Clear! Jump-starting a story

October 4, 8:12 AMRomance ExaminerSally Painter

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Sometimes, I fear the ole paddles aren’t going to carry enough electricity to jump-start my story when I am thoroughly convinced… it just died on me.

Jump-starting has become a favorite technique when I come up against a place in a manuscript that I just know I can’t write a bridge scene or chapter to carry it to the next plateau.

In the past, I dreaded reaching these points of death, especially when I realized this might be what’s called writer’s block. I say ‘in the past’ because now, I actually look forward to them, well, almost. 

How many episodes of high voltage have I suffered? I am not into shock therapy, but I have changed my POV (Point of View) in approaching these snags, bumps, dead space, blank walls, paralysis of the brain…

Now, how does a change in POV occur? By adopting the business approach to problem areas. Yes, they are now opporutunities. That is not a pothole, stumbling block or even a dead end. It is an opportunity to be more creative.

That gasp for breath is an invitation and the thud I hear as my story bites the dust or limps along like a bad B-rated Halloween horror flick is a cry for the ole paddles.

With a devious, echoing laughter and wild gleam in my eyes (remember, I changed POVs), I dive right into the scene because it has just become my golden opportunity to ‘shine’. This is my moment (eyebrows wiggling up and down) to ‘shock’ the reader and jolt her right back into the story. 

Now, the only thing I have to remind myself is too many shocks will condition her reactions, so I must use those paddles only when all else has failed. Just like we see in the movies, that first jolt doesn’t always revive. Our first idea might not be the one that brings the story back to life. It might take several more tries before the pulse returns and begins its former rhythm.

To approach jump-starting, I like to play the what if game, but with a little twist. What if I put the paddles on the feet? Will that work? Or the temples? (Thoughts of Frankenstein fill my mind.) Once the childlike pleasure of pure silliness subsides, the creative flow surges forward with a new twist that catches the reader (and me) off guard and has become the reviving surprise.

With that same grin plastered on my face, I return to my storytelling, confident that the next time I need to resuscitate it, I will have just as much fun. After all, isn’t that what writing is all about?