Writers Block, how do you deal? by SerenitysGirl

BLUE SUN ROOM

Writers Block, how do you deal?

POSTED BY: SERENITYSGIRL
UPDATED: Tuesday, April 11, 2006 12:12
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Saturday, May 21, 2005 4:38 PM

How do you deal? I must of watched almost all the episodes today and the story I want to write is there I just cant get it down.

Serenity's Girl
YIM: Danitg31
AIM: fanoffirefly
LJ: http://www.livejournal.com/users/luvfirefly/

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Saturday, May 21, 2005 6:47 PM

CHRONICTHEHEDGEHOG

I've got a routine for writers block that seems to get me through it. First, get a notebook. Try not to think about your story, but if you do at any point then write down your thought. If you can, listen to music while your doing this. Then:

1. Go for a walk.
2. Have a cup of tea.
3. Tidy your room.
4. Call a friend (probably not while listening to music, people are difficult to hear through headphones)
5. Sit back down at your computer and start writing.

Hope this helps!

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Saturday, May 21, 2005 7:02 PM

SERGEANTX

Find some classic story, could be a movie, a book, a myth, something out of the bible - anything that has a proven, universal appeal, and then figure out how you can rip it off, while disguising it enough that no one will be able to tell!

Seriously. A lot of great work gets turned out that way. Once you get going you don't have to slavishly follow the source, but its a nice shortcut.

SergeantX

"Dream a little dream or you can live a little dream. I'd rather live it, cause dreamers always chase but never get it." Aesop Rock

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Saturday, May 21, 2005 7:32 PM

PHAEDRA

Personally, I like to take the classic Hemingway/Poe approach, the booze of your choice and lots of it. Just kidding;)

Just start writing whats ever in you mind, Sit down at your computer or notebook and start to type/scribble. Character talk to you, scenes play out in your mind. Try to capture that. The most important thing is that it doesn't have to be perfect. Hell it doesn't even have to be good. That's what the delete key/eraser is for. Once you have something down then you can tweak it. No one gets it right the first time. Trying to go for the one shot deal is usually what bogs people down. So let go. Remember there is no such thing as a good writing, only rewriting. Heck, the next two installments of the epic I'm working on have been done for weeks, but I'm still playing with them.

You can also try talking to yourself (not outloud in public, people tend to react badly to that). Before I set a scene down it will usually play out in my mind a dozen different ways before I even try to set it down.

Failing that, there's alway hallucinogenics.

Phaedra (a bad luck name)

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Sunday, May 22, 2005 5:42 AM

SICKDUDE

In case you haven't checked them out, the complete writings of Theodore Sturgeon are being released in chronological volumes. These include commentaries and notes on each story. An extremely talented writer, and good SF fun.

The reason I bring it up is that these are good views into the writing process. Sturgeon suffered from writer's block a lot, and they mention some techniques he used.

My favorite was to write EXACTLY one page every day for a month. Not one word or even letter more and not a word less. By ending at a point where he knows what's coming next, he builds a yearning to keep writing.

"Don't say 'ka' until you've tried it." Daniel Jackson

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Sunday, May 22, 2005 7:50 AM

KESSIE

Hm simply lay it aside and then do something else which is creative like making icons, writing another story etc., thats what helps me the most.

Also it sometimes helps when you relax, close your eyes and let your thoughts flow. Don´t think of anything in particular though, just let them come.

They say it’s the last song
They don’t know us, you see
Its only the last song
If we let it be

http://www.darknessenemyinc.de.vu/

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Sunday, December 18, 2005 11:05 PM

JETFLAIR

I'm suffering from writer's block right now for the next chapter of The Losing Side. Finally I realized what I really wanted to be writing was the chapter after that.....so I started writing it! I figure that hopfully by the time I'm done or part way through chapter 8, chapter 7 will seem doable.

______________________________________________

"Love keeps her in the air when she oughta fall down, tells you when she's hurting 'fore she keens. Makes her a home." .......We love you, captain.

"This is the captain. We may experience some slight turbulence and then.....explode"

Zoe necklace replica and other jewelry at www.exoticcatz.com/fireflyshop , Firefly/Serenity images at www.exoticcatz.com/fireflyphotos>

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Monday, December 19, 2005 12:54 AM

LEIGHKOHL

Writer's block is so frustrating! Just writing anything sometimes help. I recommend not deleting anything, save it, even if you think it's crap. It can always inspire something else, just one word can create a whole scene.

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Monday, December 19, 2005 1:09 AM

SHINYTALENT

You know what I do I revisit the point of inspiration i.e. if I get an idea say while inhaling a certain coffe at Starbucks, or hearing a particular quote from somewhere I go back and try to do it all again, exactly the same way.

If I can't do that I usually go for a shower and stand there just letting my thoughts wash away like the water.

The human body can be drained of blood in 8.6 seconds given adequate vacuuming systems.

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Monday, December 19, 2005 3:07 AM

MISSKITTEN

I usually talk to my best friend, who's my main muse, as well as contacting a couple of my MSN contacts. Sometimes that helps, sometimes I need more help. I try watching a couple of episodes, fanvideos and just try to unwind whilst not getting my mind completely off the 'verse.

*~*~*

"Joss, if you kill him now I'll stuff a compression coil up your ass sideways!"
~ Kaylee, "Serenity in 2000 words or less"

Kaylee's the perfect woman!

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Monday, December 19, 2005 12:20 PM

SERENITYVALLEY

I've recently found the cure for writers block, and it kind of goes along with what phaedra and the others have been saying about letting your thoughts flow. But more specifically, write down what the problem is exactly. Where do you want to go.

For example, "This character needs to be scarier. But I want her to contrast with my other character who is already scary. So what's the difference between them? Obviously one is good and one is bad, but personality-wise, what separates them? Well, my good character talks a lot and gets angry and defensive. Maybe this character should not talk so much. That's kind of scary." etc.

http://www.simple-assault.com/Firefly.htm

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Monday, December 19, 2005 1:37 PM

SERENYTY

I think about my story when I'm about to go to bed. Seriously. I'm just lying awake, and I try and come up with something.

Do what you're doing now: watch the episodes, read the Serenity books (novel/visual companion) and try and brainstorm.

Writer's block is tough!

~A message from Serenyty~

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Tuesday, December 27, 2005 3:27 AM

COSMICFUGITIVE

Writer's block can be a real pain.

A lot of the suggestions stated above really do work:

* Be distracted. Take your mind off writing for a while.

* Here's a great tip from the writer's of Buffy. Whenever they wanted to write a new episode they procrastinated a lot. The ideas flowed, whether they were having a bath or just sitting around.

* Also, a great tip for writing can be found in the extras of the Firefly DvD.

Here's a step by step guide to creating stories, in relation to Firefly, from Joss Whedon himself!:

* What is the most important thing I need to feel?

* What is the most primal story?

* What is the thing that is going to show hoe great this crew is? (How funny they are, how brave, how disjointed etc.)

WHAT DO I NEED?

GET PRIMAL

^ Those guidelines from Joss have really helped me to write fan fic.

I usually go on a DvD marathon too.

I watch different stuff (movies, tv shows), and take my mind off all things Firefly.

Then, I watch an episode of Firefly and write down any ideas afterwards.

Designing wallpaper or pencil drawing is helpful. Listening to music and watching fan vids is a great suggestion too.

Whenever I'm bogged down in story telling, I kinda forget the reason why I'm telling it. Creating/finding a theme can make things easier, and it can be fun too!

Don't restrict your ideas. Write down everything!

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Tuesday, December 27, 2005 9:58 AM

GYPSYLIFE

I totally agree CF..That is the exact advice I remind myself of repeatedly..I have found that mayhap a work in progress fic, is both an awesome choice and a terrible choice for a first time fic writer. Terrible because of the pressure and the drive to post asap...ergo forgeting to check it over 15 million times....BUT awesome because I have never been so motivated as by everyones comments. I think that my fic has been better because I read how others are excited about it and then I get really excited and hyped up and IMHO it really adds to the drama and energy of the piece. But that's just MO.

"See this is another sign of your tragic space dementia, all paranoid and crochety. Breaks the heart." -Mal

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Monday, January 23, 2006 1:56 PM

NUCLEARDAY

I've been there myself many a time, trust me. :)

You say the story is there, but you can't get it down... so keep in mind that at least you have something to work with then.

Lot of really good ideas before me, and anyone following Joss's lead can't be going too far from wrong. Alot of that is just generally good to keep in mind as well.

I'm often helped by some stuff I learned in art school. Most of it applies to drawing, but it helps me alot when it comes to writing out a story, too.

In visual art, you're encouraged to sketch the whole picture before worrying about the little details, make thumbnails, etc. This works in writing as well, and helps keep me focused on the main story elements of what I want to stay.

My advice: try writing an outline first, if you haven't already done so. This doesn't have to be terribly formal, either. I tend to write mine more like a journal entry, very stream-of consciousness. Write a letter to yourself, as if you were describing the story to someone else.

Remember, you don't have to write the whole thing from beginning to end. Skip segments and come back to them later if you get stuck at any certain point. (I find the first few paragraphs are the hardest parts to write, myself.)

I like to leave myself a few notes here or there, to remind myself of what I'd skipped over: "this guy and this other guy have a conversation, where such and such is revealed," etc...

Like the previous poster said, it doesn't have to be perfect the first dozen times through. :) You can always go back and fix things later on.

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Monday, January 30, 2006 10:25 AM

ELOISA

I write a later scene, or (given that I'm primarily an original fic writer; use the link in my sig) I write fan fiction shortfics. I'll do housework or, like someone else said, have a nice cup of tea and a sit down. The one thing I try not to do is to go a day without writing anything at all, because for me a day becomes weeks or months. It's important to me to keep the engine chugging so that when it fills up again it's ready to go straightaway.

***
http://forums.ffonline.com/forumdisplay.php?f=19
Creative Writing

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Tuesday, April 11, 2006 11:56 AM

BOOKSWORD

Thats a tough one.

I hear that some people just hear some relaxing music. Try not to focus on it too much.

To be honest Ive never had writers block before. I have creative ideas popping out of a highly overactive imagination.

Unfortunately I have the attention span of a horny cocker spaniel so it balances itself out.

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Tuesday, April 11, 2006 12:12 PM

BIGDAMNNOBODY

Quote:
Originally posted by SerenitysGirl:
How do you deal? I must of watched almost all the episodes today and the story I want to write is there I just cant get it down.

Serenity's Girl
YIM: Danitg31
AIM: fanoffirefly
LJ: http://www.livejournal.com/users/luvfirefly/

I forsaw potential future moments of writer's block so I chose not to become a writer in the first place. It may not be helpful to all but it sure has steered me clear of the dreaded block.

De-lurking to stir stuff up

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