The Blog

Fighting Dragons...and Writer's Block Too

If you're a writer, chances are, at some point in your career, you have felt cut off, pressed up against a wall, or perhaps as if there is a roadblock or a dragon to slay before you can rescue your book from creativity limbo. You are not alone! Today I'm going to give you a few ways you can slay that dragon and reclaim your WIP!

Write For Fun

One way to get your characters to speak to you is to put them in an outrageous situation, just for fun. Take a moment to imagine, what if. What if your stoic and brooding character got caught up in a traveling circus? What if a character who took a certain path had taken a different one?

Jump Ahead

If you're stuck on a particular scene, it IS okay to jump ahead. Writing a book does not have to be a linear thing. If you're just not feeling the particular part of the book you are currently writing, jump ahead to a scene you are excited to write and come back to the more difficult scene later. You may even write something in the new passage that helps connect to the passage you were having trouble writing, thus giving you a roadmap of sorts of things you need to include to get to the second point.

Step Away

Sometimes you just need a break from an idea because you've been too laser-focused on it to the point of burnout. One way to beat this is to look up writing prompts and begin writing a short story or even using the writing prompt to inspire new scenes in your current story. You don't even have to include these scenes in your book; the point is to inspire creativity. Perhaps this short story can be used later as a reader's magnet or a bonus scene, or maybe it will only be seen by you. The shift in focus can actually help you take a break from whatever problem you're facing in your story and help new ideas flourish.

Enjoy Yourself

When writing becomes a chore rather than a joy that fulfills your soul, you may need to take a short break from staring at the blank screen to appreciate someone else's artwork. Go to a museum, read a book you've been meaning to check out, play a musical instrument or listen to another person make music. Visual and auditory forms of art can renew and refresh your appreciation for creativity.

Get Visual

Pinterest is my go-to place when I want to be inspired. Try creating boards for your characters, for places in your book, special terms, made up races or religions, magic systems, etc. Being able to see a representation of something tangible from your mind, can help inspire you to add more details and jog your creativity when it comes to story ideas. You can also use something called a mood board. A mood board can be made in any photo app on your phone or your computer. These board often use a few abstract photos and strong color palettes to capture the mood of a character, a book, a scene, a location, etc. A mood board can capture the essence of your intention for an aspect of your book and help you better describe the feeling or mood you wish to express. Here's an example of one of my mood boards.

So, next time you feel yourself being threatened by the writer's block dragon, try some of these methods and slay that dragon!

When you're done slaying your dragons, read about them inside the pages of Rogue Skies!

25 books about dragons, shifters, time travel, cosmic spies, and more!