Mugging the Muse

Wow.

I've been stuck on my novel for a while now. I got through the first couple of chapters or so and then stopped. Little to no reason, I just stopped. It was probably a mixture of lack of motivation and not knowing exactly how to proceed (which is strange because I know where the plot is going).

For those of you who don't know, I've been testing out Holly Lisle's Writing Course How to Think Sideways and I can't praise it enough.

So I was doing what I've been doing for the last couple of weeks, telling myself that I should write some today, reminding myself that I have these goals and writing is fun. I decided to work on a workshop assignment instead (close enough, right?)

I wound up doing two exercises and BOOM!

1. I knew which scene had to come next and how to write it.
2. I wrote a scene that will come later in my book that will have tension and conflict and subtext and all sorts of fun little goodies.
3. I wrote probably the best scene I have ever written (in chapter 3 for those of you following along). It also is packed with goodies.

Anyway, two little exercises that I never would have tried are now my go-to tools when I'm stuck. The webbing exercise is so great for making sure I use both sides of my brain. It's logical, laid out, right in front of me, but it's also creative and instinctual. It really really lets my Muse sing.