So you have your idea. You created a great concept and awesome characters. You start writing and… and you are stuck! You did the research, you follow through all the process and you are stuck. What happened? Did you lose your muse? The spark that ignites your creativity?
When this part of the writing happens is when writers tend to doubt themselves. Writing is hard as is, so why another roadblock? You shouldn’t doubt yourself. You should look back to what started this whole process and find that missing piece that does not fit in the puzzle.
Let’s go back. Did you:
- Research everything that you needed for the book?
- Created a character profile that defines them?
- Is the world perfect? Atmosphere? Politics? Economy? Religion?
- Villain
- Main Conflict
- Climax
- Ending
- Resolution
- Subplots
- How bout the plot itself?
Going back and retracing your steps can help you see what has happened. Another thing that can help is outlining. Some people don’t like outlining but it can help a lot. A lot. You can say all that you want about outlines but they help. You can even do an internet search on outline images to see what they look like.
What is an outline? An outline is an overview of what your book would look like. It can have bullet points on important things in the book. What your chapters would look like and needs for the story. Technically is like a GPS type or a roadmap to where you would go on your book. Do you need an outline? The answer is no. Do I recommend one? Yes, absolutely. Will an outline kill creativity? No, it will not. You are a writer. You need to figure out things. You need to knit your spider web until it is complete. So that everything makes sense.
The other thing you can do if you are stuck is to take some time from your book. Just a breather to get your head straight. It is not all work you know. You should enjoy the process and have fun. Again go back when you were so excited to create your story. Get reacquainted with it. Don’t get to a point that it feels like you are obligated to the story. It will show some point in the story that you stopped caring.
We said it before don’t stop writing. Do ten words. Ten minutes. Keep writing. Maybe what it is going your head will be of use for later. Now if you are stock check everything. Imagine going to fix a car with all the tools. And in the end, if you need help, get a critique partner, writing buddy. There is a huge community of people that can help. Happy writing!