Writers Tricks of the Trade Volume 6 Issue 4 | Page 33

Don’t Get Stuck in a Writer’s Rut (Cont’d)
love. Do you always dress in muted tones? Try adding some vibrant colors and
think about how you feel when you look at yourself in the mirror. Again, those are
feelings you can transfer to your characters.

Try reading books or seeing movies in different genres
I write mysteries and I love reading them, so most of the books I read are
some form of mystery. When I was writing columns for examiner.com, I did a
Spotlight interview with Jeri Westerson who writes medieval noir mysteries.
Sound intriguing? It did to me. It’s almost as though she created a subgenre of her
own, or at least one I hadn’t heard of. The Demon’s Parchment sounded
fascinating. Will I try to write historical mysteries after interviewing her?
Absolutely not—it’s not my thing. But I’ll stow it in my memory and maybe one of
my characters will be a history buff, or perhaps something they read in a historical
mystery triggers suspicion about something happening in modern times. You
never know how you can use information once you’ve absorbed it.

TRY NEW
FOODS

Talk to strangers
That doesn’t mean to just go around scouting up pe ople on the street to talk
to. But don’t be shy about making contact with the person sitting next to you in a
restaurant, on a plane, or in a movie waiting for the show to start. Once a long
time ago, my brakes gave out on a new car and I rear ended the car in front of me
through no fault of my own. Instead of both of us shouting that it was the other
one’s fault, after I explained that the pedal went to the floor and nothing
happened, the couple in the other car understood. As we talked we discovered we
liked each other and became friends. The friendship lasted for about four or five
years. They were people I wouldn’t have normally met, but I loved hearing about
their life and they were anxious to know about mine. It turned out her father was
a famous musician, named George Van Epps who was called the “father of the
seven string guitar.” Her name was Kay, and she would make a great character.
Who knows? Maybe some day after an accident one of my characters will meet a
person like her, or a composite of her and someone else, and will appear in one of
my books or stories.

READ
NEW
GENRES

Last word
Open up your mind and you can keep your ideas fresh without leaving your “own
back yard.”

WRITERS’ TRICKS OF THE TRADE

PAGE
25

JULY-AUGUST 2016