Stuck? Skip it and Keep Writing Forward

Quicktip

If you get stuck on a particular section of a writing project, just skip it and come back to it. 

Especially when writing fiction, sometimes I know where I want my characters to end up in a scene, but not necessarily all of the details on how I’m about to get them there. 

So to keep my forward momentum going, I just put the basics of what needs to happen in brackets and come back to it later. 

For instance, I write a book series under a pen name that includes a good deal of crime drama. Plotting this out off of the top of my head isn’t my strong suit. So if I get stuck on a section I’ll just write something like:

 [Calvin and Chris felt like there was something suspicious about the deal. The deal goes bad. Calvin ends up dead.]

...then move on to the next section and come back later and fill that piece in. 

This doesn’t only apply to fiction, though. Even with your other projects, just write a basic sentence that sums up what you’re trying to say and keep writing forward. You can come back later and spruce it up, but skipping over it temporarily is a good way to get unstuck. Usually, you’ll find that as you keep writing, your creative juices will start flowing and help you fill in the missing pieces.