I Don't Believe in Writer's Block
As the title says, I don’t believe in writer’s block. However, I do believe in burn out and not being inspired. It’s not that you have an actual block, it’s just that something is off kilter and you can’t access your writing mojo. It’s something I’ve been struggling with while starting the second book in the Barbarians of the Storm series.
With that, I think I need to just toss it in the trash, start over, and stay focused on the heart of the story, and let the larger expansions on the universe come more naturally.
The first book is a sword & sorcery, buddy adventure. While it does end with a massive battle featuring a lot of characters, all of whom are pretty pivotal to the bigger story, I feel like I’m trying to wedge all of them in too quickly.
The truth is, this series can be as short or as long as I need it to be. Hell, I’ve already thought ten books ahead and realistically, as long as I’m into it, I could probably write this series forever.
So, I don’t have to force all these characters and different concepts I have into the series, right now. In fact, I should take my time and let these things marinate in my head, so that I can make them better.
For instance, I originally wrote Dan the Destructor as a graphic novel script and my struggle to find an artist for it gave me a lot of time to think about what I had written and how I needed to flesh that out into something greater. That’s how that script became a pulp novel.
I think that I sometimes get overly excited about things I’m working on and that’s certainly the case with this series. I don’t need to rush, but I don’t want to feel like I’m leaving the people that loved the first book waiting too long for its direct follow-up. Plus, getting to work on the first short story collection is also another weight on my mind.
There’s that part of me that wants to be extremely organized, set definitive deadlines, and work like a madman to hit them. I just don’t think that it’s the best approach for the long-term health and potential of this series or my creative mind.
I don’t want the follow-up to take a decade or even a year, and it probably won’t. However, I want the book to be fun, badass and exceed the first one. I also want the process in writing it to be fun, as well. I enjoyed working on the first book immensely, even if I set a deadline in my head and pushed to meet it, which I did with time to spare. Hell, I wrote The Forging of Foolpuddle short story in just six hours on a day off.
I still need to set deadlines and goals, but they need to be a bit more realistic and give me some breathing room. I need to be a lot less uber-competitive with myself, as well. Alleviating the pressure that I’ve put myself under will probably produce much better results for those who do take a chance on me and this book series that I’m pretty fucking passionate about.
It’s hard for a writer (or any type of artist, for that matter) to just toss something away that they’ve spent time on, but if it isn’t clicking with you, it’s got to go. So I’m going to start over, try my damnedest to stay focused on just what this story needs, and once I find the right grove, then I’ll think about deadlines and weekly goals.