Procrastination Plan: Boredom

Bored (Photo credit: Bryan Davidson)

Sometimes, procrastination happens not because of fears, competing demands, or insufficient time. Sometimes the cause is boredom with the project. Here's a few of the reasons a writer might become bored.

• Over-plotting. Even though many writers are helped by outlines, over-plotting can take away the fun, enthusiasm, and adventure of writing a first draft. How much is too much? That depends on th person. But if this has happened to you, you might want to change one or more supporting characters, the current obstacle the POV character is facing, or add a secondary antagonist.
• Over-editing. Going over your last day's work can psych you up for a new writing session. But when you edit and re-edit, you can get bored with the material and not want to face going over the same material yet again. Try focusing on different elements of your draft, or editing the book from the last chapter to the first, or in some nonlinear order.
• Cliche story. You may be bored because your story is too predictable. Check for cliched characters, scenarios, and reactions.

What all of these possibilities have in common is over-familiarity. Without an element of excitement, challenge, or creativity, writing becomes tedious. No wonder the writer finds it difficult to write!

Writing Fears: Unbalance your Fears

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One way to overcome your writing fears is to make sure the benefits of writing outweigh the fears. People tend to think of motivation as coming from the inside or the outside. Motivation also can come from positives and it can come from negatives.

Because this is such a vast subject, but is relevant now, I'm giving an overview today and will discuss them more in depth another month.

• Positive internal motivation. Remember why you love writing. Think of what you give to others. Writing can be a boost to your self-esteem and reaffirm your self-image. When you face your writing fears, face them with this in mind.
• Negative internal motivation. You probably feel guilt when you don't write. There is a gradual loss of skills. You stagnate. You forget (or never find out) what happens next? These thoughts are pretty distasteful – even repulsive – and reminding yourself of this side of writing may be what it takes to get going again.
• Positive external motivation. Don't be afraid look to other people – writers, family, friends, strangers – for motivation. I see many people use Facebook for this – posting trials, goals, and successes – and very rarely is do I see negative responses. Other people can offer encouragement, affirmation, and recognition. External motivation can also come in the form of publication and income.
• Negative external motivation. The desire to not disappoint others or fall short of their expectations may also get you writing through your other fears. This can be an excellent reason to share your writing goals, agree to let people read it when it is done, even simply admit to someone that you are a writer. Also remember that if you do not involve others in your fight against your writing fears, you loose opportunities for growth, expansion, or discovery.

While positive motivations feel better, you may find that you need to make use of negatives too. Keep in mind that in the long run, the positive internal motivators are the most important. So... give it a try!

Strategies to Reach 50k: Stamina

The Runner. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

One often overlooked element of writing is stamina. Writing stamina is linked not only to attention span, imagination, and will-power but also to physical well-being. When you really get into a project, you may forget to take care of yourself. As a result, your writing stamina goes down and you start producing less.

If you have low writing stamina, a good way to quickly build your stamina is to resume (or start) a healthier life-style.

• Food. If you plan to write, it makes sense to avoid foods that slow your mind. Simple carbohydrates (like in potatoes and white bread) make some people sleepy because of how their bodies break down the sugars, starches, and fiber. Fats (like in grease and fried foods) and red meats slow the mind down because the body has to divert extra energy into digesting them. Simple sugars (like in candy and pastries) may give quick energy but this “high” is followed by a greater “down”.
• Sleep. Not just how many hours matters, but also how regular your sleep pattern is. Sleep is important for your immune system, your energy levels, your concentration, and your creativity. I am an advocate of naps but be careful that the naps don't throw you off your sleep schedule!
• Exercise. All the health benefits of exercise can be applied to your writing. And you can do brief exercises during your breaks to relievee tension and boost energy. Furthermore, you can choose a sport or martial art that can inspire your writing.
• Breaks. I have struggled with guilt every tie a take breaks but of the ten writers I asked, all ten said taking breaks helped their stamina.
• Recharge. Recharging means more than stepping away from your keyboard, typewriter, or notebook. Recharging means doing activities that will actually restore your energy, motivation, and fuel your imagination. Mind-numbing activities can provide a break from reality for awhile but for the most part they fail to do those three things.

This blog does not place an emphasis on healthy living but I thought a reminder of its relevance to your writing would be worth your time. Mind and body are intricately connected. Take care of both.

Panster Help: Moving Forward

Disaster (Photo credit: ★keaggy.com)

        Well, it is a little more than half-way through NaNoWriMo. If you chose to not write from an outline, you may be running out of ideas or running into dead ends. How do you keep moving forward and adding to your word count? Two ways are through cause/effect and worst-case scenarios.

        All the action in your story should be cause-and-effect.

You can use this principle in two ways when you don't know what to write next

        Think of what would logically follow from the last set-back. Did her boyfriend get kidnapped? What is in character for her? Maybe chase the captors, maybe go to her ex-boyfriend who is a detective, maybe lock herself in her room and cry. A quick hint: if you are having trouble moving forward, the last scene might not have ended with a big enough set-back. The great

er the set-back, the easier it usually is to decide what happens next

      While you are doing this technique, be thinking about worst-case scenarios. This goes back to the view-point character's scene goal. If you are stuck in your writing and using one of the two techniques just discussed, you may come up with a goal as you go along. This is fine. Once you know the goal, you can alter the scene so it ends in a set-back for your view-point character.

Procrastination Plan: Time Mismanagement

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Strategies to Reach 50k: Linear/ Nonlinear Approaches

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      Basically, you can write a story in two ways: you can write front to back (linear) or you can skip around (nonlinear). Both approaches have their advantages and disadvantages.

       The linear approach is probably what first comes to mind for a writing strategy since you read a book in a linear fashion. It may be necessary to write your scenes in order if you are going without an outline. This approach can be a wonderful way to let your story initially unfold.

      Unfortunately, I think linear writers are more prone to get stuck when they do not know what happens next. Another drawback of linear writing is that when the story takes a life of it own, the new characters or events or back story do not have a foundation. It is important to remember that linear drafts are not set in granite.

      Nonlinear writers, when faced with the dilemma of not knowing what comes next, are free to write a different scene, earlier or later in the sequence of events. Nonlinear writers also have an easier time rearranging scenes since they are less susceptible to the belief that their scenes are set in stone.

      On the other hand, scenes written out of sequence are more likely to be out of harmony with one another since the writer's perception may have changed drastically between Scene 1 and Scene 2. And massive tweaks are still needed. Some writers might find it even more difficult to go back and lay the foundation for future developments because maybe not all the foundation scenes are written yet.

      You just need to find what works for you.

Panster Help: When Your Story Stalls

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If you are doing NaNoWriMo, then about now things start to slide. The story stalls as you something doesn't pan out, you hit a dead end, or a character doesn't work out. These problems may be especially prevalent among pansters – people who write “by the seat of their pants” instead of by an outline. Here are a few tricks to get your story moving again...

 

Introduce a good guy. This could be a new ally to be won over, a romantic interest, or a relative who comes to live with your main character (to name a few). All of these people – while “good guys” – can complicate the life of your main character. Maybe the person is reluctant, secretive, and/or comes with his or her own agenda.

 

Add a bad guy. This could be a false ally, a rival (romantic or otherwise), or a new all-out antagonist (just to name a few). All these people have goals that directly oppose those of the main character. Maybe they want the character to fail, or they are in competition for the goal, or they mean well but act at cross-purposes to the main character.

 

Introduce a subplot. A subplot is a mini-story or event arc that somehow ties into the main story and/or the theme. Subplots begin in the main body of the book and conclude any time from that point to just before (or very rarely just after) the final battle. Subplot ideas can include a romantic subplot between secondary (or primary) characters, the mending of a damaged relationship, or a personal growth arc.

 

Add a phase in the struggle. This is sometimes known as a “story arc”. In trying to reach the story goal, your main character may try different angles, travel different places, meet different people. Whatever way your story progresses, add another step, another obstacle, another dead end or lesson learned.

Writing Fears: Failure

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Strategies to reach 50k: Accountability

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      While internal motivation is by far the best motivator, a little accountability can go a long way. Accountability leads to other people encouraging, suggesting, and asking about your book Their interest and support (or skepticism) can be powerful prods to keep you writing.
      These people can be perfect strangers. I go out and work in a deli two days a week and a bookstore once a week. I carry around a stuffed writing buddy with a nifty t-shirt. Writers recognize it and ask what I write and share their own projects. Strangers ask what the t-shirt says or comment on how cute the squirrel is and I can say that it's my moral support while I work on a book. A week later, these people stop by and ask how my book is going, tell me about books they have read, or ideas they have had for my book or one of their own. One kid started writing his own book and stops by every week to tell me about it. So fun!
      These people can be family. Family can probably be the most trusted to get onto you when you don't meet your goals, to let you ramble on incessantly as you try to hammer out some minute detail, or a shoulder to cry on after you've killed a character. Family also tends to be skeptical that you really will finish your book so there's the added incentive of proving them wrong. I know it took me almost a year to prove to my family that I was serious about it.
      These people can be other writers. There are many writing networks out there. Who better to cheer you on, offer encouragement or commiseration, and sage advice than writers at your level of experience, those with more experience, and those with less? You can even tailor your interactions to your needs for time, privacy, and support. There's library groups, professional groups, social media groups. When you form a connection with someone, there can be emails, phone conversions, and face-to-face encounters.
      This person can be yourself. Make goals, post them where they are clearly visible, and track your progress (or success and failure rates) to get a realistic idea of your progress.
      The point of accountability is to gain outside support and motivation for your writing effort. Sometimes that little extra push that comes from expectations is all you need to keep going.

Procrastination Plan for NaNoWriMo: Perpetual Edits

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      While editing is a perfectly valid source of inspiration, it can easily become a way to waste time. If your goal is to get down as many words as possible, you may be better off simply glancing over what you wrote last time and then moving right along.
      On a first draft, repetitive editing is often easier than writing new material because the words you are editing already exist. Those words are safe, written, and proof of your ability to write... something. By moving on, you might write off track, write badly, or write nothing. Scary thought.
      But if you go off track from your plan, sometimes your imagination is on to something. It may be exploring a previously unnoticed facet or possibility in what was already created. If not, you can start over – saving the tangent in your scrap pile a possible fodder for another book, of course.
      And if your new words are not very good, it's alright. First drafts are for getting the ideas down. As long as you what you write makes sense and you can follow the inner and outer action, you've done well. If you think that you will not be able to come back later and understand what you have written, then it is time to edit. Add whatever is needed for a casual reader to make sense of thee action.
      What if you can't write at all? Take baby steps. Give your character a goal based on the outcome of his last conflict (there was some kind of failure, upheaval, or revelation, right?) Brainstorm ways your character can trip himself up when presented with opposition. While you write this, you may get part-way through and have a better idea. Just shuffle the fragment into your scrap pile and keep writing.
      Just keep moving forward.

Writing Fears: Chances to Be Better Writer

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        Fear of failure can become a powerful tool if used correctly. Motivation, character insights, and growth as a writer... all can come from examining and facing your fears. Wait, what?

         Fears of failure, fears you aren't good enough, and fears you will fall behind your friends. All these have implicit goals in them. And the best way to fight these fears is to write. Keep going until you succeed. Get better. Write faster. You can use your fears to give you that little extra boost of energy and motivation to reach your personal goals.

         All characters need a flaw and fears of failure can be crippling until overcome. A great character arc, eh? Further, a fear of failing to reach the story goal is a natural phase that the character goes through – it makes the story more intense. But this fear needs to be believable – not just through external obstacles but through the character's feelings. Your fears and those of others can help you develop believable characters.

         The precise nature of your fears (just what you are afraid of) may highlight your weak points as a writer. Some fears are meant to be accepted and harvested as fodder for your books. But fears that reveal personal or writing weaknesses can be accepted, harvested, and overcome. Fears of failure are often overcome by changes in perception of failure.

         First, allow for failure as a part of success. You are an inventor – not every idea will be genius. You are an artist – you need experience to create a masterpiece. You are a writer – you aren't stuck with what you first produce, you can revise.

         Second, learn to forgive yourself. It is easy to fear failure when you believe failure reflects on you as a person. If you fail and you tried your best (or almost best), the flaw was not in you but in your materials, your skills, or your approach. These may or may not reflect on you as a writer and can be enhanced, changed, or exchanged. Examine your “failed” project. Once you know why it has failed, congratulate yourself instead of beating yourself up. Make a goal of changing. Now you can move forward out of self-blame.

         Writing is an intensely personal, intense, and involving act. But even when it is an integral part of you, it is still only a part. You may have failed, but You-The-Person are not a failure just because a character, subplot, or entire project does not work. Everyone fails sometimes, which it is why to base your personal identity on any one thing. It is a good idea to have several important areas of your life that you can retreat to for success or affirmation when your writing goes bad.

        So bring it on.

Pantster Help: Moving Forward Without Plot

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      Some people prefer not to plot or can’t plot without loosing the drive to write. In writing lingo, this person is called a “panster” while people who prefer to plot are called “plotters”. Because they have at best has only a vague idea of where the story will go, pansters face some unique challenges. The “Panster Help” articles that appear scattered through this month are attempts to address some of these issues.
      Pansters may not know where their characters are going but they do have characters. Story action happens when characters set goals, obstacles appear, and they go against these obstacles. The character may win, loose, appear to win, partially win, or win for now.
      The goal gives the character a reason to act. If the character does not act, there is nothing to write about. By the end of the Beginning of the book, the character will have a long-term goal in mind but the in the Beginning, Middle, and End, the character will always need concrete, short-term goals. Concrete, so physical action or dialogue can occur. And short-term because each of these goals will be a step on your path to reach the greater goal.
      The obstacles make the goal interesting to the reader and promote character and/or story growth. The reader likes (maybe even loves) your character but if the character does not struggle, the reader will loose interest. Obstacles need to be external – in the form of a person, action, or object – but the primary effects can still be internal.
      The conflict arises from the character with the goal who faces the obstacle(s). Maybe the character questions previous beliefs, refuses to face fears, or realizes something about another person. A path of action may be removed or a new door of possibility opened.
      When you are stuck, look at what has just happened to the character, what new immediate goals the character could make in an attempt to reach the long-term goal. Next look for obstacles to throw down on the path to that goal. Then decide how your character will react to those obstacles (considering fears, knowledge, and resources). Now you are writing again!

Strategies to Reach 50k: Concept

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      Your story concept can emphasize characters , plot, or theme. Of the three, characters and plot are by far the most common. And to keep our story going, you need to develop plot and/or character obstacles, complexities, and backstory.
      An obstacle hinders your plot or character (not that the two should truly be separated but authors tend to emphasize one over the other). You will need a character and/or plot that is attracts obstacles like windows attract birds. You need obstacles that will slam into the character/plot so hard that one or the other will break. One way to do this is to adjust your character/plot so that it encounters people with conflicting viewpoints and goals. A second way is through rich settings that hinder or challenge the character’s personal journey or provide physical obstacles to reaching the goal. A third (almost fundamental) way is to develop characters who act as rivals, opponents, and deceivers.
      A complexity is a detail or cluster of details or hints that you can later explore either because you are stuck or because you want to enrich your story. This could be a character’s necklace or a beggar in the street who your character helps, avoids, or abuses. It could be ruins in an ancient forest or a scar. Any of these details can be brought back later and explored more in depth. They can become the source of new conflicts, goals, or revelations. Explaining details is also an excellent way to get unstuck.
      A particular type of plot and character complexity is backstory. Backstory is the past events before your story started – either in the plot or in a character’s life. Backstory helps you better understand character and plot because it explains why people and events now are what they are. Backstory can explain character motives and what plot paths are opened or closed. Relationships between groups (political, for instance) and individuals (animosity, perhaps) all have backstory. But so does the land, the nation, and cultures that your plot and character lives among. This is why so many writers advocate character and setting sketches and why writers of certain genres spend so much time on world-building. What happened before shapes and generates current (and future) characters and plots.

Time-Saving Tactics: Try Half-Drafts

By Alina Chase

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      When all you’re trying to do is capture thoughts,  develop ideas and explore possibilities, why restrict yourself to sentences, paragraphs and chapters?  Nothing will bring your train of thought to a screeching halt faster than stopping to ponder a comma or word choice or sentence structure. If you scribble and draw instead of write, you can capture ideas more quickly and more ideas on one page with no rules to distract you.
      Try using a cheap spiral notebook (or the flip side of wasted printouts) and a pen or Crayons instead of your laptop. Then "write" using symbols, graphical representations and your version of shorthand. Advanced doodlers may even want to add stick figures or sketches. Do this in any way that makes sense to you, keeping in mind that the fewer words you use at this stage, the more time you'll save.
      Then number, letter or otherwise code your ideas. Connect conepts with lines and arrows. Combine points with boxes that represent paragraphs, scenes, or chapters. Then, later, you can shuffle sheets around, spread them across the floor, or tape them to a wall to experiment with different scene and chapter sequences
      Think of these first drafts as half drafts for pantsters, graphical outlines for plotters. Quick to develop and review, they'll minimize time wasted on tangents and writing clunky first-draft prose destined to be deleted. They contain just enough information to jog your memory so that when you do get back to the laptop, you can focus all your energy on writing brilliantly!

Productive Pastimes - 3 Morale-Boosting Exercises

By Alina Chase

Glowing Embers. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

If your fiction is fizzling, your blog is “blah” or you just can’t stop surfing long enough to finish (or start) your latest project, maybe all you need is an ego boost. Try these creative exercises to broaden your perspective, renew your enthusiasm—and give yourself some well-earned kudos.

1-Write Rave Reviews

No rules! You’re making stuff up and nobody will see it. You have fresh ideas, a brilliant approach and phenomenal style, so… What will fans say? What will the editors and bloggers competing for personal interviews write? Will your favorite author write a rave review or trash you on Facebook (obviously jealous)?

2-Thank Your Supporters

Remember how many people believe in you. Then write acknowledgments. Thank family and friends for contributions and moral support. (Can you imagine how delighted they’ll be to see their names in print?) Thank living and long-dead authors for inspiration. And remember to thank your future agent/publicist/producer for helping you launch a remarkable new blockbuster.

3-Write a Dedication

Tear-jerking or comical, public acknowledgement or private joke, a dedication will refuel ambition. Dedicate your book to an individual, a small circle of friends or to a group of professionals or volunteers you admire. Or think five years forward, dedicating it to the college professor who said you would –never- succeed as a writer. (But you did…so there!)

Dig deep to get to the heart of why you’re writing and who you’re writing for. Get arrogant, sappy, spiteful, funny. Nobody's grading these exercises, so have fun with them! One belly laugh, one tingling of renewed spirit or one new insight into this inexplicable craving we have to write may be all it takes to get your writing back on track.