How to move forward one word at a time

Kinda like walking, one foot in front of the other.

Time for WordPlay!

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As a writer, it doesn’t take long before you hit a point, a snag or slam right up against a damn wall that leaves you blank as a blue screen.

Might be days, weeks or months, but sooner or later you will run out of juice.

What then? Do you go and sulk in a corner and wait for inspiration?

Well, that’s one way. But for some of us it could be a mighty long wait.

I’ve got a better solution.

How about a game of WORDPLAY?

Or I guess you could call it MYOP (Make Your Own Prompt)

Recently, Patricia Lynne over at Story Dam issued a challenge that for fifty straight days, you write at least fifty words on a WIP. Now I hate, I mean hate committing to the constraints of time projects. But the more I thought about this, the more this idea began to percolate in my mind.

However, lately, I’d been on a hot steak with my writing, working on not one, but two books and feeling pretty good about myself. So, I shelved the 50/50 idea.

Did I mention I was on a writing hot streak?

Guess you know what happens with hot streaks? Especially when you brag about a writing boon? BURN OUT! That’s what happens!

And when my writing flame sputtered out like a campfire doused by a thunderstorm, Patricia’s idea floated to the front of my mind. What’s 50 words? Anyone should be able to crank out 50 measly words, right? So, after a few days of staring at a blank screen, I decided to try to write So after, a few days of staring at a blank screen, I decided to try to write just 50 words.

Now, writing 50 words may sound easy, but it’s not if you can’t decide where to start or what to say. I mean, if I knew where to start I wouldn’t have spent several days typing and over and over hoping for a magical muse to finish the sentence.

But then a lightning bolt of understanding hit me. I love writing word prompts. I could write a prompt of 50 words by picking a random word from my WIP. Lo, and behold 50 words became 250 or 500 or 1000! Success!

Here’s how it works.

Pick a word. Any word located anywhere from your WIP.
Look it up in the dictionary, and thesaurus. Mull the word over in your mind.
Write random sentences using the word or definition. Play with the word. (Doesn’t have to be relative to the story at this point.)
Write 50 words using or relative to that word as it relates to your WIP.
Now go back to your WIP and see where your new piece fits.

Here’s my latest example:

I selected the word follow, located at the end of this sentence.

“Nothing for me to do but follow.”

Definition: to go or come after or behind (someone or something)
Thesaurus words: trail, shadow, goes by, admire, track, monitor, stalk…
Play with the word meanings. Write several sentences doesn’t matter if it’s a lot of gibberish.
- I trail behind her like a puppy dog. To watch a person is to know them. She does not admire him when he talks trash. He will go with her anywhere but there.
Now go back to your story and write.

The paragraph below is what I ended up with.

The last thing I wanted was to make a scene. I shouldered my purse and trailed after her like a reluctant child. She stopped at a table in the back near the railing. Small white Christmas lights hung in nearby trees cast a warm glow over the deck. Glasses clinked as whispered voices mingled with the soft sounds of music. I was forgotten. I relaxed in the anonymity of the evening.

I managed to squeeze 71 words out of 1 word!

Now when I’m stumped this is my routine to jog myself forward. Sometimes I select a word in the middle of a paragraph, sometimes a word at the end of a sentence. On occasion I end up with something I can incorporate into my WIP, other times it’s trashed. But always, this exercise gets me thinking about the story from a different angle. I may see a different side of a character or problem, and before I know it I’m off and writing.

Give it a try. See what you can do with one word.

What do you think?

Have you considered MYOP?

A big thanks to Patricia Lynne at Story Dam for the inspiration. Check out her blog!

I’d love to hear from you! Click the “write me” tab or contact me on Twitter @jeancogdell,Facebook at jean.cogdell and Amazon.com, stop by and say hey! The lights are on, and I’m waiting.

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