Yesterday I provided you with the content of the little talk I led at the UK GLBT meet 2011. Since then I’ve been updated with all the brilliant suggestions other writers offered when I asked and there’s some crackers! I’m going to list them all here and I will attribute them to their clever inventors when I can do so. If I’ve got your little gem of inspiration here and I don’t have your name by it, just let me know and I’ll correct that!

Okay, here we go Thanks to Jenre for her list of ideas offered on the day!.

Part 1:

• Prompts/Random words/Tarot Cards
• Research something
• Explaining the plot
• Taking a nap/day dream
• Email other authors
• Read something else.
• Copyedit what you’ve already written
• Write your synopsis or blurb
• Have a good Perv
• Look at images of your characters

Charlie Cochrane and Jo Myles Suggested these things.

This is about finding inspiration by kick starting it with the use of words.

Look up some info you might need for later on in your story, so you’re working on your opus but you’re not having to write.

Erastes is to thank for this idea!

Talk to a person, talk to yourself or even to your cat! Tell them the plot then you’ll be able to write it yourself.

Serena Yates suggested this

Have a nap as you may get dream inspiration of not you’ll be rested anyway. Also Daydreaming is always a good thing for Authors to do!

Fellow authors are brilliant. When you’re stuck email an author friend or three and ask for help!

Clare London and Bruin Fisher gave us these ideas.

Read either your own work to remind yourself you *CAN* write or read something completely different just to have a break and find inspiration! You may find something to aspire to or you may find that you think to yourself ‘I can write better than that’ it’s all good stuff!

Edit. Again you’re working but you’re not writing. If you’re anything like me you’ll soon be willing to do anything in preference to actually editing your work!

Writing your synopsis and/or blurb will focus you in on what you really want to get out of your story and may help you get over the plot hole you’re struggling with.

A Suggestion from Lucy Felthouse

Lucy Felthouse suggested watching something on the telly for inspiration, I do believe she suggested watching something to ‘perv’ over.

Suggestion by Jay Rockwood

Have pictures/photos by your computer of what your characters look like.

Part 2:

• Clean the house
• Play brain games
• Break that routine
• Use sites like ‘write or die’
• Take part in Nanowrimo
• Stick to the same routine
• Interview the character
• Change the P.O.V
• Use word counters
• Personify your muse

Clean! I said you can tell when I am blocked, my house sparkles! But housework is exercixe and it’s monotony frees your mind to think. You may just get the inspiration you need.

we need to keep our minds sharp so play games online or do the crossword and Sudoku puzzle in your newspaper!

Do Something different! Give yourself a break.

Apparently WriteorDie will yell at you until you hit your word target. This scares me, it might help you though!

NaNoWriMo happens in November but it sets you the target of writing fifty thousand words in a month. It’s amazing what that motivation to get your winner widget can do you know!

If you make a regular time to write every day you’ll get into the routine of writing. That’s the theory anyway.

Suggested by Jo Myles.

Interview your Character. They are there in your head anyway, ask them what will happen next!

Try a different character’s Point of View. It may be you need to change who narrates the scene or it might just be you see something differently that gets you over the block and you can continue writing under the same Character. Ooo Errr.

Suggested by the lovely Lucy Felthouse.

Track your progress with a little ‘bar’ widget to give you motivation.

Another great idea from Jo Myles.

Visualise your muse and ask him/her what the flippin’ heck happens next!!

I hope these ideas combined with yesterday’s post on beating writer’s block help you in your quest to write!