Another vote for stories. I very rarely write out a character's backstory except as summaries of 'scenes' or vignettes about the character and things that reflect him/her as a whole.Â
However, once I have 5 or 6 micro-stories around a character I know things abut them I had never planned and have a grasp on their speech, mannerisms, and background in a way that writing out a 'backstory' has never given me.Â
As far as writer's block goes, here's something from Maya Angelou:Â
"What I try to do is write. I may write for two weeks ‘the cat sat on the mat, that is that, not a rat.’ And it might be just the most boring and awful stuff. But I try. When I’m writing, I write. And then it’s as if the muse is convinced that I’m serious and says, 'Okay. Okay. I’ll come.'"
Or to put it the way I prefer: A writer is someone who writes. Writer's block is an oxymoron. If you aren't writing then you aren't blocked. You just aren't a writer that day. Some days that's not a bad thing.
However, once I have 5 or 6 micro-stories around a character I know things abut them I had never planned and have a grasp on their speech, mannerisms, and background in a way that writing out a 'backstory' has never given me.Â
As far as writer's block goes, here's something from Maya Angelou:Â
"What I try to do is write. I may write for two weeks ‘the cat sat on the mat, that is that, not a rat.’ And it might be just the most boring and awful stuff. But I try. When I’m writing, I write. And then it’s as if the muse is convinced that I’m serious and says, 'Okay. Okay. I’ll come.'"
Or to put it the way I prefer: A writer is someone who writes. Writer's block is an oxymoron. If you aren't writing then you aren't blocked. You just aren't a writer that day. Some days that's not a bad thing.
