Help! I Have Writer's Block!!! (No I Don't...)

So here's a personal update:

I've been writing pretty intensively since summer started and I realized the other day in a conversation about my writer's block that I don't actually have writer's block.

Let me explain that.

I know that, if I get the chance to publish more than one book, this concept is a multi-book series. I'm looking at 2 or 3 books total. My first book (which I'm currently writing) I divided into two parts. I had an epic ending for part 1 and I was struggling to write part 2. Basically I reached a point in my writing of book 1 where all my story ideas were ideal for a sequel. I couldn't come up with anything to fill the gap between where I had left off and everything that I had in my head for book 2. I thought it was just the worst case of writer's block I had ever had. 

Turns out, I was wrong. So wrong.

I realized that the reason I couldn't fill the gap between where I was and book 2 is because there is no gap. What I was considering part 2 of book 1 was actually just book 2. I had written a great ending to part 1 not because I'm really good at writing part 1 endings, but because it was the end of a book. I had actually accidentally started book 2.

But don't get me wrong. I haven't finished book 1.

The basic structure and bones of the book is done. It has a beginning and an end. But it isn't done. What I've been doing lately is filling in some scenes where there are awkward gaps in the story or where it seems like the story moves too fast. I've also been doing a lot of editing to fix the huge, glaring problems I have with the order and construction of the story. (Little detail editing can come later). Even with taking out that "part 2" that's really book 2, I am still looking at a 60,000-70,000 word book. But it's a weird feeling to think that when I finish that, the book, barring some major editing, will be done. 

My point here is that sometimes talking through your problem when writing can really help. It might have taken me forever to figure out my problem if I hadn't talked about it. It was only through talking about my writer's block with my mom and a fellow writer friend that it came to me. I was literally mid-sentence when explaining my writer's block that I realized that I didn't really have writer's block.

It's two birds with one stone: I can successfully finish book 1 now and I already have the first 4 chapters or so of book 2 and know where I'm going with it. 

I probably could have preemptively solved this problem by creating an outline or story arc, but I didn't. I've never outlined anything in my life. I never do drafts or outlines with school essays. I just don't think that way. If outlines work for you, hey, more power to you. They probably help a lot. But I never use them. When I started writing this book, I had no idea where the story was going, so I just started writing. Trying to outline would have discouraged me and even if I came up with a good outline, I would have been petrified of deviating from it. That just doesn't work for me. The way I see it, it was either do more planning in the beginning, or more editing later. I don't feel like I'm ending up doing more work in the end, just doing the same amount of work at a different time in the writing process.

So basically, if you're stuck, try talking to someone. You don't even have to get into specific plot points. Just explain your problem to someone else. Chances are, you're not really stuck, you're just coming at it from the wrong angle. It's hard to recognize that when you're so deep inside your own head. It's like stepping back from your writing for a week or so before editing. You come back with a clear head..

Anyway, back to writing...

KMG

Reading/Writing Speed May Vary

So it's been a while since my last blog post and here's why.

I'm out of school for the summer, so aside from two online summer classes, I've had a ton of free time on my hands. At first, this meant a lot of sleeping.

And I do mean A LOT.

But after a week or two of sleeping approximately 18 hours a day (I'm not kidding), I devoted my time to reading and writing. I've written an abnormal amount on my manuscript and I read several books.

(Honorable Mentions: Delirium, Pandemonium, and Requiem by Lauren Oliver and The Siren by Kiera Cass... currently on Panic by Lauren Oliver, to be followed by The Selection by Kiera Cass)

I went on a shopping spree on Kindle (let's hear it for the Amazon Kindle android app!) and downloaded a ton of books that looked even remotely interesting and just started reading. I read each of the Delirium books in a day. I read The Siren in two days (I was lazy with that one).

That's my average reading speed when I'm really into a book. I read the entire Hunger Games series in a matter of three days and that was during senior year of high school. I literally didn't take any notes for three days straight because the fate of Katniss was waaayyyy more important than AP tests. 

I read Prince Caspian and The Voyage of the Dawn Treader by C.S. Lewis in a day each as well, and that was in like the fourth grade.

This is an around-the-barn way of saying that I read really fast... when I'm interested. 

Ahh, there's the hitch.

My reading speed is directly correlated with my interest level in the book I'm reading. If I love it, even if the book is slow or long, I WILL finish it in a day and nothing will stop me.

So here's my problem: When I'm not interested, I become literally the slowest reader in the world. 

Right now I'm supposed to be reading a political book for my online class, but it's some of the driest material and it took me an hour to read like four pages. Seriously. 

I can read a 700 page novel in a day, but hand me 20 pages of a textbook, and I'll be there for days (and probably give up and never finish). When I have zero interest in something, my reading speed slows way down to practically a crawl.

So right now, I am supposed to be reading 36 pages of writing from a political thinker, and it's taking me forever (hence the blogging to avoid productivity). I literally read a 500 page novel in a day like a week ago.

This applies to writing as well. 

Some days, when I have a burst of creativity, I can sit down and write 5,000 words on my manuscript in about two hours. This is pretty average for me when I get inspired. Since summer started, I've been writing 3,000 words about every 2 or 3 days (I don't write everyday). I didn't realize how unusual that was until I shared this with a writer friend and she was stunned. 

But hand me a 400 word school assignment, and I'll be here all day.

This might be the most frustrating thing in the world for me. I can understand an assignment perfectly, do all the research, know exactly what I'm going to write, and it will still take me hours to write a two page paper. But that night, I'll write 3,000 words on my manuscript in an hour when I didn't have the slightest clue what I was going to write before I started.

Don't get me wrong: I can B.S. a pretty quality short paper in a small amount of time (thank you timed writings in high school), but that really only works in lower level college classes. In the upper level ones, I have to actually put in a good deal of effort to write a good paper.

I think that is how creativity works. I really think that some people are just born to be writers. Writing creatively comes easily to them. I can sit down, stare at a blank Word document for half an hour, plunk out a crappy sentence, and the next thing I know, I've written 1,000 words. Creativity doesn't follow rules and is often spur of the moment. When the time is right, the words will spill out and it's often difficult to contain it. But a research paper lacks spontaneity. It requires calculation and planning, and when you have a due date, you can't sit around waiting for inspiration.

The same goes for reading. Recreational reading is casual and on the reader's terms. Reading for school is restrictive and often not of a subject of interest to the student. 

I wish I could harness my reading/writing speed for school, but alas, I can't.

Although, not blogging when I should be reading Karl Marx might be a start...

KMG