Phung

How many times has this happened to you? Your nightly writing time comes along and you begrudgingly sit down at the computer or with your notebook or journal to write. You are feeling that it's going to be one of those nights that you have to struggle to get the words on paper because, it's just one of those nights.

You go back and read a little of what you wrote before to get the juices going and to brush off the events of the day. You cock your head as you look at the period at the end of the last sentence and pause for a few seconds. Cautiously you begin to write. One sentence, then two, then three, then more and more; a paragraph, then two, then three and before you know it you are on to the next page. The words are just flying out of you.

Your Muse has decided to show their face and let the story flow from you. Your characters really speak to you and help you on your way. Suddenly you feel disconnected from yourself as the words just appear on the screen or paper. Your characters are writing the story for you. They talk, they interact and everything is just there. An hour goes by, then two and the next thing you know its 3:37am and you have to be to work in two hours. You sit back and read what you've written and realize there are parts that you don't remember writing. You are excited about your next writing time. For now you have to set it aside because life calls you away.

Ah. You were in the zone. Your personal critics pushed to the side and your creativity was flowing. You get home from work. You are tired but excited for your writing time. Some scenes for your book played in your head all day. You even managed to write some sentences down so you wouldn't forget. You sit down and read some of what you wrote the night before. You cock your head as you look at the period at the end of the last sentence and pause for a few seconds. Cautiously you begin to write. One word. You stare at that one word for a minute, then two, then three and before you know it 15 minutes have passed. Where is my Muse you wonder. My characters have gone off to another book you say to yourself as you look at that solitary word.

So, you sit back in your chair. You know the major things that are going to happen and you even know how it is going to end. You have labored to write from one major incident to the next, from the first word in the book to the next, sticking to your plot line. You know you need to follow it to get to the end. Tonight you are lost. Where should they go? What should happen next? You know what is going to happen later in the book but you can't write it until you get there. WRONG!

When you get stuck somewhere and labor to get the words out SKIP AHEAD! Write another scene later in the book. Write a scene that you jotted down notes about. Heck, write a scene that doesn't even belong in the book. Put your characters in a big vat of jell-o or peanut butter or some other bizarre place and let them go have some fun. First, you are writing something. Secondly, if you do it with your characters you might find some trait or some part of them that will help you move your real story along.

If you want to beat writer's block don't beat your head against it. Go around it. No one ever said you had to write your book in sequence. Write a scene that you want to put in later. I can't begin to tell you how many scenes I have written that are tucked away because I'm not there yet. Some I wrote with the intent to use but the story went a different way or progressed and they weren't really needed. The point is you need to write something when you hit that block. Write something different or fun. You never know when your Muse might decide to come out again.

Jack R. Mason - Author, Armchair philosopher, scientist.
Email jackrmason@gmail.com
Blog (http://zigtag3d.blogspot.com)