Writer's Block

It happens to the best of us.  You can't think of the next part of your story.  You have lost any inspiration you had related to the story, and you wonder if it's even worth finishing the story anyway.  Afterall, what you have written so far is C-R-A-P. 

In no particular order, here are some tips to help you push through these "writer blocks."

* Keep writing.  If you are stuck on a section write the action that needs to happen (For example "Boy meets girl - is disgusted"), then move onto the next scene you can write about. 

* It's okay to skip around in your story. Don't feel like you have to write it chronologically.

* Remember that every good book is a re-write.  You will be amazed at what several rounds of editing can transform your book into.

* Reward yourself for writing x-amount of something. (A piece of candy, a favorite TV show, etc.)

* Try not to re-write until the end. You'll never finish if you can't get past the first part, and you might lose the story line.

* Switch to another project if you have to, BUT don't forget to come back to it later.

* Read books similar to the one you are trying to write.  What did they do with the area you are stuck on? 

*Observe people around you.  See how they react to different situations.

*Watch TV.  How do they portray romances, build intrigue, solve a crime, etc?

*Play story games.  Mad Lips has you list nouns, verbs, etc, before you know what the story is.  When you're done, you read the story, inserting words from your list as you go down.  Another game is where someone starts a story, and then passes it on to the next person after so many sentences or x amount of time has passed.  Another variation you can play mixes those two games.  In it, everyone writes down some nouns, verbs, and adjectives.  They then place the words face down in a pile based on the type of word they are.  Everyone then draws a word from each pile so that everyone has a noun, verb, and adjective in their hand.  Someone then picks a genre, and you go around a circle trying to use the words in your hand.  Every person is responsible for part of the story and the last person in line has to finish it off (if they can.)