When the words stop coming

[arpeejay]

As some of you will have noted, it's been 2 years since I wrote the second chapter of "Jack and the Muscle Goddess" and by the time April rolls around it will have been two years since I added anything to my last story, "Myostatin Kid."

I've made several attempts to finish the first one and the end result has been my staring at a blank screen for a long time before putting it aside and going on to other distractions. Likewise, I've made attempts at a few other themes, none of which went anywhere.

And, no, I have no earthly idea what the dry spell is about (although, come to think of it, it parallels another aspect of my life.) Obviously, I'm still capable of churning out plenty of words, just no stories.

All of which may sound like self-pitying crap (and if so, so be it) but really it's by way of inviting ANYONE and EVERYONE who has an interest in continuing one or more of my stories to do so at their discretion. This is a public forum, my work is published gratis, I don't get paid for it (and never expect to do so.) The world has my blanket permission to do with them as they like. Who knows? A new view point might inspire me!

Please remember, though: My writer's block isn't something I'm doing to spite you! (Or relieve others, for that matter!)

All the best...

Richard

[falseyedee]

it happens. it's been a while since i wrote anything, or even wanted to. but there are stories that need finishing and i'll do it when the spark comes. there's a difference,for me at least, between writing erotica and writing almost anything else: you seriously need the spark to make the erotic sing. and sometimes you just need to wait for that spark. it'll come. it always does.

[no name]

Hey arpeejay,

Maybe you could turn the idea of writer's block itself into a muscle growth story? It's a cheap trick, but sometimes it works...

Cheers,
no name

[arpeejay]

Originally Posted by falseyedee

it happens. it's been a while since i wrote anything, or even wanted to. but there are stories that need finishing and i'll do it when the spark comes. there's a difference,for me at least, between writing erotica and writing almost anything else: you seriously need the spark to make the erotic sing. and sometimes you just need to wait for that spark. it'll come. it always does.

And, yours, of course, are among my very favorite! Here's to the spark!

xoxo

Richard

[philat99]

With all the political hoopla going on, perhaps a muscle growth "political" spark might be in order. The political shenanigans seem to provide plenty of fodder for the comedians and MSNBC!!!

[danilupoa]

I?m soo sad to hear tht Richard. You are a very good writer. Your stories keep my atetion from the begging to the end. But I undestand perfctly your blockage.

Hugs Daniel

[michaelv2]

As a long time fan, I miss your stories, but totally understand. As Falseyedee notes, homoerotica must cum, er... come from the Muse. It's not like anything else, and I guess that's why I value it so highly. When you have Eros speaking through you, you know it. And when he's silent, no doubt that means some dry time. No doubt he will strike again. He always does. :-)

[inm]

How is your lifting going? physical goals? I remember you wrote you've had enough of that.. are the two connected? adjustment like that can take time?

[arpeejay]

Thanks for the kind words, everyone! I'm sure it came across as a plea for sympathy but it was really mostly a way of saying, "hey, sorry I haven't written but it's only gonna cum when it cums!" (and I don't know when that is!)

xoxo

Richard

[Kijin]

I sympathize completely. What's even worse is when you crank out a few paragraphs from sudden motivation and over the course of a few days or weeks look back and decide to rewrite it! Really slows down the progress.

[nnnrg]

It has?
(checks)
Rich! Find that muse and get him laid or whatever it takes.
Seriously, I haven't written anything competent in years, except for a few things I did for contest-day type things, and very short character stories as backgrounds for characters for online games.

Too many years ago (1988ish) at a small science fiction convention, Steve Perry (science fiction writer, not Stephen J Perry who was murdered in May of 2010 after having been diagnosed with cancer, helped out by a fan movement, and possibly winning a 10 million dollar lottery ... yeah, drama happens in real life ...) ANYWAY.

Steve Perry was writing for the animated series Centurions at the time. He apparently did a lot more work for them than he was credited with, and got screwed over by a fraud who was preying on authors at the time, but that's only the bones of the cake:

I asked him how he dealt with the obnoxious Hollywood guys who seem to treat writers like garbage, and he said basically "they pay me enough to make it worthwhile."

And another person there (clearly struggling with writer's block, and I can't remember for sure if it was a guy or a gal) said "How do you deal with writers block?"

He said the same thing nearly every professional writer has said.
"I look at my bills. I remember that if I don't write something, I don't eat, and my wife doesn't eat, and my daughter doesn't eat. Then I sit down and start writing anything. Doesn't matter: Random words, description of my dog, whatever. And after a while I'm writing something I can sell."

That's how they do it. But you and I and probably most of the people here write for their own enjoyment first, and so it has to come from commitment, desire, and the need to tell stories.

So here's me putting on my Freudian Slip and Bugglegum Cigar, for you to laugh at then, and don't feel any need to answer these questions here if you don't want to:
Do you no longer need to tell stories?
Is there something too painful in the way?
What's distracting you? Is it important? Is it more important?
Is your body getting in the way? (Age creeps up on us like a f'ing VAMPIRE and it don't glitter.) If so can you do anything to fix that?
Is there stuff in your environment that keeps you from focussing and writing, or is there a way to tweak it to make it easier to write?
And finally, what motivated you before?

Anyway, good luck and I hope you can write again soon.


Also... Kijin. Advice from someone I trust, another professional who is a writer and has been an editor and publisher as well: Don't rewrite. Finish your story, or if it's really crap put it aside for later mining for ideas. But once you finish, go over it for spelling, grammar, and obvious narrative errors. And then that's it. Don't rewrite it any further than that. Every time you do that, you are too likely to take out your own fresh voice and put in someone else's same old thing.

This does not mean that you should publish it. But if you DO want to tell the story again, then don't tell it exactly the same way - figure out what's wrong, then change the characters, the setting, the story itself if you have to ... For an example of how this works, look at the "Hunter" series. Look at the change in quality of writing from the first story to the last story. He's telling the same story several times, but it changes because the characters are changing (and in more ways than the magical transformation) and that means it's a different tale each time.

[umlerian49]

I think there's a lot of truth in what nnnrg says, especially about just sitting down at the keyboard and banging something-- anything-- out just to acclimatize mind and body to the act of writing. My writing mentor used to advocate an exercise she called "Five Minute Flurries," where you'd sit down and try to pour out a stream of consciousness on paper for five minutes. I found this to be almost like training and conditioning for an athlete, even if the only words that would come were complaints about how I couldn't think of anything to write.

It's also quite true that nothing focuses your efforts like relying on your writing to put food on the table. Back in my journalist days I had to deal with daily deadlines, and I never missed one. Perhaps you could set some sort of goal for your work and entrust someone you know and respect to be your "enforcer," although this has the potential to backfire by introducing an element of stress into something you do for pleasure.

I'm afraid I can't agree to such a blanket pronouncement as "don't rewrite." Some people can, some can't (This means you, George Lucas!). A lot of times, what sets a good story apart from a great story is structure, and this is something that can definitely be improved through rewriting, but it takes knowledge and experience. I know, I know, there are a multitude of good movie scripts that have been ruined by meddling rewrites, but many others that have been saved by a good story editor.

Right now, I'm wrestling with the final chapter of Misfit, and while I know exactly where I want the story to go, I'm having trouble working out the structure. It also doesn't help that I've had a lot of distractions lately, plus I'm getting a little tired of the story and I'm anxious to wrap it up. (Don't worry-- I plan to honor my pledge to finish all of my stories-- even if it kills me!)

Anyway, that's my one-fiftieth of a dollar.

[arpeejay]

Having produced something on the order of 70 stories over the past nearly 20 years, I'm not particularly worried about whether I do or don't write. It will come when it does and I have pretty much zero angst about it. I posted because there are some people who.really.want.those.stories.they.really.like *finished*. Unfortunately, I can't write to order.

xoxo

Richard

[umlerian49]

Originally Posted by arpeejay

Having produced something on the order of 70 stories over the past nearly 20 years, I'm not particularly worried about whether I do or don't write. It will come when it does and I have pretty much zero angst about it. I posted because there are some people who.really.want.those.stories.they.really.like *finished*. Unfortunately, I can't write to order.

xoxo

Richard

I see your point. I'll pray to the god of writing for you.

[Mdlftr]

These are all good points. As a sometime contributor here, I find that the writing comes in uneven bursts. (no sex jokes please - snigger.. anyway!) There are a lot of distractions in everyday life which impede writing. What also impedes my personal writing flow as well is the intimidatingly high quality of the writing that is on this forum.

Let's face it: when I see the 16th installment of some never-ending serial involving muscle growth, interesting characters and an actual plot, it's intimidating. In response, I'll write a one-off, which is relatively short, and has a situation that I can fully imagine and one where I can develop the story and characters in one sitting.

I post it, and *BAM** the comments: "great story! I can't wait to see your next installment!" "Continue this!"

ARGHH! The whole point of writing a one-off is to get it down on paper and done! While I do appreciate the compliments, following it up with, "I want to see more of this same story with the same characters" is frustrating. I do this for fun. I'm NOT intending to write "War and Peace," or even "Game of Thrones". It's hard to write a short story where the basic plot is always "muscle growth", and the challenge is finding a unique take on the story. Having someone tell me immediately to "do it again!" is not helpful. I appreciate the fan mail but appreciate even more when someone just says "thanks for the story."

I totally empathise with all those writers who are in the "It's just not there right now" phase. I have come to realize that each writer has certain themes to which they return, and many of their stories portray those themes in various ways. For example, I'm thinking here specifically of a series by Richard about a guy who keeps getting reincarnated over time. He gets a "do over" as each prior life is cut short. The details of a southern childhood, and the descriptions of the muggy air give the series the weight of reality and add to the pleasurable experience for the reader. That's as good as anything Flannery O'Connor ever wrote, as far as I'm concerned, in terms of conveying a sense of place and time.

Anyway, thanks for this thread. It's a good place to share and vent! And yes, I am working on a story but it's "on hiatus" for now.

Later,

Mdlftr