Help! I'm stuck!

[thedarknessrising]

I began my WIP back in December. It's kind of like The Silmarillion by JRR Tolkien, as it's a mythos and history book to my realm. I try to write in it as often as I can, or when inspiration strikes, and I've got about ten pages full of material. The problem is, I'm stuck.

I can't figure out where to go from my current point.

What do you guys recommend to cure writer's block?

 

[BWFoster78]

What do you guys recommend to cure writer's block?

There is but one cure for writer's block - you have to write. Even though you don't want to, even though that blank page fills you with dread and you'd rather schedule a root canal, sit your butt down and write.

 

[T.Allen.Smith]

I try to write in it as often as I can, or when inspiration strikes, and I've got about ten pages full of material.

First thing, get past the idea of needing inspiration. It's nice when inspiration strikes but if you depend on it you'll never finish anything of length. Rather, train yourself to write with discipline. Set a schedule and stick to it, like a job. That's what it is, work.

Secondly, if you feel stuck, write something else for awhile. It doesn't matter what. Write a short story, or a novella, flash fiction, or a character background told as a story. Like Brian said, just write. It'll help spark your mind.

 

[chrispenycate]

Have you got another scene that is ready in your head? Remember, with computers there's no need to write in order. OK, there's a certain risk that when you get to that point by the linear method it'll need rewriting, but generally you're expecting to rewrite most of it in the editing process, anyway.

But first you've got to get to the editing stage, which means getting a lot of words on paper.

So get writing.

 

[A. E. Lowan]

I hand this advice out like candy, but it seems to be pretty effective - at least for the purposes of telling a story. If you're stuck, ask yourself where your conflict is. Conflict = Story. Therefore once you figure out where the conflict is happening, be it large or small, you can start finding the threads of your story.

Now since what you're doing sounds a bit more like a like a text book than an adventure, then two other questions might be more appropriate for you to ask yourself. What happens next? And, are you bored? The answer to either of these questions could hold the key to solving your problem.

 

[Bruce McKnight]

Aside from the advice to "write through it," if you are looking for semi-useful procrastination methods, I sometimes to go Wikipedia and look up historical events, wars, figures, etc and try to draw on that for plot ideas. GRRM said the War of the Roses gave him the idea for ASOIAF. Reading summaries of Shakespeare plays helps me sometimes, too (I don't think we write enough tragedies anymore).

In the end, though, you have to write. I know that, too... even though I'm procrastinating by reading the forums...

 

[Lace]

I was the same way when it came to writing and I had a whole jump drive of stories that were partially written until I ran out of information. Last November I did my first NaNoWriMo and it really helped me as a tool for training myself how to write. Each day I forced myself to sit down and write until I hit my daily word count, no matter if I had inspiration or not, and let me tell you, by the 4th day, I had absolutely NO inspiration left! Was a lot of what I wrote crap? Probably, but I wrote it and I exceeded my 50K in word goal for the month and with 50K worth of words, there has got to be some gold buried in there.

When the month was over I was so happy not to have to write everyday, but what surprised me most of all was that I actually missed writing. It had became an outlet for me and I just like exercising when you miss a day and you have too much physical energy pent up and waiting to be released. I realized I had too much creative energy bouncing around in my brain just itching to get out. I think NaNo helped me the most because it held me accountable I told EVERYONE I was doing it, plus I made friends though the NaNo forums and we kept in contact daily to encourage one another. There is a Camp NaNoWriMo starting April 1st, if you want to jump on that band wagon, I plan on it!

Another thing that helped me was when I realized everything I write doesn't have to be perfect in the first draft. Before I would spend months just perfecting one chapter, then get burned out and never finish the book. Nano forced me to write with reckless abandon everyday and never look back. I finally finished my first draft of book one and now plan on going back and adding a little more before I can truly say it's done, but up until now, I've never went back and read any of it! Anyway, this worked for me, I hope you find some if it helpful.

 

[ThinkerX]

If naught else, put up a quick kludge fix, then set it aside and write something else for a while. Come back to it in a couple of weeks and reread from start to finish. Possibilities should leap out at you.

 

[Ruby]

Hi thedarknessrising, when I get stuck in a plot I usually find it helps to go off and procrastinate for a couple of days. Sometimes I write other things such as Mythic Scribes flash fiction challenges or another unfinished WIP.

Then I reread the novel I'm having the problem with and try to look for clues from the characters. It's their story and usually I can find the answer somewhere in their conversations with one another. They usually know what the plot is, my job is just to find it.

Another thing you can do is draw pictures of your characters or the scene that's causing you problems. Try drawing a cartoon of it. If that doesn't work, skip the scene altogether and write a different one.

If none of the above works, try writing a different book.

 

[Michael J. Tobias]

Along with writing through it, which I recommend, you could also read through it. Reading inspires me...makes me want to create, so I find reading something an excellent motivator.

 

[Caged Maiden]

While I've never tried a project like you describe, I would think the solutions are similar to writing a novel.

Let me think about the times I've been really stuck...

First was the one that brough tme to this fine forum. I had a seafaring scene I didn't knwo how to write. My research turned up very little about life aboard a ship other than statistical information, like what sailors ate, how many were aboard, ration of officers to crewman, what a ship was like, etc. It didn't answer my questions about my story elements. Basically, I needed to know whether my plan was PLAUSIBLE.

I set the work aside for over a year, until I found a fellow scribe who was very knowledgeable about seafaring. He answered my questions and I got on with it, confident my story plot worked well enough.

At anothe rtime, I was stuck on a thin plot element. It was too convenient, wasn't interwsting, and didn't fulfill my true need to entertain. It was just something I stuck in there to get to the next phase of the novel. that too, took some time to overcome. Before I could fix it, I had to learn more about constructing a scene. With my new knowledge in hand, I attacked the scene and set it straight.

Why are you stuck? I ask myself that frequently. SOmetimes it's just because I'm afraid to write a particular scene. Maybe I'm not confident in its outcome. Maybe I'm not sure I have the skills to create the weight necessary to convey the right feelings. Either way (or any other reason) analyzing the scene is the best way for me to overcome it.

Ask "what if" questions. "What if they DON'T go into the cave? What if they don't find the treasure in it? What if really, their enemy cleaned the treasure out last year and now they have to track him down and find it? WHat if the treasure wasn't even great, it was a trap to lure them there?

There are a ton of questions to ask and most of them will start those creative juices flowing.

 

[kayd_mon]

I try to keep on writing when I'm stuck. It is usually terrible, but it gives me something to work with, and reworking the terrible stuff I just wrote sometimes helps me create stuff I'm happy with.

I might also walk away from the WIP and do something else for a while (like another hobby), or I might go back and re-read some of my earlier chapters/sections of the WIP. Sometimes that brings back a previous state-of-mind, where I was planning for the chapter upon which I am currently stuck, and then the ideas come back... If that makes sense.

 

[DavidJae]

Writer's block is terrible when it happens, and it happens to us all. Don't be too hard on yourself. I agree with what's been said; you need to get something on paper, even if you don't like it. Once you've started something, you can then go back and change it because you've got something to work from.
Don't lose faith.
If writing was easy, anyone could do it.

 

[Helen]

What do you guys recommend to cure writer's block?

There is but one cure for writer's block - you have to write. Even though you don't want to, even though that blank page fills you with dread and you'd rather schedule a root canal, sit your butt down and write.

True

First thing, get past the idea of needing inspiration.

Also true.

If you're stuck, ask yourself where your conflict is. Conflict = Story. Therefore once you figure out where the conflict is happening, be it large or small, you can start finding the threads of your story.

Conflict will solve the writing block problem. It'll get you some kind of plot. But on it's own it'll just be a meaningless fight after fight after fight. Conflict alone doesn't equal story.

 

[srebak]

I hate to distract from the OP, but i'm pretty sure i'm stuck too

At the moment, i'm focusing on writing three different stories: one Fantasy Novel in the works and two Fanfiction stories. Yet, for whatever reason, i can barely get past certain areas in all three. This is bad because i really want to finish these stories, how can i be a writer if i won't finish my own work?

Though i will admit, there are other reasons for why i want to finish these stories:

I've been working on the Fantasy Novel since 2007 and i'm still not done. What credible Author takes 7 years to write one novel, especially when they have nothing but time on their hands?

I've started writing a Fan fiction Season Two for a show that I like, after it was cancelled after one season, in hopes of giving myself some closure with it (it ended on a cliffhanger). I posted five of the "episodes" for it online and have thus caught the eye of many fellow fans. Many of them like my ideas and want me to keep going, and i want to comply, yet lately, i just can't find the words (not for the revisions anyway).

My second fanfiction, i have even posted anywhere yet, i haven't even finished it yet. But i have implied to many that was going to do so and want to follow through with it.

And to top it all off, since Memorial Day is next month, i'll soon be feeling the need to work on a story i've been writing about WWII. Come to think of it, a large part of why i can't focus on my stories right now is because i want to get in the mood for Easter, Passover (I don't celebrate, but still), Spring Break and Earth Day.

What's a guy to do?