The sister blog post, “8 Unique Ways Readers Can Fill Their Empty Notebooks,” can be found on FuentesPens.Ink.
Have you ever said to absolutely anyone that you like to write? Then you’ve probably received scores of empty notebooks as gifts over the years.
If you’re like me, all this extra time you’re spending at home has made you realize just how many of them are collecting dust on your shelves. And that simply won’t do! You’re a writer, after all—you have enough words in you to fill all the empty notebooks in the world!
Below are a few ways you can get started on doing just that.
1. Feel out your characters.
Our characters live in our minds as full people, but maybe you need some help fleshing them out on the page.
If you’re a planner, use a blank journal to interview your character, write letters from them to other characters, or complete a character questionnaire.
If you’re more of a pantser, take notes on details you include as you write. That way, when you go back to revise, you’ll have all the information you need at your fingertips.
This could be especially useful if you have characters floating around in your head but are struggling to attach a story to them. You can keep a running list of those characters until you need them without forgetting all the details.
2. Work out the intricacies of your plot.
Even if you think you have it all figured out, you’ll inevitably hit a snag in your plot somewhere that will leave you wondering which road to take.
When that happens, use one of those empty notebooks to help you out. Write out what couldn’t possibly happen next to get it all out of your system. If that doesn’t unveil the solution, try bullet-pointing your plot up until the point you’re stuck, then do the same thing starting from the end and working backwards. Then you’ll have just a short gap to cross, and you may come up with a solution to it as you write!
Keeping such thoughts in a notebook will help you if you ever need to circle back.
3. Fiddle with your prose.
Have you ever known exactly what will happen next, but can’t figure out how to get it out of your brain and through your fingertips? Under those conditions, does staring at the blinking cursor stress you out?
But no one will ever see the little notebook you keep by your laptop, will they? So, feel free to scribble all the different phrasings you’re considering until the right one flows out of you. Just the act of doing this can help you work out how to say what’s on your mind.
4. Track and schedule all your brilliant ideas (or word counts).
This idea is more on the practical side. I’m sure you have no shortage of ideas for stories. Well, beyond merely collecting them in a notebook, you could also plan out which one you’ll tackle next. Make a pros and cons list for starting each idea, assign a month or year to each idea, or take a few pages to explore a concept to decide if it’s right for you.
Once you get going, you could even track your word counts for each writing session devoted to a particular project if that’s something that helps and motivates you.
If you’d like to expand on this idea, you might love my article and video on how to create a perennial writing planner.
5. Collect character names and other tidbits.
You’ve probably already tried this one with a smaller notebook, haven’t you? Well, I urge you to give it another go, except this time, pick a little notebook with a soft cover that fits in your purse or pocket. If you choose the latter, place the notebook (and a small pen!) in your pocket the night before you wake up to ensure you don’t forget it.
Try also expanding what you put in your notebooks. Don’t wait for the muse to tap you on the shoulder. Instead, jot down the snippet of conversation you catch, write out a peculiar situation you witnessed stepping out of the grocery store, or note the coffee order you overheard that sounds a little off. Collect things that seem mundane and things that excite you. What intrigues you today won’t be the same thing that intrigues you tomorrow!
6. Handwrite a whole draft.
This was something I did a lot in elementary school—bring one of my empty notebooks to class and continue the story I was writing during my free time. Only a polished version would get typed since I didn’t yet have a computer of my own at my disposal. When I got older, I switched to writing all my drafts on Microsoft Word and, later, Google Docs.
But that needn’t be the case! Writing by hand forces you to slow down, which would be helpful all by itself, but there are also tons of other benefits.
7. Draw whatever it is out.
Epic fantasy and a series based in the same invented town may require you to draw a map to keep your locations straight. While that’s always a good idea, there are other things you could draw out as well—room layouts, blocking for a scene with more than a few characters, or important props you’ll need to describe in detail.
And it doesn’t stop at the story, either! When I design websites, I often ask my clients to draw out what they imagine their homepage and other pages to look like. You could do the same thing, or try sketching your vision for your cover artist if they’re open to such suggestions.
Maybe you don’t consider yourself an artist. Goodness knows I don’t. But, again, not a soul has to ever lay eyes on your sketch. It’s okay to get messy—just as long as you know what you were trying to do when you come back to it!
8. Maintain a series bible.
If you have a story that could only be done justice as a saga, then a series bible might be just the thing you need. It could combine a little of everything mentioned in this blog post—character development, plotting, tracking your progress, et cetera.
I would recommend this for only your biggest, most beauteous notebooks, of course. Or maybe a traveler’s notebook with multiple inserts. Whatever you decide to use, know that you will need a lot of space!
BONUS: Paste in old book pages and start a blackout poetry collection!
Details on this an seven more suggestions can be found at the sister blog post.
