One thing I haven't really tried yet, regarding my writing.

[hmpf]

I've said earlier that I know from experience that nobody can really help me when I get stuck, and I think that's the truth, if 'help' means 'take a look at the fic fragments and tell me what's wrong with them/tell me what to do next'. However, I've never really tried talking the fic - its problems and my 'mental blocks' - through with someone. I wonder if that would help? I've noticed that sometimes it's ridiculously easy to develop an idea in conversation, but I've never actually tried to use this as a method to tear down/scale/get around the frequent brick walls in my head.

There's a twofold problem with that approach, though: 1.) you'd need a volunteer who's fairly deeply into the fandom you're writing (and, ideally, probably also into the kind of story you want to write - this may in fact be the more important condition), and 2.) that volunteer will be hopelessly spoiled for the final result, i.e. the actual story, in the process. (Optimistically assuming that the process will actually result in a story.)

Anybody have any experience with this kind of thing? Does it help? (Though of course what may help one writer may be useless for the next, anyway, so I'm not sure asking anybody else about their experiences with any kind of technique actually means anything.)

Comments

[jazzymegster.livejournal.com]

I find talking to yenrug helps, even if he has only a vague idea of the fandom (he helped me out of a hole a couple of months back with my crossover o doom, and he has no idea about the wider Marvel universe outside the X-Men. Meant I had to do some hasty explaining though). And obviously, talking to Adam may not help you. But it's weird, his brain goes in directions I'd never consider. I've gotten quite a few stories finished through talking it over with him.

But I don't know what'd work for you though, and other than that, I don't know what to suggest (and you could possibly think it's the worst suggestion ever, so...I'll shut up).

You know what...

[hmpf.livejournal.com]

it just occurred to me that you might be a prime subject for me to try this method on. ;-)

But first, I should probably catch up with your LJ. My LJ reading pattern is... erratic, at the moment, to say the least. I tend to basically just visit individual LJs intermittently and then read up on what's happened in that person's life in the past however-many weeks or months. So I'm never really up to date with anybody (except for perhaps the last person I just happen to have caught up with. But since I haven't read *any* LJ in the last two weeks, I'm not currently up to date with anyone.)

Re: You know what...

[jazzymegster.livejournal.com]

it just occurred to me that you might be a prime subject for me to try this method on. ;-)

Eek! Really?! *is slightly scared* No, really, I'd be glad to help. Honestly. I probably owe something like this karmically or some such thing.

And my LJ's been pretty erratic up until recently (and I need to catch up on some of yours, as it happens. So there). But, no rush. It's not going anywhere ;)