Young Writers Society

We've all been there -- we get knee-deep into a project and then suddenly find ourselves wondering why we even wanted to write it in the first place. Everything you're writing looks horrible on the page and you lose faith in it.

So, what about that initial spark? Why did you want to write about this project in the first place?

I read a book lately -- Write Your Novel in a Month by Jeff Gerke -- that recommended a useful piece of advice that I wanted to pass on.

When you get started on a project, don't be afraid to gush about it. Open up a document and just outline everything that you love about it. Do you love your characters? The plot? The message behind it? Do you have a scene in mind that you're eager to write? Go on for as long as you can -- this doesn't have to be entirely coherent, you just have to be able to read it later.

Then, when you're feeling down about the project, remember to pull up that document! Remember why you wanted to start writing it in the first place! Maybe, in writing, you've strayed from your core idea or maybe you've just become disillusioned (and that's okay!), but remember why you started writing it in the first place. There was a driving force behind it.

This is a great idea! I need to start doing this when I start new projects, because that slump in the middle where I fall out of love with a project is a Real Issue that totally gets in the way of finishing things. Thanks, Evander!

I also love this idea! *Puts it down on list of Things to Do*

I know what I have done before is just dump a paragraph or two about the overall themes in the book and the really important and exciting character moments in my head and how they happened. This works both as plotting and to remind me of the state of mind my main character is in, but I could definitely get myself even more excited if I did this.