Breaking the Block

All writers have a moment where everyhting goes blank. How do they write out of this corner or what

on earth is supposed to happen next? They call this, writer's block and it can make you crazy.

There is only one way break that block. Write. Take an active role in getting past whatever is blocking your prose. Instead of sitting in front of the television for the next episode of Walking Dead try one of these ideas to get wake up your muse.

We all have looked in someone else’s medicine cabinet, so why not your main character?  Write about what they find in there. It could be mundane everyday stuff, something tawdry, or a hidden secret.

It doesn’t have to be a medicine cabinet. He/she can look in a drawer or the glove box in a car. Just open something up and take a long gander at what’s inside. You’ll be quite surprised at what he or another character is keeping stashed away. Somewhere hidden in the back of the junk drawer of your character’s boss’s desk is way back on track with your manuscript.

A lost object is another great way to trick the muse into walking around that block. While searching for lost keys, phone, cigar clipper, or the hamster that escaped his cage you can find all sorts of things to fluff your plot. Use it to explore a bit more of your character’s personality, or, that of another character helping in the search.

All else fails have disaster strike. It’s amazing how much a lightning strike or freak tornado ripping across the front lawn can get the creative juices flowing again.  In real life these things can come out of no where so why not use a cyclone to drop a house on your block.

Open a new doc and pick any character but your hero/heroine. A background character such as the guy in the parking garage, the waitress with the great smile, someone who is mentioned but really isn’t a player in your story.

Now take that person and write a page about them. What where they doing before meeting your MC? Do they have a cat or is she slinging hash until she’s discovered as the next Marilyn Monroe? Once you’ve gotten a few paragraphs or a page you can go back to your WIP, you’ll find your muse is now ready to take off again.

Writer’s block is like a huge wall that falls in front of our muse. Looking up it seems impossible to climb. Put your fingers on the keyboard and write until that wall crumbles. When it does the sun will shine, the forest animals will surround your desk in song…. Okay, not really but you’ll be celebrating with your muse as the story picks up speed again.

What are some of your tips for breaking the block?

This post for the letter B in the A to Z Blogging Challenge 2018. Click on the badge below to find other awesome blogs to read and follow or visit the site listed on the badge to find out how to join in the A to Z fun!