I have eaten two fairy cakes (one of which I was saving for my husband), a bar of chocolate. I've had numerous cups of tea. I've watched two episodes of West Wing and I've got my knitting tangled up. I'm writing, you see.
Or rather, I'm stuck you see.
I can't get the story to come out right. If it was coming out right I wouldn't be indulging in sugar, caffeine, west wing, knitting or even writing this. I would be writing the story that I have in my head that is trying so desperately to get out but is, well, stuck.
How can I unstick it?
I know where I want to go. I know what is going to happen next and where the character has to go. But how can I get there and why am I stuck?
So I'm listening to M G Leonard's podcast 'Getting stuck' to see if she can help and she's telling me to 'embrace the stickiness,' because she assures me that 'getting stuck is part of the process.
Here's the essence of her podcast in poem form:
Getting stuck is part of the process.
Narrative path stones can't go forward
characters wouldn't talk
there couldn't be a next thing
plot comes from characters
with objectives
and desires to achieve
no matter what gets in the way.
like life.
interrogate scene.
what do characters want? how badly.
two choices
1 - back track
2 -improvise and keep going
2nd way is better
1st draft like a long improvisation. mustn't block another actor.
do whatever you need to do to keep action moving forwards.
free imagination from shackles of probability.
don't look back
fundamental rule:
accept the improbable for the sake of moving forward.
identify the motivation to make scene work.
the moment you imbue character with motivation you can move forward.
getting stuck is inevitable, embrace it, improvise and keep writing.
I'll let you know how it goes!
