Megan Norris Jones
If you write, then you’re a writer. You don’t have to wait for the validation of publication, starred reviews, or the best seller lists. Writers write. But what happens when you get stuck, when you’re not writing? If a person who writes is a writer, then what is a person who stares at a computer screen and then decides that she’d better go do the laundry?
We all have those moments/weeks/seasons when the words won’t come. Don’t panic. There’s no need for an identity crisis. You are still a writer. You just need to use a little bit of your creativity to come up with something that makes you step back and consider the whole story, instead of that one little element you’re stuck on, something that reminds you what makes this story worth writing in the first place.
Here are a few techniques that have helped me:
1. Write the jacket copy. Jacket copy is those two to three paragraphs on the inside flap of a hardback or on the back of a paperback that introduce potential readers to your story and convince them that they have to read it. This exercise will help you home in on the best parts of your story because they’re what’s going to sell your book. Continue reading
This month, find inspiration in other people’s words. Pick a debut novel in your genre and read a few pages before you start your daily writing session. You’ll gain insight into how other published authors are breaking out and hopefully discover something new to motivate you with your own project. Bonus: you’ll have guilt-free pleasure reading time and have read a new book by the end of the month.