writerslessons

One of the hardest parts of getting started is, well, getting started. What has been described as ‘the tyranny of the blank page’ can be a writer’s greatest stumbling block. A simple way to deal with this is to write a random sentence, especially one with dialogue. For instance, try out this prompt:

“I never saw one that big,” he said, crouching down for a better look.

Right off the bat, you have a character, you have his statement, and you have one action being performed by him. You can take this prompt myriad ways - who is he? What is he looking at? Why is it so much bigger than the others he has seen? Why does he need to crouch to get a better look?

So now the task is to write a second sentence to follow that opener. You could immediately launch into a description of what he’s looking at. ‘The rabbit was about the size of a large dog, and had soft, brown fur.’ To make it more interesting, relate your description to him. ‘The rabbit was almost as big as his hunting dog. Its brown fur quivered as it munched away on the grass, but it seemed completely unafraid as he inched closer.’ Now we know more about our main character; after all, someone who owns a hunting dog is a very different person than one who owns, say, a Chihuahua.

Alternatively, you can keep the item of interest a mystery by bringing in a second character.

“Never?” she asked, watching with large eyes as though it might jump up and bite her. “Never,” he repeated, his nose wrinkling in distaste. He straightened and walked around it, mindful to keep a good distance.

You can see that the man in this sample is a much different man than the one with the hunting dog. Even without a description of the object, we’ve learned a lot about the characters. She is a bit fearful and perhaps squeamish. He is a bit snootier than our hunting dog guy, and his curiosity is not great enough to merit a close examination of whatever it is. There are clues about the object, too: the squeamish lady is afraid of it, and he is disgusted by it. Dropping these clues will keep your reader interested and curious, following the bread crumbs until your big reveal.

Of course, these are only examples. This is your story, and you get to make the decisions about what he’s looking at, who he is, and why he’s so interested in it. As you answer these questions, the story will begin unfolding. Happy writing!

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