Need a swift kick in the rear

There's a thread around here somewhere where we're posting our daily August word counts. Or if you don't live too far, I'll stop by and kick you in the rear if you really want me to.

ETA: Another idea is to do a different kind of writing for now. Nonfiction, a short story, etc. Sometimes I just get tired of writing a certain kind of thing but find I have no problem with a different type of writing right then.

There's usually a fallow period between books, but it sounds like you feel yours has lasted long enough. Sit down and put your fingers on the keyboard, my friend. Type out every idea you have for this book--just as an outline. Now pick the most interesting scene that actually gives your soul a little thrill. Write that first. Then pick another good one. Think of it as crocheting a set of afghan blocks. When you have enough, you can start linking them together. In the meantime, it's fun to play with characters and be a little dramatic. And it gets you back into the habit.

When I get there I really gotta use continuous reward systems. Chocolate, cinema tickets, whatever works for you -- reward yourself when you write?

Another solution is to get an accountability partner. They really work for me because I hate the idea of other people knowing that I'm failing, so I don't fail to do a thing if there's someone keeping me accountable for it.

I'm facing the same thing - I haven't written a word this morning - but I have checked, Facebook, Twitter, Insta, and AW. I have put the next load of laundry in, taken the dog for a walk and cuddled the dog. I'm waiting for my car that was in the shop to be delivered and I've told myself I can't write until it comes because if I start I'll just get interrupted.

I think we all have good days and bad. The important thing is to set aside a time to do it and stick to that time. I have a file called writer's block and whenever I have writer's block I open that file and stream of consciousness write what is on my mind even if it is "What if I will never write another book?" over and over again. Not sure why, but it helps me because once I'm done doing that I feel ready to go back to writing.

I also have multiple projects going at once and when I get stuck on one I move to another - I read that's how Asimov was so prolific. https://qz.com/886038/isaac-asimov-...-his-lifetime-these-are-the-6-ways-he-did-it/

Have you tried switching up locations? I'll sometimes hop on the subway and go to a random part of LA and find a coffee shop or a library. Or - and I'm not sure if you're in a position to do this - I go big time, drive an hour or two up or down the coast, stay in a cheap hotel for a few days, coop myself up and get to work. Writer's retreats, big and small. Always works.

When I was blocked, it helped to think of my inability to write like some forms of erectile dysfunction. I was so concerned with performance that I couldnt perform. Maybe that explains why yours follows a successful publication - the fear that it was a one-off that you cant do again? Just a thought.

I was able to write again by giving myself permission to write utter crap. I committed to 1000 words a day with the provision that I could write fuckfuckfuck a thousand times if I needed to. But I never needed to.

I still feel fear and have to talk myself into descending to my writing room almost every day, but its become something I recognize as part of the process.

As always, YMMV. I just thought I'd put it out there is case it might help.

lizo27 said:

I'm looking for a bit of motivation. It's been almost six months since I published my last book, and since then I've written a whole two pages of the next one. I had a bit of a family crisis to deal with right after my last book came out, but that's since been resolved. Yet I still just can't seem to get going. I've got a perfectly good plot in mind but I just can't get started. Help please?

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I had a family crisis, which lasted say two months, and then it took another eight before I was ready to return to my novel manuscript. Before that, to get back into writing mode, I drafted half a novelette. It served its function to help me transition back into serious writing mode. Once I'm done with the novel I'll come back to the novelette and finish that too

Sometimes what I like to do is start several times, on separate documents. With my current story, I started writing in deep third POV, focusing on a character named Verna. I wrote approx. one chapter, maybe 700 words or something. Today, I started a second time, in first person POV, focusing on the caretaker of Verna. If you can't get going, look at the story from another angle and start again.

Go somewhere outside your home. A coffee shop, a park, a bench, a sketchy alley; anywhere. Bring your laptop (disconnect the internet) or notepad and pen and start writing.

Give yourself a mandatory 1 hour, no more and no less of writing time. Once that hour is up, and if you still feel like writing, you'll know you got your spark back

If you are a linear writer, see if you can get away from that for the time being and write a scene that you are really excited for. Even if you aren't sure exactly how it is all going to go down.

I often think in scenes rather than stories, so write a scene. Call it flash fiction if you like. It doesn't have to be anything to do with your project.

Obviously these blocks can be different for everyone. Writing those exciting scenes could work, but then you still have to write the rest too. (I'm also a very linear writer so I don't do well with writing scenes out of order) If you really want to work on this story, as people have said, just writing and seeing what comes can work. I've thought about projects from different angles until something clicked that was so exciting I couldn't wait to get there, and that excitement fueled the writing. And if you're afraid of getting sidetracked and not coming back to this plot, perhaps a short story to temporarily distract you, but not for the long term. I also think if this plot is good enough (which I have no doubt it is), you'll come back to it regardless. My guess is you're probably almost there to where it all clicks and you're writing, just have to get past that final hump.