Hey, who put that wall there?

You know the wall I’m talking about, right? Yep, you guessed it ... ‘writer’s block’.

I know, I know, writers block is a forever ongoing topic up for discussion and, there are tips posted all over the place you can easily find from other writers or authors. But let’s be honest. What works for them, might not work for you. So what can you do to keep that wall at bay?

Sorry, I don’t have the answer. Because personally, I don’t think there is one solid method that can break the wall ... that works for everyone. All you can do is try different techniques until you find the right one. Plus, it helps to know the reason behind why you are hitting that wall. Is it a plot problem, an underdeveloped character, or you simply can’t quiet work out where to go next and feel like giving up.

Been there done that.

It happens to me when I’m getting to the half way mark of my MS and I completely freak out. That freak out moment lasted almost two years. Seriously, I’m not kidding. Now I write everyday no matter how big or small the word count is. I’m just happy to be writing and no longer have that wall standing in my way.

So how did I break through the wall after so long? Easy, I worked out the reason for my ‘writers block’ and went back to the beginning.  

I re-read my entire MS (what I had of it), my notes, everything. I soon learned that I had no idea where my story was going. To some degree I knew what I wanted to happen at the end of the story, I just didn’t know how to get there and what should happen in between. Therefore I was plot less mess.   

So, problem identified ... now what?

I read everything and anything to do with plotting until I found what works for me. And the book that turned on that switch inside my brain and brought the flicker of ideas back to life was Plot & Structure by James Scott Bell.

This book covers everything from Plot Patterns, Common Plot Problems and Cures to Tips and Tools for Plot and Structure. I love this book, but what I love more is the exercises after each chapter that you can do over and over again. Your given a number of different ways to help you stir the plot pot, not just one sure fire way. This book is a keeper. And now I have plots running out of my ears on a daily basis, and index cards quickly being filled with all kinds of possibilities for my story. 

But don’t take my word for it, read it for yourself. Okay, come on; tell me how you fought off the dreaded writers block wall. Was it with a sledge hammer? 

Dear Character: Why do you have to die?

This seems to have been a popular topic going around lately. But, in saying that, it only really caught my attention while I was attending a panel with authors Kirsten Tranter, Shamini Flint and Georgia Richter at the Big Sky Festival last weekend “Choose your genre: crime, mystery, thriller or literary fiction?”

Obviously in these types of genres someone always ends up dead, right? It wouldn’t be much of a story without it.

Shamini Flint, author of the Investigator Singh series said that for her “Death is just a catalyst.” Huh, really? Is that how every writer thinks when wiping one of their characters of the grid? Shamini also pointed out that the death of a character in her novels had to happen so the Inspector could begin to ask questions and get the people talking about the ‘real’ issues that she wanted to talk about. “If I write a book to talk about issues such as terrorism or law no one will listen to what I have to say.” She’d said.

Ah, yes, but write it as a crime novel and you have everyone’s attention. And when you really think about it, doesn’t every book, to some degree have an underlying message the writer is trying to put forward to the reader to contemplate.

Personally, I haven’t killed any of my characters off yet, but I know at some point someone will die. Unfortunately for them it’s inevitable and, necessary to the story. After all, that’s life. People die all the time in the real world. Why should it be any different in a fictional world? Nothing is ever perfect.

Honestly, I’m dreading the moment I have to sit down and write that crucial scene.  

Let me ask you this:

What does it mean for you to kill off one of your characters?