Day Twenty-One: Hitting the Wall

For three weeks you've been busily writing, following your outline (if you did one before NaNoWriMo began) or going with the flow as ideas flow from your mind, through your fingers, and onto the screen. Your story has taken some interesting, unexpected twists and turns, your characters have led you down different paths from the ones you thought you were traveling, and you've been meeting or exceeding the daily word count minimums. Everything is going great until, one day, you sit down at the keyboard to write, and...nothing! Suddenly, it's like someone dammed the river, and now there's not even a trickle of an idea coming through. What do you do when you hit the wall known as "writers' block"? Here are a few suggestions that might help get things moving again.

First, realize that this happens to everyone, even well-known, experienced authors, so don't beat yourself up over it. It doesn't mean you can't write. What it may mean is that you're striving for perfection, and worrying that you won't achieve it. Your writing, especially in a first draft (and that's what NaNo novels are--first drafts), doesn't have to be perfect. That's what editing and revisions are for. The important thing is that you just write. Get the story down on paper. You can go back later and correct spelling, grammar, punctuation, plot discrepancies, etc.

Walk away. Don't give up, but do step away from the keyboard for a while and do something else. Watch a movie, take a walk, call a friend, jump on the treadmill or stationary bike, work in the garden...anything to get your mind off writing for a little while. Then, after you feel refreshed, come back to the writing with a new perspective. Maybe something you've seen, heard, smelled, will trigger an idea for your story.

Write about it. That may sound contradictory since writing is what you're having trouble doing, but sitting down and writing out why you think you're feeling "stuck" might just get you unstuck. It's like talking out a problem with a friend. They might not have the answer, but you'll feel better because you've gotten it out in the open. And, sometimes just talking about it will suddenly give you clarity about the solution.

Try doing a writing exercise. This can be as simple as going to Writer's Digest's online writing prompts (http://www.writersdigest.com/WritingPrompts/), picking several random words from the newspaper and writing a story using all of them, or just writing down whatever comes into your mind (stream of consciousness writing).

Remember why you started writing in the first place. NaNoWriMo is a challenge, but it's voluntary and it's supposed to be FUN! Go to one of the more upbeat forums, such as the Nanoism forum, and let laughter recharge your creative batteries. And remember, the world won't end if you don't hit 50,000 words by the end of November.

Try to stick to a routine. If you write in the same place, at the same time, every day, your mind will begin to make the connection that when you do certain things it's the signal to start writing. Some writers even have a ritual they go through before actually writing, perhaps getting a cup of coffee and putting on a favorite item of clothing, playing a favorite CD or turning on the radio, anything that will let your brain know "this is writing time."

Jump to a different part of your story. If you're stuck in the middle, try writing the ending, then go back and fill in what needs to happen to get you to the end. Add a new character to the mix to bring in fresh action and dialog. Or if you're having a hard time with the beginning, start with the middle. If you haven't done an outline, try writing one now so you know what has to happen to get you where you want to end up.

Breathe. Try some relaxation exercises such as deep breathing, meditation, yoga, qi gong. Put on some soothing music, close your eyes, and picture a scene that is relaxing and calming for you.

Read. Grab a Coke, some coffee or tea, and a good book and read for a while. Reading what someone else has written may give you an idea you can use in your own story.

Just write. Even if you write a nursery rhyme, copy something you've already written, write a page of "It's your fault," "No, it's your fault," "Is not. It's your fault," etc., the important thing is to let your Muse know you mean business. You're there to write, you're writing (even if it's gibberish--you can delete it later), and that may get your creativity flowing again.

Day Twelve: Stop...Look...Listen

Stop...look...listen. As children, we were taught to do this before crossing a street. But it is also a good reminder for writers.

Our lives seem to be busier than ever, and the pace of life is often in overdrive. Especially, as we get older, time seems to fly by at warp speed. Our "To Do" lists get filled with so many things that need doing, that our "wants" get relegated to the bottom of the list--if they make the list at all. There is too much happening, too much information "out there," and too little time. As a result, we tend to narrow our focus to those things that directly affect us and ignore the rest.

Writers, though, need periods of time in which to slow down in order to refill the creative tank. Physically, this might mean getting away for a period of personal refreshing of body, mind, and spirit. Creatively, it might mean opening our mind's intake valve for an infusion of fresh ideas. For water to be fresh, there must be an inflow as well as an outflow. No inflow, and the stream dries up. No outflow, and it stagnates. It's the same with creative ideas. We must keep ourselves open to new ideas and engaged in life, or we may suddenly find ourselves unable to continue writing--otherwise known as "writer's block." If nothing fresh is flowing in, nothing can flow out as stories, articles, or essays. I have a friend who is constantly observing, listening (eavesdropping, if you will) to those around him. I recall one time when we were walking down the street and he pointed out a young couple ahead of us. He began telling me all about them: why they were there, what they were doing, what was going on in their lives. When I asked if he'd known them long, he replied that he didn't know them at all--he'd just spun a story about them from the things he observed as they walked ahead of us: their gestures, how they looked at each other, whether or not they were holding hands, the tone of their voices. This is the creative mind in action. You can learn a lot, and get fresh ideas for your writing, simply by observing people around you. So, S-T-O-P: Stop To Observe People.

As I said, because our lives are so hectic, we tend to narrow our focus. We limit ourselves to what's familiar, to what touches us personally: our interests, our family, our friends, our community. But to keep fresh ideas coming, we need to look beyond the familiar, to see what's going on in the lives of those around us and around the world. In our modern age, what happens in other countries affects what happens in our own. Rising energy costs and the global recession are just two examples. Likewise, we need to understand how our actions affect others both at home and abroad. We also need to be lifelong learners. While working on this year's NaNo novel, so far I've learned about mucking out stalls, milking cows, and gained a rudimentary knowledge about mid-19th century barns and the modifications their construction went through in the early 20th century. I'm also learning about the history of Stowe, Vermont, where my story is set. Will I ever really muck out a stall? Probably not. Nor do I see milking cows and building barns in my immediate future. But learning stimulates the mind, gets those synapses firing, and the creative wheels turning. It keeps our brains from stagnating. So, we need to L-O-O-K: Look Outward, Optimize Knowledge.

And then we need to listen, not just with our ears but with our minds and hearts. Learn to hear what's NOT being said. Learn to "hear" body language: facial expressions, gestures, posture. Listen to people's hearts, not just their words. As you're going about your day-to-day business, listen to what people are talking about. Carry a pen and pad with you and jot down snatches of conversation that are interesting or that stimulate creative thinking. Did you hear something your characters might discuss? Is that woman's body language saying something other than what her words are saying? How could you use that in a story? While sitting in a coffee shop or in a park, waiting in the checkout line at the store, or dining in a restaurant, spend time observing and listening to those around you. Do you just hear an indistinguishable buzz, or do bits of conversation stand out from the background noise? If something does stand out, allow your creative mind to speculate "what if?" So, L-I-S-T-E-N: Listen Intently, Sift Through External Noise.

STOP...LOOK...LISTEN...then WRITE!