Robert Ellis: HITTING THE WALL! (Part 1 of 2)

I’m working on Detective Matt Jones’ next murder case, the third thriller in the series. I wish I could say that the reason I’ve been delayed was because of some technical issue like the one I’ll be addressing today. But it wasn’t. Purely a personal matter that I’d been putting off, and finally had to deal with. It took time, it had nothing to do with health, and it’s over!

Now, because I’m working every day on my next novel, No. 8 no less, story problems were bound to come up!

With every new story, a writer, especially this one, gets to a point where he or she draws a blank and hits the wall. I think the official name is “writer’s block,” but from my experience, it isn’t a block at all…

In most cases the creative process pulls to a stop because the writer is unsure of where they’re going. For those of us who outline, the map isn’t detailed enough. The way forward isn’t clear. Our understanding of what characters are trying to accomplish in the story isn’t well defined. Working through the problem can be as simple as spending a little time reviewing our outlines and notes.

***Very important. If you are having this problem in the second half of your story, you need to spend much more time reviewing the first half of your work in all its forms. By the time a writer reaches the middle of a story, hitting the wall shouldn’t really happen and is probably the result of a very serious story problem. The second half of a story should be humming along on its own. Once I reach the middle of a story, I often feel like I’m just there to take notes. My characters have been introduced and established and are fully in charge by then.

But more about that in Part 2.

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ROBERT ELLIS WRITERS BLOG

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Robert Ellis: STORY RIDING (BOUND AND GAGGED AND THROWN IN THE TRUNK) Revised

One reason why I think reading novels will never be beaten back by movies, television, or any other medium is the basic fact that reading about something remains the closest experience we're ever going to get to the real thing. The work of a writer requires a reader to bring their imagination to the table in order to complete the circle. The work of a writer lives inside our hearts and minds.

Who hasn't noticed that when we're driving to a place we've never been before, when we arrive, we know how we got there, and we know how to get home? Now let's climb into the passenger seat and make the same drive. We've got a feel for how we got there, but everyone of us would probably need the GPS to get home. And if we made the trip from the backseat, that's like riding in the trunk. Forget about it. We don't know where we are.

That's the way I think we experience stories. If we're reading a good novel, we're behind the wheel. We know what the characters' needs are, we know their goals and what they're up against. But we also know what's going on inside them. If we're watching a good movie, we're in the passenger seat. We know what's going on, but the interior world of the characters isn't necessarily locked down. A few years ago I would have said that watching television is like riding in the backseat or trunk. But now, with so many wonderful cable series, I'd say that's like watching a movie. The only people riding in the trunk these days are those of us who get hooked on reality TV. That's proof positive that we're living in the dark!

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Robert Ellis: SAVE THE DATE!

I've very excited about returning to the Pequot Library in Southport, Connecticut! Half of the first Lena Gamble novel, CITY OF FIRE, was written at a table in this library! Hope to see you there! Sunday, November 19th, 4-6 pm.


For more information go to:

Meet Robert Ellis at the Pequot Library in Southport, CT!

ROBERT ELLIS WRITERS BLOG
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Robert Ellis: CITY OF ECHOES, Writing Your First Novel

READER: OMG! I just read CITY OF ECHOES and THE LOVE KILLINGS back to back for the third time. I took notes and have started writing my first novel, but can't seem to get anything done. Running errands that don't need to be run, cleaning closets that don't need to be cleaned ... You're working on your eighth novel, the next Detective Matt Jones thriller, so I'm sure you know where I'm going with all this. I've spent two weeks doing everything except writing. Is this writer's block? And if so, how do I get rid of it so I can start and finish my first novel?

ROBERT:  T. Jefferson Parker once told me that the way to keep cool while writing is to realize that it's only possible to write one page at a time. So my advice is to take a deep breath and think about what Parker is saying. One page at a time. Once you come to(!), you need to trust the research you've done, and your story's outline. But even more, keep in mind that a chapter is only one small block, usually just a single idea, in the building of your finished work.

CITY OF ECHOES is an epic thriller. The last third of the novel is laced with twists and turns. My readers expect this when they sit down with any of my novels, so I'm always looking for ways to make sure the reading experience is as intense as possible. This means that for any single novel, I'm actually writing three. In CITY OF ECHOES there is the world as it appears to Matt, the world that it could possibly be, and then with the resolution, the world as it really is. Lifting the veil between the way the opponent wants Matt to see the crime, and Matt's discovery of what actually happened -- making all that work is always the big challenge, but also, the most rewarding part of writing.

If you trust your research and your outline, I think you'll find that your writer's block is nothing more than a distant memory.

CITY OF ECHOES on Amazon

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ROBERT ELLIS WRITERS BLOG

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