Memories

Accessing memories can be an excellent way to spice up your writing. The best ones to use are the ones that have strong emotion attached to them. For example, the passionate feeling of that first kiss, the intense fear during that car accident, or the anger at being laid off from that job into which you had put so much sweat. 

It’s not so much the joke you remember that’s important, but the memory of the laugher. Not so much the death of your pet, but the recollection of the sadness you felt.

One time I needed to create a scene that contained shock. I remembered the moment as a child when I first found out Kennedy was shot. Even though the incident I was writing about had nothing to do with that event, recalling my racing heartbeat and speechless chills helped me to put the emotion I needed into that scene.

 
Go ahead and try this technique if you want; experiment with it and see if it works for you. But the main thing is to keep writing.

Hero

When I see a salmon, it reminds me of the hero’s journey. It’s a common theme in plots from Lord of the Rings to The Hangover. One goes out; one comes back. Leaving is a breeze. But the return can be rough.
 
That’s because getting home is never easy: climbing ladders, pushing upstream, leaping over obstacles. We can only imagine the story of a salmon. But our story is one we create.

Writer's Block

Here are three types of writer’s blocks and what to do about them:

1. Paralyzed.

 
SOLUTION: Ram the block down. Force yourself to keep writing something, anything; just keep moving until you get back into the flow.

2. Lack of sizzle.

 

SOLUTION: Detour around the block. Write something else and come back to your original spot later.

 

 

3. Zoned out.

 

 

SOLUTION: Take a break for a couple of hours.

Inspiration

As I hike along the writing trail, ever upward, the wind turns my head and inspiration flashes:

I fly to the nectar of my imagination

            Each drop strengthens my resolve

                        To flame outward and touch

 

                                     A speck of fairy green