So, what? You thought this would be about when a writer has a bad day, because the dreaded writer’s block has struck, and the ‘muse’ has not just gone quiet but appears to have packed up and gone on a world cruise?

Well, I suppose, it is kind of about that. I have seen several friends posting about having writer’s block or about losing the urge to write. However, you want to put it, the net result is that you might sit in front of your computer, at that glaring white screen and … nada. Nothing. Zilch. Coming up empty.

Feeling crappy about it yet?

That had to be the worst part. Someone says they have writer’s block, and immediately, there are at least half a dozen suggestions of what works for others. Whoa right there, because, and here’s the biggie: just because someone calls it writer’s block doesn’t mean that is the root cause of the problem.

Whilst many of us would love to be able to write professionally, and to have a good enough income that we don’t have to worry about a day job, the reality is far from that for the majority. It doesn’t stop us writing, generally, but there can come a point when the thought of trying to write is just too much. Happens on one day, and another … Before you know it, it’s been a week since you have managed to write anything. Then you start to feel guilty because surely if you were a real writer this wouldn’t happen …

So, yes, I am going to plug my other hobby which is writing related, namely online role-play. I will start with a brief reminder of how it works. The first part is … creation of a Facebook account which uses a pseudonym.

Oh my god! I hear your exclaim. That’s lying. That’s contrary to Facebook T&Cs. Yes, the latter is true, but then you are creating an account in YOUR AUTHOR PSEUDONYM. I work in a very conservative industry. I was even told off for wearing (cowboy) boots because I had a to fly to a meeting, and wore boots on the plane, because they were comfortable. But that’s another story. The point is, conservative industry, so writing about one of your main characters having a … (clears throat) … moment of passion, and writing in your own name, might be a bit difficult. Not in keeping with the company’s image or the image of our employees, a voice would boom.

Remember that thing about writer’s block. Imagine if one of your colleagues found out that you wrote books. What kind of books? Romance, you say. Oooh, like that Fifty Shades of … Don’t start! The upshot is that someone denigrates what you have been trying to do, and you were already feeling rough with the writer’s block …

So, roleplay. You have created your account. Next stage is to pick a character. Any character from your own work. Trawl through the internet and look for a photograph of a model, perhaps some fashion model who has the sort of features that you envisage for your character. A word of advice is don’t pick actors. Too many people do that, and then there is nothing unique about your character, because chances are the pictures are for another role.

Now the writing bit. Start with describing ‘ordinary things’: waking up, morning ablutions. Perhaps describe an interaction with a pet, or a family member. Fair enough, your character may not be from the modern era, so adjust that routine to fit in with your time period or world. Only write a paragraph.

The key point is start small. Then perhaps you might think about something that has hacked you off at work. Huh? Why do I want to do that? It’s called mood-setting and this is why it is useful. It is useful because it can provide impetus. The other month, one of my friends online told me she was having a bad day. No problem, I said. When you are home, we will write a fight scene, and you can release your bad temper that way. Ideally, you can make your fight scene realistic, but hey, it is a fantasy fight scene, so let rip.

The upshot was that my friend and I wrote a decent length chapter where my male
character observed her female character show two bad guys the error of their ways. Then we wrote a follow up scene, because he had patched up her injuries, being a doctor, and wanted to check up on her. That led to another fight scene, and this time, my character insisted that she needed someone to watch her for signs of concussion …

Before we knew what was happening, it seemed we had a burgeoning romance on our hands. But, this was where it became interesting and the writer’s block suddenly disappeared into a pile of sawdust.

Who knows, if you ran through this exercise with your existing work in progress, you might find that you have uncovered details of your character which you had not anticipated. Even something as simple as how they like their morning coffee could have implications, not least if it turns out that they prefer tea.

The key point is, writer’s block, the bane of an aspiring author, is not such a big scary thing after all. Even if you choose to not use what you have written, keep the pseudonym account, remembering to copy anything you have written to a backup document, just in case. My own practice is to keep several accounts, one for each of my major characters. That way, I can see which one wants to be talkative. Right now, it is Ramses, my protagonist in “Merysekhmet”, a story that arose from a desire to write a fight scene. When it is finished, it will be a freebie book, which will be uploaded onto a Facebook ‘Like’ page. At the weekend, one of my first characters, Gavril, decided he wanted to have his say. Casimir didn’t want to be left out. He realised that his Mate had been somewhat left on her own, and needed to rectify that.

By using this method, I have a situation where unless all the boys go quiet, there is always some little thing I can put together. So, next time writer’s block hits you, give it a go. You might surprise yourself.

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LINKS TO THE BOOKS IN THE DIARIES OF THE CWN ANNWN

“Bound”, Volume 1 of The Diaries of the Cŵn Annwn
Amazon.com $0.99: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B016TQFBNY
Amazon.co.uk £0.99: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B016TQFBNY
Smashwords.com £0.00 (Free): https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/589130