways of continuing the story, not ending the story, but continuing the story to the next event, scene,e tc. Let your imagination go wild. Loosen up your thinking about the events in the story. your what if's can be as diverse as your imagination can make them. More than likely, and this has proved true through years of teaching and writing, one of the What Ifs will feel right, organic, to the story and that is the direction in which you should go if you can't see it write on a few of them and see where it takes you.

Dialog

Get a friend and improve a scene you're writing about. Make sure that it's a disagreement or an emotional event. does any snippets of dialog work? If so write them down!

For the Plot

Break your story idea down into 3 sentences of 3 words each. this will give you a beginning, middle, and end and help you understand the architecture of the work. By having to choose 3 verbs you'll be forcing yourself to consider the 3 pts of the action.

Scene Change

If a scene isn't working try changing the action or setting the scene is housed in.
For example how does a scene read different if a couple is planning their honeymoon while painting a room versus in bed after making love?

Character exercise

Write the character's name on top of page and write 10 sentences:
He or she is the sort of person who:________.

Stuck?

The dread writer's block. I read an article online the other day about this writer who has never had writer's block. She defined it as when one can't write about anything at all. That if you get one, one should either a) stop writing b) or change subjects/projects.

I have a different definition. I believe that starting a project isn't difficult.... heck I can start millions of writings with out a problem; however, when I get done with my beginning scene, I have nothing more to add, since I don't know what happens next. That to me is a writer's block when your just stuck on ANY one project.

With NaNoWriMo you don't have leisure to walk away from your piece for too long. Yeah you might be able to leave it for the night or take a much needed R&R day, but really how long can one go without writing and meet the deadline? If worst comes to worst then go for a change in subjects because the most important thing about NaNoWriMo is the word count... it doesn't have to make sense or even be good--just the amount of words matter.

The problem with writer's block is it so individual and there many reason why some one might be blocked.

• The internal critic is being a bully and telling you everything you write sucks
• You can't focus because the bills are due, the dog needs to be walked, the children are screaming.
• You just don't know what happens next
• Tired of writing or you find yourself in a rout
• you're really procrastinating
• You need facts or information about something for the story to move on

So, here's today's advice: walk away for the day. Try and figure out what's stopping you from writing. Take a walk, nap, do yoga, mediate, take shower. Come back to your writing. If you're still stuck, write a scene later in the story that you already have planned, write a 500 word description about your setting, make a note to insert a needed fact in the story or look it up, basic write something that deals with your story. If you do this for a few writing sessions and still can't get 'un-block' write on a different story idea.

Share with us: What's the normal reason why you have writer's block and what works to get your creative juices flowing again?

What's in a Character?

Write the character's name on top of the page. write 5 to 10 lines that start with:
He (or she) is the sort of person who...
Come up with some fresh unquie traits and qualities about your character.

Share with us: What's your favorite trait about your main character?

GO!!!!

Some people (I'm not one of them) believe that the blank piece of paper is a dunting task. That the start of things is the most difficult thing an author does. I find that most writer's block advice deals with this stage so if you have difficulty finding the opening words just look around the internet or book store for these excerises. Here are some that I have saved from my favorite writing books:

• remember to start in the middle of the story. The reader needs a hook and therefore start were they're action!!! Think about Fight Club-- the movie starts at the end of the actual story, but it's way more interesting to start with your main character with a gun in his mouth than with a man who finds he can't sleep and hates his job.
• ways to start:
• With a generalization-- Any man with a large fourtune is in hunt of a wife.
• With a description (character or setting--though personal I find this one weak)
• With a narrative summary--I was born...
• With dialogue-- "Where were you last night," John asked
• with serveral character but no dialogue-- Betty and Ralph silently ate they're food in the bar
• with a setting and only 1 character-- Mary sat in central park alone on a Monday night.
• with a reminiscent narrator-- THe summer of 1985 was when I first fall in love.
• With a child narrator-- Mommy throw a potted plant at Daddy's head--after that we never saw him again.
• By establishing point of view--Elm was an eldery lady or I never saw myself as old-- just not fresh.

Share with us: What's your first line? What's your favorite first line in a published book?