The Horror of the Blank Page, Blank Mind

Many writers face the dreaded blank page with a blank mind, especially those who want to write a book and do not know where to start. I teach writers a terrific technique for never having to face a blank page with a blank mind. Here's my secret: Before you begin writing a book, make a list of all the major points you want to make. You may add to, subtract from, change, revise, reorganize, or even ignore the list later, if you want, but if you have a book in mind, start with a list of main points.

The best memoirs feature events and vignettes, rather than a litany of highlights. If writing a memoir, rather than listing a birth date, important dates, names of schools attended, or awards received, your memoir list might go like this:

Mother nearly dies giving birth to me in 1945

First day at grammar school in 1951, got lost in hallway

What I was doing when I heard I won the Lictersphincter Award

The day I met my spouse

The time I broke my leg

The events that led to my being fired from Jonston Company

Each event can then be written as a scene with action, dialogue, setting, setup, story, and resolution, which makes for much more exciting memoirs.

If you plan to write a how-to book, your list might go like this:

Skills needed to make a wingding

Tools needed

How to prepare to make a wingding

Problems to avoid

Possible solutions to issues that might arise

How to help the community with your new wingding

The same formula works for fiction. You could write a list of scenes or plot twists you plan to cover. Here's an example:

John meets Dorothy

Dorothy ends her relationship with Alfred

Alfred lies in wait for John

John hires a bodyguard who turns out to have his own agenda

Many people hate to outline projects before starting, but a list is not an outline. It is simply a bendable, moldable, changeable list to help writers avoid facing a blank page with a blank mind. After you have made such a list, whenever you sit down to write, you simply have to peruse the list and decide which of the subjects speaks to you that day. As a result, you are off and writing with ease.

No one ever said your book has to be written in the order that it appears. With today's technology you can start anywhere and later move things around to your liking.