#writingtipssasks

(First of all YES, even though I do my best work with deadline-induced anxiety)

I feel like I’m somewhat qualified to help with this, because I usually average anywhere from 2,000-4,000 words per writing session. However, I wasn’t always able to sit down and write enough for a chapter in one go. Here are some things I’ve done over the years to help boost my “writing stamina”:

Start with smaller wordcount goals per session. When you set out to meet a huge goal, and don’t meet it, you’re setting yourself up for a loss of confidence in your abilities. So, you’re writing 300 words per session now? Set that for your goal, and whenever you go over that goal it feels more like the accomplishment it is rather than beating yourself up for only writing 300/1000 words.

Slowly build your way up to longer writing sessions. Writing is exhausting, as much as some people who don’t write like to disagree. Train your brain like the muscle it is, rather than going to lift 300 lbs. without starting to train at 50.

Try words sprints! Give yourself anywhere from 1, 5, 10 minutes to just write anything and everything on your mind. It could be related to your WIP, or your internal monologue. This can act as a sort of warm-up for your brain, and can help you clear the fog most of us usually have at the beginning of a session.

On the topic of warm-ups, try writing a “warm-up story”! I don’t know if there’s a proper term for this, but it’s a technique I like to use. Find a writing prompt you like, or come up with something, and just write a few paragraphs before switching over to write your main story. Since it isn’t your main project, it can help alleviate the pressure for quality since you’re not intending it to be seen by anyone else.

Have you tried outlining? This might feel a little bit out of left field, because what do outlines and wordcounts have to do with each other? But when you’re experiencing— maybe we should call it writersblock lite™ — I have a feeling you know what to write but physically can’t. Outlining ahead of time means you have the words you want, essentially already written. So, for the sake of jumpstarting the process you can always just copy your outline word for word and revisit the section when your brain is cooperating.

With regards to your deadline comment, if you’re struggling with your current project try and break it down into smaller parts. Similar to what I said in my NaNoWriMo post, figure out how many words you need for your deadline and figure out how many days you have. Do a little math, and there you go. So, for NaNo, 50,000/30 = 1667. Breaking it down into smaller chunks can help alleviate the stress that usually causes writersblock, so maybe you can break it down into smaller chunks where 300 words per session gets you to your deadline. Then, using the previous tips you can up that session count until you’re ahead of your deadline.

Continuing off of alleviating stress, figure out if there’s anything you should do before writing. I usually can’t write if my homework isn’t done, so I’ll go submit my work before writing. I also like to clean up my environment a bit, so that my workspace isn’t super overwhelming. And if you have any internal stresses, try journaling about them (or use your wordsprint to get it all out!).

One final thing, I like to give myself a certain amount of time for a session. So, I’ll sit down for 30 minutes to an hour, take a break, and either go to bed or start another session. Giving yourself a certain amount of time can help make the “I’m writing now,” distinction in your brain. And, taking the break after your session can help reduce fatigue.

I lied, one more thing. Try writing little snippets when you have free time on your phone. When I’m at the gym or on my breaks at work, I like to type out any ideas for scenes I have. Sometimes I even type out dialogue and action, which gives me a really easy starting point when I sit down to actually write.

Creating such a conflict without magic is certainly possible! Historically speaking many things have been sought after by multiple countries and groups, even people (such as Helen of Troy).

Here are a couple things that are non-magic, and can be desired by various powerful people:

Knowledge. It can spark inspiration for advancement in various industries, can give militaries advantages during war, and intimate knowledge of one thing can lead to a whole host of new inventions (think electricity, and how that connects to where we are now as a civilization). Perhaps there’s a workbook from an ancient inventor that was thought to be lost, but was recently discovered. Or information on Country 3 that 1 and 2 find equally useful.

A key into the unknown. What if there was a civilization lost to time (such as Atlantis, and in this case scientifically of course) and a method of finding it was discovered? Would finding such a place benefit any of the countries?

Weapon of mass destruction. I’m not sure what the nuances of your countries’ history is, but maybe there was an old war with a death count in millions and they collectively agreed to destroy/lock up the weapons that made it so. One country seeks access to them, which is a no-no.

The object itself could have little to no value, but the pursuit of it by different countries could then give it some value. An ancient stone tool from their ancestors, that doesn’t actually serve a purpose but Country 1 finds out Country 2 wants it, they want it, and then Country 3 gets in on the action. This could be a good way to show the dynamics between the countries, and make the focus more about them rather than the artifact— if that’s something you’d like to explore.

Something of great cultural significance. Many imperialist countries are known to take things from the countries they colonize, and fail to return them even after said colony has gained independence. Perhaps one country used to have hold over another, and that country has wanted their things back for a while. This could work if there are any cultural differences you’d like to portray, but due to the subject I’d shy away if it’s not your story to tell or if you just don’t want such a heavy topic for personal reasons.

A person of interest. Like I mentioned earlier with Helen, maybe there’s someone all 3 governments are interested in. It doesn’t necessarily have to be political, but maybe this person has access to the other ideas listed above. With this method, you could essentially personify the artifact and give it some agency.