Unblock! Break Through to Creativity in 28 Days: A Guide for Fiction Writers

By Willena Moye

Not just another prompt book, this workbook is designed to help writers develop a daily writing practice and break through their creative roadblocks. The book features 28 days worth of exercises that help writers develop characters, plots, and storytelling techniques in a low stress way.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Willena Moye
• Release date: Nov 23, 2015
• ISBN: 9781311896148

Willena Moye

After graduating from high school, Willena yanked up her Southern roots and transplanted herself to Los Angeles, graduating with a degree in theater from UCLA and going to work in the film industry. This was fairly ironic given her introverted nature. Theater and filmmaking demand high degrees of collaboration that do not come naturally to her. But she had been side-tracked into theater because at ten years old she had been told “No one can make a living as a writer. There is a reason you hear about the stereotype of the poet starving in a garret.” She may have been the only young adult ever to believe that a theater degree would lead to a more secure future than an English degree!She did make her living in the film industry for quite awhile, both in California and back in Georgia, where she returned for family reasons. Although casting television and movies had been quite fun, she was dissatisfied with supporting roles in the film industry. Eventually, she decided to go to grad school to see if she could learn to write anything that anybody would want to read and if making a living as a writer was possible. Although she now realizes the answer to both questions is yes, she finds herself addicted to a consistent paycheck and health insurance. She combines her writing with teaching English and theater at a junior college in Georgia.

Book preview

Unblock!

Break Through to Creativity in 28 Days:

A Guide for Fiction Writers

Copyright 2015 Willena C. Moye

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means now known or to be created in the future without the prior written permission of the holder of the copyright.

For Rachel

With infinite thanks to Lou, Elaine, and Cheryl

Table of Contents

Blocks to Creativity

Creativity Exercises

Day 1—Introducing Al and Alina

Day 2—Character Sketch Mix & Match

Day 3—Umm, Umm, Good….or Bad

Day 4—Conflicts & Complications

Day 5—And Then

Day 6—And Then Hansel and Gretel Discover They Are Lost in the Woods

Day 7—Get a Clue

Day 8—Sniff Like You’re Man’s Best Friend

Day 9—What’s In a Name?

Day 10—Home, Home on the Range

Day 11—Murder She Wrote

Day 12—Love on the Sand

Day 13—Distillery

Day 14—Pat the Doggy

Day 15—Get the Ratings!

Day 16—Planes, Trains, and Broomsticks

Day 17—Sum, Sum, Summary

Day 18—P.O.V.

Day 19—Stylish

Day 20—Get Smart!

Day 21—Green Eggs and Ham

Day 22—All American Girl

Day 23—Hip Hop Remix

Day 24—Single Ladies

Day 25—Through the Lens

Day 26—It’s Pitchy

Day 27—Another Day, Another Complication

Day 28—Send Me an Email

Conclusion

Further Reading

About the Author

Blocks to Creativity

New York Times Best-selling Author Karen White says Ignore writer’s block. It’s easier to work with a bad page than stare at a blank one. That’s good advice, but not as easy to follow as it is to say. In the past, there were days when I had every intention to write, but I found it hard to force myself to sit down at the computer or with pen and paper. Instead, I ended up cleaning my house and sometimes, God forbid, actually doing yard work! I would sit down at the computer and then find myself reading endless posts on Facebook or playing innumerable games of Spider Solitaire, Freecell, and Minesweeper. I used to open up the book I was working on and feel paralyzed, just staring at the last sentence I wrote and wondering what the heck I should do next. If you are reading this book, I’m assuming that this happens to you, too.

Are you like I was—reading books on creativity, hoping to find that one book that will do the trick and help you finally get past whatever creative blockage that you have? Sometimes I feel that I have read every book on writing and creativity that is available. It’s only by using the exercises I have created here and following my own advice that I have been able to create the habit of writing every day and make progress on unfinished projects. My friend Rachel, a young woman with great artistic promise, has an idea for a picture book series. Yet she is having a hard time sitting down and getting it written. So I’ve written this book for Rachel, and for you. If you do these exercises every day for 28 straight days, you will develop a daily writing habit, break through your blockage, and finally be able to get your creative projects finished.

First, let’s examine some common blockages that stop us from achieving our creative goals.

Common blockage no. 1—The worry that you are what Julia Cameron calls a shadow artist.

A shadow artist is a person who hangs around with other artists and writers yet doesn’t write or create. Do you work in a