Have you ever been writing and gotten stuck? I have!

There are a few different ways to get “stuck” when writing.

1. Your story stops going forward
2. You came across a big plot hole and don’t know what to do, so you stall
3. You have no desire to write that story for some odd reason
4. You don’t want to write at all

But what do you do when these times come? Do you A.) throw up your hands in defeat and quit writing forever? B.) toss that story and start on something else? or C.) figure out what to do to fix your problem?

I hope you chose C. (Though sometimes B is the better choice. 🙂 )

Let’s take a look at each of these ways of getting stuck and talk about what to do about them.

1.)
If you story stops going forward, take some time and think (and pray) about it. Did you get off track and start heading in the wrong direction? Sometimes going back and rereading the first part of your story will help you remember what the plot or theme of your story is and then you might be able to find out where and how you got off track. Sometimes it’s just a conversation that changed things, or maybe it’s an event that you took one way when it was supposed to go another way. If you are still stuck, ask a friend or family member to read your story and see if they can figure out what is wrong.

2.)
You’ve reached a huge plot hole and don’t know how to fix it. This could be caused because you tried to write ahead of yourself, you didn’t research, you thought it would be exciting if you went in one direction, or any number of other things. But how do you fix it? First, I would check and see if this is really the direction your story should take. If not, scrap that plot hole and or write a detour around it or a bridge over it. 🙂 If it is where you need to go, then start doing research. It might take a bit of thinking to figure out how to fix it, but many times the plot holes aren’t as bad as they first appear. Ask a friend or family member to brainstorm with you. Think outside the box.

3.)
If you have no desire to write the story you are trying to work on, move to a different story. Don’t trash the one you started, but sometimes your brain just needs a change of scenery for a while and a chance to mull over some things before it is ready to move on. It’s okay to have more than one story going on at once. *tries not to think of how many started stories I have right now* Try writing something completely different. Write a short story, a scene, a conversation. Sometimes that’s all your brain needs.

4.)
You really have no desire to write at all huh? That could be for a number of reasons.

• Perhaps you are really busy right now and your brain just can’t focus on creativity. It’s okay to take a break then.
• Perhaps you just spent a month at KDWC and wrote more than you’ve ever written in a month before! Your brain is tired. Let it have a vacation. Give yourself permission to not write a word for a week, or ten days. Sometimes giving yourself that freedom will make you eager to write again when your “vacation” is over.
• Perhaps you are not feeding your brain. If I’m not reading good, well written books regularly (I try for 20 minutes at day at least) then you might not want to write because your brain is starved for food. Spend some time reading well written books.
• Perhaps you just got out of the habit of writing. If that’s the case, start small. Write a conversation. Write a scene. Describe something. Write for 10 minutes a day until you’ve gotten back in the habit of writing. Then write more. It can take some work to get back into the “wanting to write” feeling, but it will come.
• Or maybe your season of writing is not right now. That’s okay. If you are feeling drained and like you can’t write, perhaps that’s your hint that you need to turn your attention to other things.

I’ve experienced each of these situations more than once in my years of writing. Sometimes it can be difficult to figure out why I’m stuck, and sometimes it can be a mixture of the different reasons I’ve shared. But it does get easier to recognize the symptoms and figure out what you need to do to fix it.

What happens when you get stuck? Do you have any tips or tricks that help you get unstuck? Have you experienced any or all of these situations? What did you do about it?