6 Ways to Start Writing

You have either picked up a pen/pencil or have your fingers hovering above a keyboard. Writer's block is as simple as asking the 5 W's and H as they say in journalism: Who, what when, where, why and how? "Who do I start with? What character?" "What do I start writing?" "What do I start writing?" "Where should it take place?" "How should I Start?" All of these are the perfect questions to answer in an outline before you begin the actual story.

1."Who do I start with? Which character?"

Don't think so much about what type of character personality your readers would want to read. Readers are like you and me. They're very particular so just write about someone who is familiar to you already, either in the form of a biography or fiction and ask yourself, "What kind of character would appeal to me? What does he/she look like? What kind of activities would I do with this character? What is his/her profession or age? Who does he/she live with?" Pretend you are a journalist in the room with an imaginary personality. Ask him/her questions and "hear" what the responses are. Write them down!

2."What do I start writing?"

You can start with either person, place and time. You can start with a quotation that you found most appealing from this so-called interview.

3."When should the story take place?"

If you are writing a period novel, do your research and make sure the description is accurate and appropriate to the time period you choose to write about. If you are writing about contemporary times, then think about what around you gives hints toward your own time period.

4."Where should it take place?"

Paris, France? A remote island? An imaginary land? A house? Whatever the place is, it can be as specific as you wish it to be or as general as you wish it to be. Just remember to describe it in detail by using adjectives, similes and metaphors.

5."How do I start the story?"

Refer back to number 2 "What do I start writing?"

Remember, you are one of 8 billion in the world, each one with a story that matters!