Need some help

[luvsdemons666]

Okay my problem is I can never seem to get very far in writing my books.

The farthest I've gotten is my first book I started to write and that's on chapter 6. I orginally tried mapping out a summary of how I wanted the book to go but now I've forgotten and I haven't gotten any new ideas for it. So I've put that off to the side for now.

Then I attempted to write another book. I've only gotten to half of one page. I haven't gotten any new ideas for this one either. So I put that to the side as well.

Now my most recent work, I've only got incoherent ideas. Such as what the book is based on, inspiration, and the main character's description(but no name). And still no new ideas.

What I noticed all of them have in common is they are paranormal romance books. I mean, I've never had a relationship before so I have no idea how it works or the feelings you get. All I know is from what I've read from other authors and I'm guessing all my ideas for the romance parts are just copies from other author's works. And when(if I ever do) get into a relationship, maybe then I'll start getting ideas, especially ones of my own.

So I've been thinking maybe I should try I different type of book. I thought maybe horror, even though I'm completely petrified of horror.... anything. Though I do love Stephen King's works, especially 'The Storm of a Century.' My idea is take any horrible dreams I've ever had and turn them into something.

So, what I'm asking is if someone could give me some advice. Like... am I making the right choice about changing the type of book I'm writing? Any horror authors you recommend that could give me inspiration and/or ideas? Or anything else that could help me, would be grately appreciated.

[Adalee]

Hmmm...~ponders~ Well...for one, don't get too stressed over this. It's completely normal, especially when you are starting out, to put projects to the side. One thing I would recommend is going back to previous works-in-progress a few weeks after you put them aside and re-read what you have written. A lot of times, you'll read it and get an idea on how to continue the story or make changes.

Honestly, if writing paranormal romance is something that you really want to do, I say absolutely do it. I don't honestly think that changing genres is going to help your work. You obviously have road blocks in your writing, and that's not going to change with the genre unfortunately.

As far as the fact that you have never been in a relationship...well, I've been writing romance stories for YEARS, and I have never been in a relationship either...and I'm older. ~laughs~ Sad but true. Yet, I've never had difficulty writing romance. I definately do get new ideas and what not from reading books, but in all honesty, when I write, the story plays in my head and I just jot it down on paper. The characters just show up one day and say "Hey, I'm so-and-so...I'm a warrior who blah blah blah...oh, and see that girl over there...that's so-and-so. I love her, so lets come up with a way that I can save the world AND get the girl."

~chuckles~ Yeah...

Uhhh...where was I going with this? Oh yes...basically, just don't give up. I started working on a book a couple months ago and got stuck...so I did the same thing and shelved it for the time being and am working on something new that is coming along much better. It's really just a matter of getting the right story. You just KNOW when you've got it. Look at Gena! I believe I read or heard in an interview that she wrote 4 or so novels before being published that she scrapped. ENTIRE NOVELS!

Don't try to force a story. Just let it come to you. But one thing that I have learned in school (I am majoring in creative writing in university) is that reading and writing go hand in hand. DO NOT STOP READING...EVER. Stephen King is a firm believer in reading AND writing for a minimum of 4 hours a day each. So, if you're brain is fried and you can't seem to get any writing done, just stop for a couple days. Let yourself unwind, but read a book or two.

And the number one thing is...write for you. I stress myself out thinking about getting published. I am my own worst critic. I read my work and get frustrated thinking that it's not good enough to get published. But any author will tell you that if you write something that YOU enjoy reading...then that's all that matters.

[luvsdemons666]

Thanks, that is very helpful. Besides I think the idea I had for a horror book was too scary, I was putting it off and dreaded writing it. I think I'll stick with the paranormal, it doesn't scare (except ghosts, they scare me).

[Adalee]

~laughs~ I'm glad that you found the information helpful.

Another thing that I forgot to mention is that a lot of people (me included) find it really helpful to bounce idea's off of people. So if you have a basic premise for a story, you could talk about your ideas with a few people and guaranteed you will be asked questions about some of the details. This is great for making you think "Hmm...I haven't thought about that...well, maybe this happened to her as a child, she when she grew up..." and so on.

I do this with everything that I write...talk to a friend about my new idea and as questions are thrown my way, I am forced to think of an answer and major points of the story are usually formed this way. And if you are talking to someone truly helpful, they will give you input and help you beef up some of the points so that everything makes sense.