Writers block is an understatement

[ADAM500]

Hi guys,
I want to start a project. Hopefully something around the 400-500 page mark but I just can't seem to come up with an ideas worth exploring. I know that if I'm going to write anything at that length and something that is actually any good it's gonna have to be something I want to write about, but do any of you have any plot ideas. Something that would spark an idea or just help me get the ball rolling. Normally I have ideas pouring out of my head, but at the moment someones 'plugged the waterhole'

Thanks in advance

Adam

 

[Jo Zebedee]

Go and have a look at the writing challenges and have a go at some flash fiction - my last three books (and my next, I can feel if building like a magical storm-mage) have come directly from them.

 

[Colbey Frost]

I get the feeling that you're putting too much pressure on yourself. Everything you said points towards that in my opinion. People normally start off with an idea that needs exploring, not I want to write a 500page epic. If that makes any sense.

If you normally have ideas coming out of your ears, I'm assuming you've written them down, placed them in your note pad / tablet / laptop etc etc. Go and explore one of those instead of clawing for something new. An exercise could be to join all your ideas, combine them into something epic, weaving plot lines etc. This way you will be forced to think between the lines, add new stuff to make what you have work. This is just an idea off the top of my head, it may or may not work, but overall I think you need to stop putting that pressure on yourself.

Good luck,

Christian

EDIT: I wouldn't ask people to share their plot ideas, they're safely hidden away in our own tattered notebooks, hehe.

EDIT: Failing that, you could look into the 7 basic plots that are said to be the base of all fiction. Google it if you're not sure of what I mean.

 

[Tecdavid]

Take Springs' advice there. If you just can't think of anything, check out competitions, either here or elsewhere. They'll suggest a theme, and you can build on that however you like. Personally, I wouldn't set my sights on a novel unless I knew I had an idea i could fully flesh out. tackling something smaller until you get into gear might be best.

 

[tinkerdan]

Here's an exercise for you.

Write a bunch of first lines or first paragraphs that you think might be the hook to any little notion that comes to mind. Introduce the character the conflict and some specific relevant event. Do this several times for different notions you might have.

Look at them and chose the one that grabs you the most and try to envision the entire plot that will bring all of that into focus.

Or for lack of any better thing after you have the first paragraph write the first chapter of each.

I've got dozens of these in my notebook stash.

 

[Dozmonic]

If you're not sure what to write in the long term, write a lot of different things short term. Different scenes, ideas, themes and characters. What you're doing is building a library of things to take into your longer piece of fiction and, more importantly, finding your passion.

 

[ADAM500]

Thanks for all your comments. That's a very good idea springs, thanks. Gonna head over there now. Christian Nash I wouldnt expect people to give their good stuff away lol. I always have a few little ideas, (ideas i don't want to write about personally) that I use to help other writers out if they ask this question. I agree with you, i think i am putting too much pressure on myself. I'm gonna get my notebook and rummage through the pages and see what I've got. Also thank you Tecdavid and tinkerdan

 

[monsterchic]

Stuck? Go to a mall/someplace public. Write down everything you see. If you happen to catch a conversation, even better (just don't overtly eavesdrop). From there, piece bits together and come up with plausible storylines. Even if they are the most random things you've ever heard of or seen.

I find that this is a good exercise because not only does it help to create a storyline (even if its crap that you won't ever use in a million years), but while creating your storyline, it stimulates ideas.

Say you saw a foreign woman being glared at by a fat, white guy. She becomes a princess from a far off fantasy land who was sold into slavery a few years ago. The guy is a rich king who has a horrible taste in clothes and eats way too much. The woman feels threatened by the king not just because she's his slave, but because he's been making advances and she doesn't want to be crushed. So, she needs to escape.

Cue epic chase across deserts, through forests, and off to the Mediterranean where she meets a handsome noodle maker and they get married and live happily ever after with all the pasta they can eat (Okay, maybe the ending's not plausible ).

I mean, this is just a wild example full of holes, but with development it has the potential to grow into a 500-page tale. Like I said, it's very useful even to just get a flow of ideas (even crappy ones )

PS: You're welcome to that idea.

 

[AnyaKimlin]

INCREASE YOUR CREATIVITY- THE ARTIST'S ROOM Guided By Lilian Eden - YouTube

I found this meditation useful last week. If cleared a lot of blocks.

 

[ADAM500]

Thanks monsterchic That's actually a very good idea, never thought of something like that, Cheers. Thanks Anyakimlin I'm checking that youtube video out now. Much appreciated

 

[psychotick]

Hi,

I always start with a scene. Something that grabs my interest. So for Thief that was a jewel thief hanging upside down on a tight rope between two buildings winching himself across on a pully system with the loot in his bag when an angel came floating down. It just struck me as a brilliantly incongruous scene that I had to write it.

After that the rest of the story came. All of it based, at least to start with, on questions. Who was the thief?What was he stealing? Why? Why was the angel visiting? At no time did I ever worry about whether it would be a short story, a novel or a series. That I found out when I finished it.

Cheers, Greg.

 

[jastius]

have you checked the workshop threads here? specifically the hook my line and sink it into a paragraph? boneman gave me a lovely line in it that has bloomed into a scad of chapters.. a geas bound victorian detective who is helped by the shade of his former best friend called by a spirit flute made from bone.
where are dozens of exercises there.. the character creation chain is really good as are the item generator and first lines threads..

 

[Aleph]

Are you enjoying yourself, though? Sometimes it might mean that the medium that you wish to tell the story might be wrong. Have you considered that maybe straight text is not how your stories wish to come out?

I would hate to be dismissive of your desire to write, but there are so many ways to tell a story, visually and through language. To hold a story in your head and translate it into a document other people can understand is hard work, and will always be hard work. You really need to enjoy sitting down and letting the words flow out. The anxiety may be telling you, hey, this is not the way you want to tell your story! I went through a stage like that and then turned to film-making for a couple of years, which I loved.

Anyway, I hope you find your groove. When you do, it will feel right and wonderful.