What’s Not Going to Happen: How to Get Your Story Unstuck.
You started your book with so much passion. You knew exactly who the main character was and what trials and resolutions they would face. You had the title, the best friend, the villain all sketched out. You told all your friends about your amazing story (that was a mistake, but we’ll talk about that another time). You even had a mock-up of what you want the cover to look like.
Weeks or months later, the writing has gone from bubbling lava to cold turkey on a paper plate. Nothing sounds right. No-one cares. When your friends ask you, “How’s that book going?” you make them buy you a beer just on principle. You’re in the middle of the book and…you’re…. stuck. If you stay stuck long enough, eventually you’ll get a new idea for a different story.
You know that folder with all your half-done novels? This is how that happens. Instead of having four unfinished books, it’s better to see it through and take one all the way to the end. The way to do that is get unstuck. How? Figure out what your characters are not going to do.
You may not know where the plot is going to go or what your character is going to do next. When the path seems dim, start making a list of all the things that will not happen and won’t be written and your idea switch will turn back on.
Example: Two characters steal a diamond and run into the woods. Later in the book you want one character to have the diamond, but the other character is not aware of that fact and thinks the diamond was lost in the chase. The reveal of that betrayal is the climax of your story. However, right now you’re stuck on how to get from the woods to the lost diamond. So you make a list:
The characters are not going to: fall in love, get in a fist fight, steal a car, get caught by the police, stop and eat dinner, go swimming in the river, see a movie…. looking back over your brainstorm list — “go swimming” jumps out. You realize if they fell in the river, one could pretend the diamond floated downstream and was lost, when all the while it was in a secured pocket. Now that you know what happened, the rest of the scene unfolds.
We tend to think of brainstorming as writing a list of what could happen. When you’re stuck, it is ridiculously hard to see what’s possible. When you look at what is not possible, that list generates like lightening and may just be the spark you need to light your way.
