Hello
and Happy Solstice to everyone out there in the interwebs! For many of us in
the Northern Hemisphere, this time of year harkened the onset of a few months
of hard-won, glorious freedom from the daily school routine. Don't get me
wrong, school was wonderful for a whole host of reasons (I know, a nerd who
loved school…who'd have thunk it?), but having that extra time and brainpower
to spend as you saw fit seemed like a luxury. Now, as an adult with a full-time
job, the concept of summer vacation may be a thing of the past (fie on that!),
but it seems as though the pace of life seems to slow a bit during these few
months as people try to enjoy the fleeting bits of good weather.
Between
this and the onset of yet another battle with the workish Elder Hydra, I'm
trying to cram in as much enjoyment/hobby time as humanly possible. Since the
GIR and I are, lamentably enough, not going to Gen Con this year, all the
effort that would normally be given to a costume is instead being allocated to
my other favorite creative outlet: writing.
At
the moment, the object of my scriptic affections is something I've wanted to do
for many years now: GM a campaign. You might remember back to last year's rundown of releases and gaming developments at Gen Con 2012 and a brief mention of
Fantasy Flight's newest foray into RPGs, Star Wars: Edge of the Empire. This,
my friends, will be the system with which I (hopefully) will begin my GMing
career. A full review of the system will be the subject of a future post, but
right now I'm giddily embroiled in a tangle of plot threads and character
development.
At
this point, though the campaign universe and I have a long history, the premise
of developing an RPG adventure is still new enough that the novelty alone will
keep me happily creating for the time being. However, I know that all too soon
the ease with which the words flow will taper and perhaps even grind to a halt.
It doesn't matter how engaging the subject matter is or how enthused I am about
a project. At some point during the composition process my brain will
straight-up rebel and those cerebral parts that are normally happy to wordsmith
will pitch a hissy fit and stubbornly refuse to continue or, more commonly,
will feel generally blah and in no fit state to create.
Such
is the way of things. Were time and distractions limitless, I'd leave this
dreaded writer's block to resolve itself. Unfortunately, that sort of luxury is
not readily afforded to anyone who writes any sort of content that is intended
to be consumed by another person. We're often subject to deadlines or the
expectations of our readers, neither of which will stand idly by simply because
new authorial ideas have become hard to procure.
Aside
from this blog, my graduate thesis, and the forthcoming campaign, I write a
not-insignificant amount as part of my job and, over the years, have developed
a few little exercises to help overcome the writer's block malady. Though, in
all honesty, this issue extends to most, if not all, creative pursuits. So if
writing isn't your thing, you can probably apply these to just about any
project.
First
and foremost item to consider when you're at a loss for words: Why are you
writing this?
Seriously.
What is your intended outcome for this work? Do you want to derive anything
personally from this? If so, what? Is this a story you feel needs to be told?
Are you hoping to entertain an audience? Is this a brand new genre/style that
you've been dying to experiment with? Are you hoping to get published?
Sometimes,
particularly if you've been embroiled in a project for an extended period, we
lose sight of why we embarked on this journey in the first place. It's
extremely easy to do and often causes all sorts of frustration. Taking a step
back and reconnecting with the intended purpose of your work can often help
clear away any mental "clutter", or extraneous thoughts about the
project, and set you back on a productive path.
If
that doesn't work or you feel that mental "clutter" hasn't dropped
away as much as you'd like, move on to some self-diagnosis. What do you think
is causing the "blockage"? The most common responses tend to be: lack
of inspiration, fatigue, overwhelmed by new project/genre or thinking that
nothing you write is good enough/original.
Let's
tackle those one at a time.
Lack
of Inspiration
You
feel completely blah about any and all ideas that spring to mind. It's not that
you don't want to compose, it's that you feel you have nothing to write about.
There's a lot of sitting down to sketch out your thoughts and coming away with
blank pages. Counter this deficiency by indulging in some of your favorite works
or, ideally, a combination of well-loved precedents and content that is new to
you. Stop thinking about your own project and surround yourself with pieces you
admire. Don't limit yourself to the media form that your current efforts are
based in. If you love some Tolkien, maybe read a few chapters from the Hobbit
and watch one of the Trilogy or listen to the soundtrack. If Gaiman strikes
your fancy, perhaps take in some artwork based on his prose, then flip through
your favorite issue of The Sandman. As you're doing this, try to take in the
material mindfully. Ask yourself questions periodically. Why are these works so
good? What about them moves you? It's also perfectly ok if you can't define the
answers to those in words. The responses can manifest just as nicely in your
thoughts. Let yourself drift away for a bit. You'd be surprised how not
actively considering your own process for a while can free up your mind.
Fatigue
You
are just too damned tired or stressed out. The mere thought of creating just adds
one more chore to your unending to-do list. Ugh and fie on writing!
<flails> First off, deep breaths. Clear your head as best you can. Once
you've regained your bearings, ask yourself this: Is this actual burnout or is
this ennui? At times it can be tricky to discern the two, but, frequently, the
distinction is pretty clear. If you're burnt out, just
physically/emotionally/creatively drained, stop actively thinking or working on
the project if at all possible. Do something completely different; occupy your
hours with anything but writing. Give your brain and body a chance to rest and
reset. If you absolutely have to continue chipping away at your project, make
notes as needed (world building exercises are excellent for just this purpose)
but no further construction. For serious. Just. Stop.
Ennui,
however, is a completely different matter (and a generally awesome word). This
is the mental equivalent of, "I should
go to the gym, but I just don't feel like it." It's what makes
procrastination so easy if you're prone to such. In any case, the response is
the same: force yourself to create anyway. Exert some control over that
petulant mind. Rwar! Though the brain isn't a muscle, the concept of plasticity
definitely applies; you'll get better the more you practice. Obviously that's
not exactly what someone mired in ennui wants to hear, but it's a sure-fire way
to resolve the problem (and improve your overall writing skills in the
process). Get yourself revved up and back in the fight!
Overwhelmed
Taking
on this project/genre seemed like such a good idea at the incept, but now
you're buried under the dual-faceted avalanche of trying to create while
learning something new. Since the problem is two-sided, the response should
address each piece of the issue. Go back to the fundamental question: Why you
are doing this? Once you've redefined why this project was so appealing in the
first place, follow the steps outlined for someone lacking inspiration only, in
this instance, limit yourself to the media form you hope to create. In the case
of writing, look to authors you admire in this particular style. One decent way
to "jump start" yourself is borrow a section of someone else's text, then spend
some time breaking it down into various components, analyze those components,
then set back to your own composition. Reverse engineering works as well with
writing as it does with other creative processes. Bonus: it's also a great way
to introduce yourself to and gain familiarity with new vocabulary!
Nothing
good/original
You've
got plenty down on paper/Word docs, but it's just not good enough. Or, what you
have is ok, but you feel like you've read/heard/seen this narrative a hundred
times before. Well, you're technically not wrong. According to literary historians,
nothing is original. Anything you come up with is one or more of the 36 Dramatic Situations (or insert any number of similar such lists here). While
this may be somewhat disheartening, that doesn't imply that what you're
attempting to make isn't good quality or worthwhile. By this logic, you're
working with the same fundamental material as everyone else who has ever
created a work of written, auditory, or visual art. That right there is pretty
cool. So try not to get caught up in the idea that everything you make has to
be 100% unique content. Also, be nice to yourself. The quantity and severity of
self-criticism tends to correlate with the amount of emotional investment and
aggregate time spent on a project. The practice is so easy to pick up that
sometimes you don't even realize what your mental monologue is actually saying.
Keep
plugging away while you can; don't shy away from taking breaks as needed. Then
give your work to a neutral 3rd party. It's tempting to pass your writing off
to a friend for review/initial thoughts but, if you really want to know if what
you're doing is any good, seek out the opinion who has no personal ties to you.
Bring friends into the mix on the second or third drafts.
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