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PR Isfeld

When it's just not happening...
When it’s just not happening…

“Discipline allows magic. To be a writer is to be the very best of assassins. You do not sit down and write every day to force the Muse to show up. You get into the habit of writing every day so that when she shows up, you have the maximum chance of catching her, bashing her on the head, and squeezing every last drop out of that bitch.”
― Lili St. Crow

 

I’ve been writing for a while and usually it’s a source of calm, even when I know nothing I produce will see the light of day. But then there are those other days when no matter how much I want to sit down at the keyboard, or how much time I spend staring at the screen, it’s just not happening.

Over the years, I’ve developed a few strategies to get past a blank page, and I’m now going to write them out (for myself as much as anybody else reading this:

  • Start again from a blank page. Sometimes the possibilities presented by an empty white screen are overwhelming, but if your problem is editing or tinkering with words you’ve already written, a clean slate could be the ticket to shaking things loose.
  • Break it down into modular pieces. Focus on one action at a time, one scene, maybe one character, and don’t worry too much about how it fits into the big picture. You can cross-reference and add connections and segues later.
  • Meditate, walk, nap, or take a shower. Maybe even all four, in any order you like. Getting out of your anxiety and into a relaxed mental state will help you make connections and solve narrative problems without the pressure of your screen stating at you. Getting some of the stress hormones out of your system and lowering your heart rate will only help you.
  • Take your fears seriously. It can help to talk to a trusted writing buddy or even a therapist about your stumbling blocks and what is activating you. Many of those issues won’t end up on the page, but metabolizing them will help you get to what you really want to say.
  • Have a hobby that doesn’t involve writing, and focus on it for at least 72 hours. Take your puppy to agility class. Go outside and paint a watercolour. When you come back, things might look very different.

I’m working my way through this list now, and I know it will work… eventually.

Captives
A psychological mystery that explores the aftermath of a brutal abduction and the secrets that haunt the survivors.

Three years ago, Samantha Gilchrist and her friends Amanda, Kaylee and Maria forged an unbreakable bond when they survived a brutal kidnapping in Kandahar. Sam wrote a best-selling memoir about their ordeal and moved on to a great new career as a journalist and a happy relationship with Dave, a handsome intelligence officer she met in Afghanistan. Still, she can’t help wondering about the reasons behind their capture.

On their way to Maria’s remote Gatineau cottage to commemorate the anniversary of their escape and rescue, Sam and Kaylee hear news reports about a missing Afghan diplomat. Then, they think they see Ali, their former interpreter and the mastermind behind the hostage-taking, who was supposed to have died during their rescue. When Amanda’s lifeless body is found the next morning, the friends’ suspicions lead them down a dangerous path that uncovers dark secrets and hidden motives.

The narrative alternates between the present day and the version of events presented in Sam’s memoir, as she and her friends struggle with their grief over the loss of Amanda and lingering trauma and jealousy over their differing fortunes in the aftermath of the kidnapping. As tensions rise and secrets are revealed, Sam starts to question everything she thought she knew about her friends, her lover, and herself, not just in the past, but in the here and now. 

Full of suspense, complex characters, and unexpected twists, Captives will cause fans of mystery and psychological thrillers to make irresponsible decisions about their sleep. 

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