10 Ways to Beat Writer's Block

The blank page is an ominous thing for almost any writer. Writer's block is one of the great obstacles that we must overcome to finish the story that has been plaguing our soul for weeks, months or even years. As an experienced writer and author, I have developed a few ways to beat writer's block that I would like to share with you.

Take a break from your writing to try out one or two ideas listed below.

1) Go to the mall or local cafe'. People watch. Look for the way people move, interact, what type of clothes they have on. The sky's the limit.

2) Rent a movie in the genre that you're writing and study the storyline, characters, setting and any other ways to pick it apart and break it down.

3) Exercise! Take a walk, go to the gym, check out a yoga class. Do anything to get the blood moving and clear your mind.

4) Throw your characters into a weird scenario. Pretend one of them is an alien or a robot, send them on a ghost hunt, give one of them a sordid past. Be silly for a while.

5) Spend time on another story idea. Do you have an idea for a character or separate story that has been bugging you? Use this time to jot down notes on the idea. Sometimes a "change of scenery" is all you need to get a fresh look at your original story.

6) Play with your kids or your significant other.

7) Try some free thinking. Pick a starting word and then write down anything that pops into your head related or unrelated to that word.

Example: starting word: detective:
Case, private eye, murder, mystery, intrigue, suspense, scared, shadows, ghosts, being hunted, Sherlock Holmes, England, carriages, castles

8) Write what you do know. It doesn't have to be final draft ready or even coherent sentences. Just jot down what you want the reader to know and move on to the next part of the story.

9) Create an outline. If you're not sure where your story is going or how to get from point A to point B then create a basic outline. Write down the different scenes that you want to incorporate into the final story and arrange them from beginning to end.

10) Look at pictures or people from magazines, movies, books or even the internet. Try to find out what is special about these things. No. Don't do research. Use your imagination.

I won something!!

I entered a contest on another blog for a $25 gas card and I WON!! SO cool. Hee hee. It doesn't take much to make me happy. Maybe I should do a contest on one of my blogs. Hmmm, something to think about.

New writing schedule

I finally sat down and wrote out a schedule for all of my blogs, websites, and writing projects. I also signed up with squidoo.com and eHow.com. Let the article writing begin. The trick is to work around nap time.

I'll probably end up doing most of the work in the middle of the night. Which would be great if I didn't have to get the older kids off to school by 7:15AM.

So wish me luck! I've posted the links to my squidoo articles and eHow articles on the sidebar. Check them out if you get a chance.

Balancing

I have devised a plan to balance to work at home and being at home thing. It's a rather intense schedule but once I get the hang of it it should be sort of fun. It leaves plenty of play time with the kids and a little me time. But I think having time set aside to write everyday will actually be considered me time. I have to quit aimlessly surfing the net and get to gettin' as Jeff Foxworthy would say. Nothing will be accomplished if I don't put forth the effort and all of the planning in the world doesn't do any good without the action. "Faith without works is dead" I can't get the blessings if I don't do the work. As Dr.Phil would say "it ain't about you" as in I have to stop being selfish and start doing what needs to be done in order to be TRULY happy.
Perhaps I should rent "The Pursuit of Happyness" again. If you haven't seen it then it is a must for those of us that suck at motivation.
The outline of the second book is helping me to finish it. I'm still discovering things about my characters that I didn't realize were there. That may sound insane, but if you're a writer you'll get it. The story is growing more and more through each day. I am very excited. More soon. (I hope)

Moving Right Along

I sold six books on Saturday. Not bad, but not what I expected. But hey, some is better than none.
So today my three oldest are off on the first day of school. It's the VERY first day of school ever for my four year old. I'm excited and scared for her. She wants to make lots of new friends but with two older siblings and one younger one, she's hardly ever alone, even with mommy and daddy.
I'm hoping she eats. She's kinda picky, but the pre k teachers want all the kids to buy their lunch the first few days because sometimes kids will eat something just because the other kids are eating. I agree with that. My 6 year old started eating bagels and cream cheese because they had it at school one day.
So I sit on pins and needles a bit until they get off the bus at 3:00. (Only three hours to go-UGH)
I'm going to make sure they have juice and snacks ready when they get home. I hope to have most of the housework done so we can sit and chat about their day.
well off to work, while the baby's napping.

It's a go

SO the book signing was okay. I made some good contacts though. I am officially doing a signing at Founder's Day. There are normally like 3000 people that show up. And most all of them are ready to spend money in the craft area. I am sooo excited.

I'm not going to have my pirate book in time for Founder's Day but I am forging ahead. Especially to have at least three to four books to sell in time for Christmas.

Will keep you posted.

Book signing

Official book signing on Friday, July 18, 2008 at 11AM at Bowdon Library in Bowdon, GA
I was interviewed for the local paper and the article (complete with picture) appeared on the front page. How cool is that?
I am inquiring as to setting up a book signing booth at the local Founder's Day party/craft show. Waiting to hear back from the lady in charge.
Once the kids are back in school I am looking forward to setting up some book signings in other towns.
I am currently reformatting my pirate adventure story and I would love to have a preview copy to sell by Founder's Day. Depending on how long it ends up being, I may be able to order some from my printer before the big day. Once again, very cool.