What to do if your inspiration is drained.

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A few months ago, after finishing my final exams for school, I found that it was impossible to write. Not writer's block, per se; my mind was simply too drained to do its usual work. I found it immensely annoying, but finally I figured out a good way to help you get back into the writing groove:


1. Make sure whatever you're writing about is something you're passionate for.

2. Now, let's use my example. I was working on a fanfiction, and in the third story I knew my character was going to die of old age at 25 (she's a barn owl/human hybrid and was created in a lab, and has a shortened lifespan.) It was a very dramatic, sorrowful scene. But of course, I hadn't planned to write this until the third book, but I decided to write it out then.

3. Basically, think of the most emotional part in your story/fanfic/poem/play, and write it out. It seems to get the writing mood back into gear, and helps me get some inspiration back. So if there's a death scene in your story, go ahead and write it out. If there's a passionate romantic scene, then write that out.

I hope this helps, because it worked great for me.

-Ari




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Yeah, I know what you mean. Sometimes, I just get tired of writing what I'm supposed to be writing (namely, the exposition and the not-so-exciting moments) and just go ahead and write those uber exciting/dramatic/awww/ooooooh! moments. It makes me love my characters again and I feel good about giving them a great moment.

Sometimes, when it's really bad, I sit down and write the scene I would write if I were writing fanfic for my own story. Namely, I write the scene where my two characters finally (!) get together (though maybe in a way they won't in my book), the main character's dramatic death, or the big fun exciting car chase scene that doesn't really take place but totally should... Writing feel-good scenes with your characters (even if they don't actually make it into the final storyline) is a great way to boost your creativity.

My trouble was, I went through a phase a few years ago where I wrote so many of them that I ended up not writing anything else and had a bunch of disjointed scenes where the characters have their first kiss about ten different ways. So, that project ended up falling through. I still have my folder of cute moments, but not much by way of actual plot.

So yeah, it's a great remedy, but in moderate amounts.

~GryphonFledgling
I am reminded of the babe by you.




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That's good stuff. When I need a muse, I read book summaries or watch television. My mind ends up ricocheting off the ideas I seen until I have my own completely different ideas.

Creativity sparks creativity.
How am I not myself?




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Go for a walk! Relax! Chill! Take a break!

That's a great way to get the juices flowing. Listening to mellow music helps too.
"Don't bother just to be better than your contemporaries or predecessors. Try to be better than yourself." William Faulkner.

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I've also been going outside to work a lot. There's a little park with a pond right by where I live, and it's pretty quiet...I go there with my laptop and work - the inspiration comes a'flowing.




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I find this even more annoying than writers block @_@

Writing that scene you've been waiting for really helps a lot...I use this trick all the time. It also helps to just reread (but not proofread) what you've written so far; that always gets me motivated to keep writing some more.
Better to write for yourself and have no public, than to write for the public and have no self.
-Cyril Connolly




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Just taking a few days off usually does the trick :)
Always looking for a good book to read.




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Sometimes I switch projects....doint that helps, but I can only work on one thing at a time.
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Watch movie trailers, not television episodes. That will help you create your own characters and stuff.

Read the first line in a book and decide how you can twist that to fit YOUR story.

Do the above said too. ;)
And we'll be a dream...

"Dee Dubbleyou." - BigBadBear




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Those are both really good suggestions.....another thing I like doing is listening to the soundtrack of a movie I like, and seeing how my writing's influenced by it. (Like Lady in the Water, Peter Pan...)
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I visit /b/, it always gets me thinking again for some reason :?
"Everything has beauty, but not everyone sees it."




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You visit...what? I don't think I understand.
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Just take some time off of writing. Some times when I'm tired of writing what I am or can't think of anything for the story I will put all my writing stuff away and just take a break. After a couple of days I know what I am going to do and I will start to write again.




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Seraphania wrote:You visit...what? I don't think I understand.


A very funny image board
el oh el




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What the heck? The first thing I see on that website is porn! Oh God, my eyes....what's your problem?
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