How Writers Change Gears to Create New Books

After I finished the sixth book in my Ella’s America series, I declared the series complete. Unfortunately, I couldn’t get the characters out of my head. Thoughts of them swirled around in my mind. They had lived there a long time, and I knew how they would react in any situation. I knew their likes and dislikes and their personality quirks. How do writers change gears and write about new characters? What steps help them make that transition?

Take a break.

I decided to take a long break, both to refresh my mind and to recover from physical ailments. This time away helped a lot. The old characters faded from my mind. I could now write new books again.

Pursue other creative avenues.

To recharge my creative energy, I visited inspiring places. I took a trip to the art museum, the science museum, and the arboretum. New ideas flowed through my mind.

After a good long wait, I finished two novels! I hope to find a publisher for them soon.

Try something new.

I had not been idle while I waited. Recently I appeared on TV with six members of our NC Scribes writer’s group. We had an impressive total of 56 stories published in numerous Chicken Soup for the Soul books, something no other writer’s group in the country has accomplished. In fact, the publisher now refers to our group as the Chicken Coop.

Recently, we met at a member’s home for a photo shoot for The Tar Heel Traveler, a local television show. The five minute segment recently aired.

Two years ago, our group published an award-winning anthology about our reminiscences of the 9-11 terrorist attacks. Our book, 9/11: that Beautiful, Broken Day, came out to commemorate the twentieth anniversary of the tragedy. Our group appeared on The Tar Heel Traveler that time, too, although I did not attend that session.

Since I did participate in the most recent session, I have a new accomplishment to my name. I have experienced a few fleeting moments of fame. So much for humility!

Take on a challenge.

My new focus involves getting better ways to tackle social media. My goal: to learn better ways to connect so more people can enjoy what I’ve written. I’m praying for a computer genie to help me! This area challenges me, but the results of my quest will certainly make it worthwhile.

Do you have any suggestions? What ways work best for you? I would love to hear your comments.