You've just heard about a great novel writing contest. Or it's October and you want to do NaNoWriMo next month.
So you sit down at the table with a notebook, a pencil, and your laptop.
You arrange your fingers on the keys, ready to type, and...
Nothing.
This is, sadly, a very common situation. I've run into it myself more than once. There's something about the excitement, the pressure, of a deadline that makes your brain go absolutely blank.
And how the heck do we get past this?
Here I'll list a few of my favorites techniques, guaranteed-not-guaranteed to get you writing in an hour. (It's worked for me, but hey, you ain't me, are ya?)
Tip #1: Get your jam on.
This is my favorite. Music is incredibly inspiring, whether it's the words or the feels.
Take some time. Go to Spotify, pick out some music, (either old favorites or a new atmosphere playlist) and close your eyes. Pay attention to how it makes you think or feel. Listen to the words; they tell a story.
Inspired yet?
Tip #2: Take a long drive.
This has always worked for me, even if I'm not looking for story inspiration. It doesn't even have to be a long car ride, it can be ten minutes long. (It does help to have music on as well, but is not required). Look out the window. Take in the scenery. People watch. My grandparents live out in the country, and I absolutely love the 2 hour long drive it takes to get there. You can see the leaning old barns, and the cute country houses with the white railing and big porch. You can see the dense forests, full of mystery.
I think there's something about driving that works really well for getting the creative juices flowing. The constantly changing pictures out the window? Perhaps. When everything moves at high speeds you have to stop nitpicking and look at it as a whole.
Tip #3: Word doodle.
By this, I'm not telling you to shut up and write. What I mean, is, keep a journal by you at all times. When utilizing the other tips, what I most often get is a phrase, or an idea, that sticks. Write it down. The shorter, the better. Take the name of a song, or a band, write it down. Think up a cool title and base everything on the feel of it. Sometimes you can just...imagine. You'll get this when it happens for the first time.
Lemme show you what I mean. Here's the current notes I have on my phone:
Indigo Shadow
Make Believe Kings
Auctioned off our memories
Bottled emotions, memories, etc.
Flickering between times
Mirrored maze
Mirror balcony
Introduce the common cold to aliens
Uncertain Days
Jack Frost + the other seasons...The Season of Discord
You get it better, now? This is my main source of ideas, of inspiration. Try it sometime.
(P.S. Try not to steal these. But, hey, if they inspire you to come up with something NOT too similar, feel free to use that. We're creative, right?)
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