How can I get myself writing again?
I have authored a particular fanfiction, which has garnered a moderate following on the fanfiction website I published it to. As of now, the story has 279 users following it for updates, as well as 45 users watching me in particular for anything I post (there is some overlap, but it isn't 100%). The story is currently over 100k words split between 18 chapters, with 3k story views and 23k chapter views.
My story is not finished, but over the last few chapters, my rate of updates has slowed. Chapters 1-13 were every week or every other week; 14-17 were approximately every month, and chapter 18 took me 2 months to put out.
This isn't to say I spent two entire months writing chapter 18, far from it! I spent about 3 days doing the actual writing (and then editing time added onto that), and while I spent more time figuring out the plotline, most of it was "sunk cost," as the plotline is a continuation of the previous chapters.
Chapter 18 has been up for almost five months now, and I still haven't put a single word down for chapter 19. I'm not actually suffering from writer's block as I understand the term: I know what elements need to go into the chapter, and I even have specific plans for many (if not all) of the scenes that will take place. The problem seems to be a lack of motivation to spend the requisite time to do the writing in the first place.
I certainly haven't lost interest in the subject of the story, either. The story is a crossover between my favorite tabletop RPG setting (which has a new edition coming out soon) and my favorite animated series. In fact, my Gravatar is from one of the books for the RPG.
The Question
What techniques might I employ to get myself "back in the game," as it were? I admit that I'm not the best at time management, so recommendations on time management techniques (esp. those which apply to writing) would not be unwarranted, but any recommendations for how to get back on the horse would apply.
Complications
When I was pumping out a chapter a week, I was unemployed, out of school, and living with my parents. The only calls on my time were a weekly card game league I participated in, and a weekly game night with my friends.
Today, I have a full-time job, I now run the aforementioned league, I still have a weekly game night, I have picked up a MMO game, and (particularly relevant to concentrating while writing) one of my house-mates often sings to himself, frequently loudly and always poorly (or alternatively, talks to himself, sometimes loudly). The singing and talking is the result of a mental handicap, and while he does oblige if asked to keep things down, he's only able to keep it in check for a limited duration.
Bonus
One of my other housemates is a fan of my story, so he could potentially be a source of encouragement.
I have a subscription to focus@will, which I did utilize (before being a paid subscriber) while writing chapters 17 and 18. f@w won't specifically get me to open up Word and start writing, but it does help with concentration while working on something. According to f@w's blog, it can also build a Pavlovian response by associating f@w's music with "work time." I can't comment on that personally, but then I doubt anyone conditioned for something would be able to.
This post was sourced from https://writers.stackexchange.com/q/10242. It is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.
2 answers
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Well, if it's fanfic specifically, then something about the source material got your brain going. Go back and rewatch the show, play the game, chat online with other fans, surf tumblr, read other folks' fic. Get back into the headspace of the fandom and see if that re-ignites your creative spark.
Also, drop the MMO game. The mental energy you would be expending on plotting is going into the twists of gaming. Keep the game night, because you want to interact with actual, you know, live human beings. :)
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Work backwards.
Visualize the completed work in it's entirety
In Dr. Wayne W. Dyer's PBS special 'Excuses Be Gone' he recommends actually having the cover sleeve made before trying to sit and write.
Break it down
In writing research papers, I usually start with having a full outline of each section, including figures. With a book, however, there is no reason you not to brainstorm what each chapter might be about.
From there, you can consider the substory; what things will you cover in each chapter and how will they flow? And you may also want to consider if there will be sub-chapters, or some other form of sectioning.
Fill in the blanks
If you haven't already been inspired to just start writing at this point, start writing down possible topics for each paragraph you'll write. When you've run out of ideas, consider how to organize them, or move them in with other chapters if necessary. Then just start expanding the topics
Save formatting and editing until the end
CLockeWork's suggestion of using LaTeX shouldn't be ignored. Use a logical editor instead of a WYSIWYG one if possible, or just write inside notepad.
Save the typesetting, punctuation, and spell checking, and grammar for when you are stuck. Chances are the editing process will spur new ideas and allow you to keep progressing forward.
This post was sourced from https://writers.stackexchange.com/a/10269. It is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.
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