Do you remember the commercial, ''I've fallen and I can't get up"?
That's how I'm feeling these days with my current wip. I'm stuck and I can't seem to find my way around it. I finally got over the middle hump, my end is in sight and I'm stuck on the transition. I'm in the middle of a bridge, the light's on the other side, but for some reason I'm not moving toward it.
I wouldn't exactly call in writer's block, more like writer's frustration. I know where I want to go, what needs to happen, I'm just struggling with how to get from point 'T' to point 'X'--hopefully 'Y' and 'Z' will fall into line like carefully played dominoes.
I know part of the reason is that I haven't been able to focus. Last week I blogged about my friend's brain tumor. This week my focus has been on my own dd--who's just been diagnosed with 'aura' seizures and next week, she'll be having an MRI, followed by an EEG the following week.
I have been able to rewrite a crucial scene that was too long (50 pages for an evening at a carnival!), cut some fluff, and add some important plot elements. And this scene leads directly into the one I'm struggling with, so I was hoping by rewriting it, it would shed some light on where to go.
My daughter is demanding new Bix stuff, though. Talk about a slave driver. So, my appointments done for the day, my crit group cancelled for the night, I think I'm going to head to B&N for some precious Bix time and see if I can make it over that bridge.
If anyone has any tips about how to do it, please feel free to share.
margie..sorry to hear about your daughter! i have aura migraines, and they SUCK...(yes, that's the technical term)
ReplyDeleteamazingly what helps me, probably doesn't work for anyone else. i read a book in the genre I'm writing. I keep my character vaguely in mind while reading it and suddenly, wham! there it is. (usually, this isn't fail proof!)
otherwise.....do they have margarita's at BN? =) they always inspire my little brain cells...
I can't improve on Carrie's advice-especially the margarita part-but you'll get there. Sorry about your daughter's diagnosis. Migraines aren't easy in any form!
ReplyDeleteSorry about your girl. Carrie's right, that sucks. I have the occasional migraine, and ouch!
ReplyDeleteI wonder if your writer's block thing is a more I don't want to finish than an actual block?
Just something to consider....
and though I don't drink, I think Carrie's plan sounds good.
Good news. B&N worked. I guess I just needed focus time. I even got a start on the next chapter after that so I'm a very happy writer tonight. Maybe just putting my fears into words helped free me up. Who knows?
ReplyDeleteAnd Jordan's having seizures, not migraines. She doesn't get any headaches, just auras, which I think she actually kind of enjoys. She's an odd little nut. LOL.
Thanks for the comments.
You are a true writer if you can even write a sentence through all of that. Glad B&N worked. I'd probably have to do a shot or two of Jose Cuervo.
ReplyDeleteMy tip is not to force it. When you're distracted, there isn't any point to increasing your frustration level just to hit a word count. If you need to take a week off - or two - then do it. You'll start to miss your characters, and you'll come back to it refreshed and dripping creativity.
ReplyDeleteso glad you figured it out, margie! I always go with the banging-my-head-against-the-wall trick. Not only do ideas fall out, but I can burn up to 150 calories by doing that for an hour. Win-win! hahaha!!
ReplyDeleteyour daughter sounds like one of a kind and I think you're lucky to have her (and vice versa!!)...can't wait to read more Bix!!