Fiction Scribe

Part of Paperback Writer’s - Lynn Viehl - Left Behind and Loving It virtual workshops.

Writing blocks come in as many shapes and sizes as writers and authors do. Whether you are facing a fear or a time constraint, blocks seem to always have a way of popping up and interrupting our writing/creative lives.

There is certainly a good amount of prestige that comes with powering through whatever comes your way, but the better way to deal with blocks is addressing them in a way that will make it so they don’t pop up again. Recognizing the cause of a problem is a much better path to solving it than just banging things with your wrench and hoping for the best.

Writing blocks can happen at any time during the writing process. I have a series of posts that address blocks that happen at different times. I definitely can’t talk about each and every block out there, but I think these posts can help.

*Time (Mis)Management - “If you asked a group of aspiring writers what their biggest hurdle is when it comes to writing, I would be willing to bet at least a third of the group – if not half of them – would say that it’s time.”
*Stopping Before You Start - The best time for the anti-muses to attack is before you have put a single word on the page.
*Confidence Complex - In many ways, for many reasons, nearly every author has to deal with wondering what possessed them to think they could ever write novels.
*Word Count Envy - One author’s bad 500 word day is another author’s 500 word day of success.
*Environmental Perfectionism - Are you getting a little too obsessed with your surroundings when (if) you write?
*The Fear of Only One – Are you afraid that this one is the only one?
*Worldbuilding Overload – When the role of god becomes too much in the face of a world’s complexity.
*Out of Control Plot – Too many plot lines that you feel don’t have any directions? Not to mention characters doing what they want instead of what you want…
*Mind on Failure – The inner voices of doubt start harassing you just as you’re hitting your stride.
*Boredom – The writing block that is the nemesis of initial inspiration.
*Repeating Revisions – Letting your need for scene perfection keep you from moving on to the next scene.
*Overzealous Editor – When your editor moves in to work while you’re still trying to create.
*Tongue Tied – What is the word I’m trying to think of?
*Lecture Mode – The writing block that involves writing…
*Too Many Stories – So many ideas, so little time…

In each of the posts linked to above, there are suggestions for how to get past the block talked about in each post. However, I would like to add on to that.

Identifying why you’re not writing is the key to getting past it. Maybe you’re feeling fear, maybe you’d do well to switch to another genre. No matter what the reason is you aren’t writing, trying to fight the block without knowing why it’s there is like trying to fight a ninja with a blindfold on. You might hit on it if you get lucky, but you’re more likely just going to end up exhausted and frustrated.

Take some time to identify how you’re really feeling and where it’s stemming from. Then you can start doing something about it.

* “The first draft is you telling yourself the story.” - Terry Prachett
* “To live a creative life, we must lose our fear of being wrong.” - Joseph Chilton Pearce
* “The good news is that you just have to sit down and write it. The bad news is that you just have to sit down and write it.” - Maxine McArthur
* “You will never ‘find’ time for anything. If you want time you must make it.” – Charles Buxton

Comfort Reading by Toni McGee Causey

Yep! This workshop comes with a giveaway! Two people will have their choice of one of these three titles:

*Writing Down the Bones by Natalie Goldberg
*Bird by Bird by Anne Lamott
*On Writing by Stephen King

To get an entry to win, leave a comment telling me which writing block you most identify with and why.

If you already have all three of these books - like me - just let me know when you comment. There are other options.

Comment between now and 11.59 PM Friday for your chance to win. Winners will be announced on Saturday AM.

E-publishing: From Query to Final Edits and Beyond — Authors Madison Blake, Paris Brandon, Cerise Deland, Fran Lee, Afton Locke and Nina Pierce provide helpful insights and tips on e-publishing. Today’s author: Afton Locke

Writing Transformative Sex - Part One by Joely Sue Burkhart — Any writer who has studied much of the craft at all knows that if a scene doesn’t move the story forward, it should be cut. But have you really thought about what that means for a sex scene?

Birds and Language by Suelder — second in a series of workshops on birds that will focus on the science as well as how to adapt this information to writing.

How-To Books that Saved My Life by Alison Kent — a look at the three how-to books the author can’t write without, and why.

Break through your fears and write! by Tamlyn Leigh — One of the biggest obstacles on a writer’s path is their fear. It can be for anything: fear people won’t like their stories, fear they aren’t good enough. In my workshop I want to offer tools to break through that fear, and get everyone writing!

Writing Prompt Series - Where? by Rosina Lippi — Pick from the images supplied by Rosina and give your characters a context. You might have to rewrite What? to make it work.

Writing in the Labyrinth by Marjorie M. Liu — first in a series of workshops about different aspects of writing and publishing.

From Pantser To Plotter: How I Joined The Dark Side by Kait Nolan — Thursday’s topic: What I’ve Used In My Conversion (Part B)

What eBook publishers look for: Loose Id by Midnight Spencer –- About Books, Accepted Genre’s, Sending a Proposal, Formatting your Submission, FAQ, and Contract Terms.

Epubs-wondering where to start? by Shiloh Walker — Info for those curious about epubs and where to start.

Killer Campaigns: Podcasts by Maria Zannini – Podcast an interview