I finally caught a break…

Wow, this last week has been tough. Every time I sat down to write, I thought to myself, ‘okay, this is it, let’s go’ and then something would happen to keep me from getting anything accomplished. From my husband’s minor car accident (he’s fine), to the emergency trip to the vet for the dog. My son broke his toe at a birthday party and had to call and tell me about it, and my other son came down with an ear infection. But the worst part was that when I did find time to write, it just wouldn’t come.

I tried brain drain, online puzzle games, and my favorite trick, Hostess golden cupcakes. Okay, so that last one isn’t as much about unclogging the mind as it is about pleasing myself, but hey, I tried. Nothing worked. Until last night, when I finally decided to chuck it and write out of order.

To some people this doesn’t seem like a big deal, but I’ve never been one that could do this. I’m a 'pantser', meaning I don’t plot, chart, or do anything more complicated that jot thoughts into a spiral notebook that goes with me everywhere I travel. For me, I learn the story from the characters as they tell it to me; my fingers typing as quickly as a woman who never had a typing class in her life can type. This usually means that I write a story from beginning to end, in order. Not so last night.

I have to tell you, sitting down and writing the black moment broke me from my slump and things seem to be moving along at a pretty consistent clip now. Getting it on paper (or on computer as the case may be) really helped me to see where my characters were and where they were going. This, in turn, helped me to see just what I needed the reader to see at the point I was at in my WIP. I’m thrilled to say, I’m now back on track.

Are there any tricks you use when you hit a slump in your day job? Diet Coke, cupcakes, an hour in the gym? What are they?