Writing in the Storm – How I get my Story Moving Again
I love writing in the storm, only being able to see a few feet in front of me at a time, as the story takes shape behind the veil, capturing it as quickly as I can type, as it comes to me through the clouds.
This is the way I like to write, I have tried planning my stories out, but it just does not work for me.
Nothing thrills me more than setting off into the wilderness grasping an idea in one hand and a hope and a prayer in the other. I can consistently kick out two thousand words, six days a week, with little to no problems. I like to give my imagination a rest day, at the end of the week, after an intense week of writing.
It is an exciting thrill ride, where given the right conditions, showing up consistently, on time everyday, it pays off.
“Inspiration exists, but has to find you working” ~ Pablo Picasso
But it is not a path for the faint of heart, many perils lie along the way, self doubt, the ridicule of others, crazy ideas that make no sense. But I believe if I show up consistently my ideas will come and they usually do, as the story reveals itself to me.
Sometimes as the self-doubt starts gnawing on my creative edge, usually around the 10k-20k mark, where I think, where is this story going, why am I writing it? I take an hour or two or just even twenty minutes to throw a quick premise down. To quell that inner doubter. I do it in the evening to separate it from my regular writing times. But it helps crystallize things in my own head, so that I can get moving again.
Here is my formula:
First I ask myself five fast questions –
- What is this story about?
- What does my protagonist want?
- What do I want to resonate with my readers?
- What’s the point of this story?
- Do I care about this story, what lies at it’s heart?
I grab a note pad and pen and go as fast as I can, I brainstorm the answers.
This is not a linear list, it’s just to get my brain thinking about my story, from a global view, like pantsing my draft, I pants my premise too. Knowing that thinking too much, at least for me, might scare the magic away, so I hold it loosely.
Then for about 10-20 minutes I try to nail my story to the page, in one or two sentences.
Here’s a formula for building a logline-
* a logline was once used in the movie industry to sell a movie to a studio, it is a great way to condense and crystallize your story.
It’s the one or two sentence summary of your story that not only conveys your premise, but also gives the reader emotional insight into the story as a whole.
Here’s an example from Star Wars:
Restless farm boy (situation) Luke Skywalker (protagonist) wants nothing more than to leave home and become a starfighter pilot, so he can live up to his mysterious father (objective). But when his aunt and uncle are murdered (disaster) after purchasing renegade droids, Luke must free the droids’ beautiful owner and discover a way to stop (conflict) the evil Empire (opponent) and its apocalyptic Death Star.
I take the example above and slot my story in, moving around the elements that I need to. Once my logline is nailed down, this becomes my guiding star that helps direct my story. Now I said helps, because if a better idea decides to show up with something unexpected that I love, I stay flexible to new possibilities. The truth is, for me at least, the bones of the story are already there, I’m just clearing off the dirt so I can see the shape better.
Then I file away my premise, as I hand it over to my unconscious mind to continue solidifying what my story is about.
This is like throwing creative rocket fuel on my story and away we go again. Normally I don’t hit too many bumps in the road, usually only once or twice, once near the start and occasionally once near the end. I’ll share my tips and strategies on how I get past the final bump in a couple of weeks, as I approach the finish line on my current work.
Finally I put my head down once more to write, the path way opens before me and I see the sunshine peeking through the trees, whispering softly, let us go, your adventure lies this way.
These thoughts, skills and techniques are my own, they are what work for me. So if you have strategies that work great for you, then awesome! Why don’t you share them in the comments box below, along with any other ideas or suggestions, or anything else you would like to share, I’d love to hear from you!
What works for you?
Follow me on twitter @sk_lamont
You might also like:
• Confessions of a Pantser – Write 2,000 Words a Day Fast
S.K.—OMG great blog and I can so relate! Thank you for writing it and sharing. “But it is not a path for the faint of heart, many perils lie along the way, self doubt, the ridicule of others, crazy ideas that make no sense. But I believe if I show up consistently my ideas will come and they usually do, as the story reveals itself to me.” THIS is ME. Thank you for reminding me what it takes and why I’m here.
Kim
Kim! I’m so glad that this blog resonated with you and I am excited about traveling a familiar road together 🙂
Great post. So glad I found you!
Yes, I’ve hit that same bump in the avenue of pantsers. We need some federal funds to smooth things out.
In my last novel-writing experience, I felt compelled to go to my keyboard every evening and write a detective noir story. The character showed up at dusk like clockwork. “Okay,” I said, “I’m coming.” And he led me on paths I didn’t recognize to I knew not where, until I said, “You need to tie up all these loose ends at some point,” and he fled. Never felt his presence again.
So I stopped showing up too.
Dreadful. Better to try your technique and get back to the writing.
Thanks!
Wow Diane, I’ve never had this happen before, but now I know the possibilities, I’m looking in the shadows, for my soon to be known stranger, this excites me to no end 🙂 Loved reading your comment!
P.S. Diane I would love to hear the progress with your story and your character, let me know if he makes an appearance again! Thanks for sharing!
You’re motivating me to get back to it!
You might enjoy reading this piece on my site: http://squirrelsinthedoohickey.com/?p=2972
You’ll see why I’m sharing, when you get to the end.
I’ve bookmarked your post to refer to when I get stuck.
Excellent way to prepare oneself for writing. I really like your analogy to the picture you posted. Sure writing is not a linear process. I think writers are lateral thinker. Well done.
Thanks for your comment Majida! Yes I think writers have to think in all sorts of crafty ways to grab that elusive story by the tail and capture it on the page 🙂
Fantastic! I love the logline idea!
Thanks for your comment Allison! Yes the logline can really help solidify your story!