Today's Writers Block Avoidance Tactic

Hello there.

Yes, I'm talking to you. I noticed you were reading this. You're either here because A) You want to write or B) you're a relative of mine and taking pity that I don't have any followers yet.

Let me guess. You're here because you're supposed to be writing. But you're stuck.

You know what? So was I. 

So, buck-o, let's  get working on this together.


Grab a piece of paper and a writing utensil. I don't care if it's a pen, a pencil, or a friggin' ink bottle and quill. Do it. Don't complain, don't tell me you only write with a keyboard. I was a keyboard snob once too - and look where it got me. Nowhere.

Okay, where are you stuck? You know that one chapter that you just can't get around? Let's start there. I want you to write down the problems of the scene. What's standing in your way? Scribble them down and then come back. 

Ready? Okay, now let's brain storm. What could happen next? Now I don't want you to think too hard about this, because I know you're going to be picky and you're not going to like all of your ideas. Write them down anyway. I want you to get used to that pen (or quill) in your hand and the feeling that ideas are flowing from your brain to the paper. Write down at least 10 things that could happen in that scene. Some will be ridiculous, others will not. Write them down anyways.

Got them? Okay, good. 

 Now, stop for a second and look at your scribbly mess. LOOK! You're writing! So what if it's a brainstorming mess? You just wrote down more on one piece of paper than you probably have all day. 

This is good. 

Let's go back to that scene you're stuck on. Look over your ideas. Do you like any of them? Circle the ones that might fit. Mush them together if that works for you. Now take one of those ideas, and start writing a quick outline. This does not need to be fancy numbers and formatting and bullshit. Write down short sentences of what would happen.  Sketch it out on another piece of paper. I want you to visual this new idea and poke holes in it. Does it work? What would happen next?

If it doesn't work...start with a new idea. If it does.. start filling in that outline with more detail. It doesn't have to be great, hell, the writing doesn't even have to be great. Just write down what you are seeing in your head right now so you don't lose it. You can always come back when words are easily coming to you and write it out for real. Right now, I want you to write down everything coming to mind on this piece of paper. 

Got it? Good. Now get to work! 


© Writing with Vengeance 2013. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Writing with Vengeance with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.

Writing Lessons You Can Learn From a Drama Queen

Photo Credit: www.wetpaint.com

We all know at least one person who makes a big deal out of everything. They root for conflict like a pig looking for truffles. They thrive on gossip. Their name automatically came to your mind as you're reading this. 

For the next 5 minutes, they're your new best friend. 

Okay, not really. But you can use them from a writing standpoint. This person teaches you the importance of conflict. Listen carefully:

Most people hate conflict in their life. People love conflict in books, or watching other people's conflict. 

Think about it. What makes up a story? If we break it down into simple terms:

There is a person, their name is ______. They have a problem because _______. To solve this problem, they need to _______. While trying to solve the problem, they run into ______. Finally, they solve the problem and the story ends.

I've highlighted the conflict areas in red and blue. Now, most authors get the first conflict area correct (why else is there a story if there's not an issue, right?). But the second conflict area is often overlooked or underestimated. Here's a list of problem's I see over and over again:

1. It's Too Easy. The story line was great, but the main character was never in any danger. They knew what to do and they went for it. There were no road blocks, no obstacles to over come, nothing to set them back. 
• Jack needs food.
• Jack knows there is food in town.
• Jack takes his horse to town to get food.
• Jack pays for food and returns home.
2. The Character Always Gets Aid When He/She Needs It. STOP DOING THIS. In real life, sometimes you are all alone and there is no one that can help you. Your mom doesn't appear out of nowhere to help you get out of a rut. Your best friend isn't always by your side. When you constantly aid your protagonist every time they run into trouble, the story get's boring and predictable.
• Jack needs food.
• Jack knows there is food in town.
• Jack goes to take his horse to town, but his brother is mending her hoof.
• Jack asks his mom if he can take her horse, she says yes.
• Jack goes to town, but realizes he has no money.
• Jack's dad is around the corner and gives him money.
• Jack pays for food and returns home.
3. The Character Starts Out at Level 100. Okay, so imagine you're playing a video game. When you start out, you start out at level 1, right? You have to earn experience points to progress in the game. You have to follow quests to get that special armor, or that magic sword. Now imagine if you started out at level 100. You already have all the best armor, the best magic spells, and a whole bunch of experience points. You're slicing through bad guys like they're butter. Not as challenging anymore, is it? Don't do this to your characters! Make them humble to start out with. Sure, they can be excellent in certain areas but make sure to even it out by giving them flaws. What are their weaknesses? What can't they do? What do they have to do to overcome that? 

When you write your book, pretend you're that drama queen back in high school. If there's something that can be taken away from your character, do it! If there's a road block you can throw at them, go for it! Give the audience a reason to fear that your character will fail. 

Read through what you have. Pick out the conflict points. If there's not enough, here's some ideas:

• What are your character's strengths? Take them away.
• Embarrass your character.
• Hurt your character mentally or physically. How do they cope? 
• Have a fight between your main character and their best friend.
• Give your character what they want, then take it away.
• Take an ally and turn them into an enemy.
• Your character planned on taking ____ route to reach their goal. Block it off. Force them in a different direction. 
• Your character was going after their goal but realizes they have to  ____ first. 

© Writing with Vengeance 2013. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Writing with Vengeance with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.

What Makes A Best Seller

What makes a great novel? What makes a best seller? How do I make my book a best seller?

 I've asked myself this question probably a million times, as I'm sure any aspiring novelist has done. That's why, after finding the answers, I'm going to share them with you.

First, take a look at 4 or 5 of the best selling series in your genre. The word series is important here because I feel that you get more out of the series than you do one book. Call me crazy, write me hate mail, that's fine - but for this exercise, series are best.

My genre is Fantasy. So here's my top 4:


 














I honestly tried to get them all to line up in a row, but they didn't want to behave.

1. Game of Thrones
2. Harry Potter
3. Inheritance Cycle
4. Lord of the Rings

 Now, lets begin. What does these four series have in common?

1. Other Races

Each of these series have more than one race. Game of Thrones has the White Walkers, Giants, and Children of the Forest. Harry Potter has Goblins, Giants, Death Eaters, Merpeople...  Inheritance has Dwarves, Elves, Giants, Ra'Zac, Urgals... Lord of the Rings has Elves, Hobbits, Goblins, Orcs... you getting the picture here?

They all have another race other than human. Now, you can use races we're already familiar with in your book (think how many times Elves or Goblins or Giants have been used). Or, you can create your own new unique race. 

If you create your own race, please:

• Describe their features. So many times I read books where they have their a new race that I've never heard of. Great! I love it! Except the only thing they use to describe them is their race name. Readers cannot read your mind, let's just get this out there. This does not mean they want to read a page worth of descriptions, trust me, you'll start to bore them. Give them the important facts and let their imaginations take it the rest of the way.
• Tell us about their culture. Obviously it's not going to be the same as ours, and they're going to have their own way of doing things. What are those things and why are they interesting? 

2. Languages 
 Okay, so you've got your other races. Those other races are probably going to have their own language, even if it is only body language (this is why culture is so important). 
Either way, another language deepens that cultural chasm and brings a little bit of mystery into the book. 

Hell, even humans have different languages depending on where they are from. Language create conflict. Conflict is a good thing in books. Think about it:

What are they saying?
Does your antagonist understand them?
If not, how do they communicate? 

3. Heavily defined side characters. 

You and I both know that the main character is why we're really telling the story. But what about everyone else? The relationships these characters build off each other bring the story to life, and make it more realistic. 

What would Harry have done without Ron and Hermione?

Game of Thrones starts out with the Starks, but some readers end up rooting for someone entirely different as the books progress. 

The Lord of the Rings starts with Frodo, but then we see these side stories with Aragorn and Arwyn... and then Aragorn is the lost king? I mean, who saw that coming? Not even the author (read more here.) (I read this previously in another article but couldn't find it).
  
Treat your side characters like they're their own hero of the story. Breathe life into them by giving them a story. Dreams. Hopes. Goals. Conflict. 

4. Original Names

Three of the series above have original names that the author created. No one had ever heard of the name Frodo, or Eragon, or Danaerys. Now, I don't believe that your main character has to be the one with a unique name.  However, I think it gives a nice touch of originality to have at least one thrown in there somewhere.

Stumped on how to create one? Try adding two names together.  



© Writing with Vengeance 2013. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Writing with Vengeance with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.