Yup, I’m still here. Been doing non-blog-related stuff, ya know?
I’m still writing, believe it or not – or trying to, at least. However, lately it seems like I’ve been beating my head against a wall. I’ve made no real progress on the new novel, and three short stories are just sitting there, stagnant. I am frustrated beyond belief.
I have figured out what the problem is. Conflict is my problem. I have no problems with characters and settings – I have some real good ‘uns – but that’s where it stops. I have these great characters and nothing to do with them. If I were to invent the character of Superman right now, in my story he’d end up sitting around, drinking tea, discussing Sartre with Batman.
Good stories come from conflict, and desire, and the resolution of both. This I know. But just injecting conflict doesn’t seem to be working for me. It ends up seeming contrived, somehow, and doesn’t seem to further the storyline any. I’ve tried the ‘what if?’ trick (“What if somebody was being haunted by his dead wife, except she was using Post-it notes?”) Then it sits there, thumbing its nose at me. “Yeah, so he’s got a sticky ghost. So what?” And that’s where I get stuck.
I guess figuring that much out is better than nothing. So I’m still beating my head against the wall, but at least I know what color the wall is.
August 7th, 2008 at 10:34 pm
Okay, what does your main character want? Why does s/he want it? Who is preventing him from getting it? What secret from his past must he protect. Do the same for the “villian”. Do you have a story yet?
Yea, me either. I have the same problem — a great character but no story to put her in. I just can’t get a handle on what she wants, or why it is vital that she gets it. And what glimmers of ideas I have had, I can’t seem to come up with any clue why someone would get in her way.
Writer’s block sucks.
August 8th, 2008 at 1:35 am
I think this is why I am not a very good fiction writer. I don’t do conflict well. I can see characters and places and all, but conflict really eludes me. As a result, my fiction is usually boring.
I have a feeling you’ll get past it though. Maybe a wellspring of conflict is waiting for you just around the next corner. (One can hope.)
August 8th, 2008 at 5:02 am
And this is why I stick to what I know:
Poo and masturbation.
Also explains why I’ve never been approached to write a book.
I need to branch out.
August 8th, 2008 at 7:05 am
Maybe you could consult with someone from Fox News. They’ve gotten really good at coming up with conflict where none previously existed. They have an excellent “fiction” staff now too.
By the way, if you’d add Camus to the discussion of JPS between SM and BM, I personally think you’d have a winner!
August 8th, 2008 at 8:10 am
I think Superman and Batman discussing Jean Paul Sartre by communicating through a ghost using Post-It notes might be just the ticket.
Try and bring pudding into the story somewhere.
August 8th, 2008 at 8:32 am
quilly: a big part of it is what you mentioned: why would X get in Y’s way in the first place? That may be why it always seems contrived.
August 8th, 2008 at 8:33 am
Shelly: I’ve never really wished for conflict before, but there’s a first time for everything…
August 8th, 2008 at 8:34 am
mooooog: have you thought about submitting to Penthouse Forum? Not book length, but still something!
August 8th, 2008 at 8:36 am
montucky: I heard that about Fox News as well. It’s the wrong sort of conflict, but they could definitely school me on the imagination part of it.
August 8th, 2008 at 8:37 am
Pinhole: tapioca or chocolate? Because I always sort of viewed tapioca as a conflict-resolution pudding, while chocolate pudding breeds envy and discontent.
August 8th, 2008 at 11:03 am
That’s the problem I have with all my fantasy ideas- got the character, got the setting, even some scene ideas. But no story.
That’s why I’m working on my chick-lit (oops, I mean humorous women’s fiction) right now- I’ve actually got a story there.
August 8th, 2008 at 7:19 pm
I’m not a writer, but what about doing the process in reverse, i.e. start with the conflict, and build the characters from that?
August 8th, 2008 at 7:44 pm
wordvixen: good luck with your ‘humorous women’s fiction.’ Glad you’ve got a story to go with.
August 8th, 2008 at 7:45 pm
Heidi: I’ve tried that, with absolutely horrible results. Unfortunately, my writer’s mind doesn’t seem to be wired that way. It gives me characters and settings and leaves it to me to figure out what to do with them.
August 9th, 2008 at 5:51 pm
I guess the conflict in my novel stemmed from a real life frustration of mine, which is the fact that a lot of people base their lives on what “authorities” tell them to do. So I made a character who was a highly exaggerated version of myself — an angel who starts to question what the heavenly authorities are telling him, because it doesn’t jibe with his experience.
My biggest problem, surprisingly, is with settings. I never know where to put my characters while they’re discussing Sartre.
August 11th, 2008 at 8:58 am
I think you’re lucky that way. Conflict is the heart of a good story, and if you’ve got that, you’re more than halfway there, at least in my opinion. If you’ve got page-turning conflict (e.g. Superman vs. Lex Luthor) it could happen in a diner and readers wouldn’t care. Setting won’t carry a story, but conflict will.
August 19th, 2008 at 8:57 am
You must be the yin to my yang. I am great at creating conflict (just ask my wife) but struggle with creating characters that people care about to act it out. You ought to try collaborating with someone in your circle of friends who is strong where you are weak and vice versa. That way you can help each other get started and you both benefit.
August 20th, 2008 at 10:40 am
Funny you mention that. I’ve been considering a collaboration for some time. It’s a great idea.