I’m blocked.

creative process 1 Minute

I’m in a weird place creatively. I want to make and build an entire world around this one idea but I’m stuck with characters. I can’t find a way to strike a balance between protagonist and antagonist. I can’t decide on how the mission or plot should develop and I get distracted on substories that may (not) be related to the piece.

Here’s a quick list of things I’ve found on the internet to help people who are stuck like I am right now… I’m not sure what I’ll start with but it’s fine. I’m fine. I’ll write my way out eventually.

  • Walking through a physical place that is similar to a scene in your story.
  • Have characters talk through a scene. Write dialogue only or record yourself talking in two different accents to get the point across.
  • Eat something that isn’t poisonous or detrimental to your health.
  • Read something from someone you admire that isn’t on the internet or social media.

What do you do when you’re stuck?

Published by brittwhidden

I'm a creative person in Nashville, TN seeking to meet and learn about interesting nouns. I'm invested in the success of my peers because it matters. I also think words matter because they tell our stories. This website is for my professional and personal growth.

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2 thoughts on “I’m blocked.”

  1. Hi brittwhidden! I hope you don’t mind a rando intruding, but I really like your suggestion to walk through scenery familiar to your book world. I’ll have to see if that’ll help me sometime!

    Two of my friends that team write have an interesting method: they write fanfictions of their own works. The fanfictions are sloppy, teenage-heart-throb-crossovers, alternate universes, suppositions on what real fans might write as fanfiction – you name it – but my friends claim that it helps them study their characters and find ways to solve problems. I find it quite a clever idea.

    The problem with their method? They’ve probably written as many words in their fanfictions as they have in their book! I could see myself doing this, which is why I haven’t tried their method of curing writer’s block.

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    1. It’s definitely not rando if I followed you first! Fanfiction is delightful for breaking the “must write sensical prose” loop we get stuck on. I’ve heard of the doing character dev with fanfiction too! I look forward to hearing about your next block breaking (but I hope it’s not any time soon)!

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