This week Hennessee Andrews visits the blog. I met Hennessee online when I found we both published with two of the same publishers. She and I hit it off and became good friends, and we similar tastes in erotic romance. Hennessee writes in multiple subgenres, but she's known for her M/M Rough in the Saddle series from Siren publishing. Today I asked her one question about how she gets back on track from a writing slump.
BBTF: How do you get back on track after a writing slump?
Hennessee: When a writing slump strikes, I have a couple of things I can do to push through. Getting up and leaving my computer is a start. Random household chores seems to get my mind off the stress, but doesn’t seem to help inspire me. Does housework inspire anyone? I have found that I’m led highly by my emotions and my writing slumps are caused by negative energy. In order to break the stress clogging my brain, I find something fun to do that inspires me to think creatively. One new trick is to find images that relate to my genres of writing. Everyone has heard the saying, a picture is worth a thousand words, right? Well, I make up scenarios for the people in images, and possible storylines or scenes. The plot bunnies tend to join in, but hey, new ideas! The more unique the image, the more my brain tends to work at it. I usually do this while listening to upbeat music, and yes, I sing along. I’m always surprised at what I come up with.
For instance, take this pic, and explain why in the world these two are laying in a bunch of weeds? Where I’m from there are a number of critters lurking, the worst being chiggers! If you haven’t ever plopped your butt down in the grass in the south, and got a mess of chiggers in your crack, you haven’t lived!
Right away my mind begins to work. I’m thinking chiggers, calamine lotion, itching, scratching…you get the point. Then I think, I wonder what they’ll be doing later that night? My guess is soaking in an oatmeal bath, and instead of using sensual oils for a massage, these two will be slathering icky pink anti-itch medication on each other!
See what I’ve done there? I fed my plot bunnies while exercising my brain! Yay, me! I also tend to forget what I’ve been stressing over or what caused my slump to begin with. Later, I may even be able to add that scene into a story, who knows. The more images I use, especially those related to the story I’m stuck on, the faster I can get back to writing.
You can find out more about Hennessee Andrews' books on her website. Be sure to buy a book and tell a friend. Happy reading!