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Nothing as melodramatic as some ancient ritual, mind you nor is there some esotoric
potion, but these few tips may help.
1)Schedule your writing; set aside some time, preferable the same time each day,
where you can sit quietly and comfortably and do your writing without distraction. I read this in Stephen King's On Writing,
and its' an invaluble tip. Even if you don't actually end up writing anything. I even go to the extremes of shutting the curtains
on the outside world and unplugging the phone.
2)Always keep several writing projects on the go simultaneously. This
way, if you burn out on one you can switch to another, often something totally new comes up in between. I don't know where
this little gem came from but its' true, I currantly have three novels on the go and quite often switch between them.
3)Keep
a journal, each day write about a particular event. If nothing especially interesting happened then embellish a mundane occurrence
or something someone said. Quite often you can get at least a short story idea off this.
4) Be outrageous, thing of
the most daring statement or act your fictional character might make and the affects this might have and see where this leads.
Even if you don't use it at least your writing.
5)Sit in you local coffee shop with your notebook, keep your ears open
for snippets of conversation and use them to develop a scene or plot. I find myself doing this more and more often, bus stops
are quite good as well.
6)Get together with a fellow writer and have a brainstorming session, take turns at writing
a scene or developing a character. Quite easy in here, the story threads can be quite an exercise trying to follow another
persons thread, or when they start throwing in new bits completly off track (frowns at a certain ferret)
7)Listen to
the lyrics some of your favorite songs, what stories are going on here, how could you develop them into a piece of prose?
There are some fantastic lyrics out there, who remembers the Bill and Ted scene? "Every rose has its' thorn."
8)Take
a break from what you're working on and just write freely what's on your mind right now. A good form of writing and cartharsis!
9)Open
one of your favorite books and pick out words randomly, write them down and then work them into a scene and see what comes
out. For a real challange try something like a cookery book.
10)Try writing in a totally different setting than you usually do, outdoors or on the
bus. I quite like writing on a quiet sunday at our local pub. You can get some real inspiration, even if after a few pints
your spelling does start to get worse.
11)Take a walk, forget about your writing, just observe, walk around the shops
or a gallery, watching people, their mannerisms and the way they interact, then go home and write about what you've seen.
It can be quite educational
12)Try writing in a totally different style or genre, something you wouldn't usually use,
this might just open up a new thread of creativity you didn't know you had. Generally I write comedy, fantasy. But recently
I had a go at writing some horror. The result was quite surprising. In fact I find I am slowly writing less and less of the
funny stuff.
13)Talk your writing out loud to someone or into a tape recorder them play in back, try to listen objectively.
Another really good tip, you would be surprised just how easy it is to spot a way to polish up that story, or add that extra
bit.
14)Don't always begin at the beginning, if you have an idea begin in the middle and work your way out, let the
story unfold itself for you. My first started off this way it was written in no specific order, and it in no way harmed the
end result.
Finally always remember you have the talent and creativity to write, look back through some of the pieces
you have written which you are proud of and give your confidence a boost.
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