Have any tips for staying "in the zone" when you're writing? I just can't seem to write for more than an hour before losing interest for a while. -Zora (aka, one of your guest reviewers on fanfiction and the anon who asked about rap.)
AMG *tackles you with hugs and kisses* YOU ASKER YOU!
Ahem.
Well there's a few things I do. One of the things is I tend to have a playlist that mirrors the current situation I am writing about. It could be a playlist for a story in particular (For example, I have a playlist for my Zim fanfics, I have one for the novel I'm working on, etc) or it could just be a playlist for various emotions (I have a Depression playlist, a Lullaby playlist, a Party Hardy playlist, etc for various moods).
Sometimes, you won't be in a zone. You'll have to push through it to get something written. But be careful with that, because I've discovered something about that. Keep in mind, this is COMPLETELY based off my own experience, and it will be different for everyone.
When I was writing this chapter of Sempadinum (the one where Zim has a nightmare) I had it laid out as follows:
Zim's family comes over for a housewarming dinner
Della washes dishes with rubber gloves, triggering Zim's anxiety
Family leaves
Zim stares at his bed, wrestling with whether or not to lie down, as he is pretty sure he's going into a nightmare
Zim's nightmare
Issue? Every last sentence was like pulling teeth, and NOTHING flowed. I didn't know what I was doing wrong. So, I erased everything I'd written for that chapter, and came at it from a completely different angle. I followed almost the exact same steps as above, EXCEPT I started from inside Zim's nightmare without telling anyone we were inside Zim's nightmare. Readers figured it out as soon as Darkbooty's face started showing up everywhere, and I didn't even have to say it. And it was better than my original layout.
My point? If you're forcing a chapter, or forcing writing, try erasing it and coming at it from a different character's point of view, or point in time, or location. It might just fix your problem and make it better.
Don't know if that helps at all, hope so. =D