Hey all.
So I haven't written in months. I hated my story. Hated my characters. Was generally miserable writing it, miserable to the point where I had written only three and a half chapters in a year.
I decided to start over. Now I have new characters, a new world, and a similar plot. But I have a new problem. The words won't come. My mind is a total blank. Its been like this for weeks now, and I don't know what to do.
This is my first real novel, and I'm getting exceedingly frustrated.
Help?
Much of this may already have been said. However, I'll say it anyway to emphasize others' points. The novel you wrote 3.5 chapters for, was/is it the first novel you've tried writing? It's natural for a writer to not be satisfied with their own work. We are our worst critic, after all.
When I do Ipponmae Mai, the first kata (form) in my Iaido class (Japanese swordsmanship), which I have done many thousands of times, I see many things I have done wrong. In my mind the opponent is dead, but I could have used a smoother angle, or I used too much of the kissaki (sword tip) in the cut. Too much wasted energy and movement. Even though I may be very good at it, I have loads more to learn and improve upon. I may never think it's "sufficient" because that means I have no reason to get any better. That's a horrible way to look at things; it's never good enough because you will ALWAYS have something to learn.
So in relation to your problem, you look down on your writing and characters. No matter how great a writer you may be (Milton, maybe?) you can still learn and improve. Always and forever. Should that stop you from practicing Ipponmae Mai, knowing it won't ever be the best? Should you stop writing your novel because it won't ever be the best?
I admit, you should enjoy writing your novel. If this is your first, usually it presents some of the greatest challenges. But by the time you finish it, you've made it past the foothills and onto the mountain. If it is your first, you have entered into a new realm. There's a lot of complexity in plot and characters, voice, style, tense, point of view, and getting across what's in your head onto paper. Once you write "The End" at the end, though, a lot of that evens out and you get to a slower crawl up the mountain. All along the way you may think, "If I were stronger (read: better writer) then I'd be done by now." But everything takes time. Sometimes more time than you want.
Many people here will say that "what you write originally may very well be crap, but after you edit and polish it, it can be a shining gem." Or something. I never get that metaphor down well. If you try and start with the original novel, will ideas come again? Give that a shot. If not... then you have writer's block.
How to overcome it is different for each person and I think we have a sub-forum somewhere for it. I would recommend having an outline and a character outline in a notebook. Brainstorm possible ideas, even if they're ridiculous, dumb, or preposterous. Read some books similar to the one you want to write, then brainstorm more.
Then, the hardest part, is writing them. Force yourself to type some words, even if they're horrible or cliché: "Once upon a time, there was a prince who was deeply in love with his maid. But little known to him was that his maidservant was truly a man-- with the intention of murdering the king. The story begins with the prince sitting to lunch on a droll summer day in the courtyard..."
Later on, you can edit it and make it better. I find beginnings are the hardest to write, so mine are absolutely atrocious. Eventually, it gets easier and sometimes that takes 10,000 words, other times 500.
There are also many different ways to go about writing a novel and perhaps you just haven't found what works for you yet. The best way, in my opinion, is to write anyway and it'll come to you. If you are an established author and you're still having trouble, then I still think much of my advice stands true.
