There are times where I sit staring at a blank page, with no idea what to write next. I may have a general idea how the next scene in my novel needs to go, but the words just won’t come. Well, to be specific, no INTERESTING words come.

If you can’t visualize an interesting or exciting scene, you probably can’t write one.

So, What Can You Do? What Can Help?

No matter if your scene needs to take place outside or in, these questions can ignite your creativity just the same. Here’s what helps me. Drive to a location you don’t frequent. Take along a notebook and pen. Park your car, get out and walk around. I like to go to a park. Imagine your scene taking place there. Get out your notebook and consider the following questions to help you craft an amazing scene.

15 Questions to Help Create Interesting Scenes:

1. Which characters are there? Show, don’t tell the setting.
2. Is it cold, sunny, raining, windy, hot? Make sure the weather and the items in your surroundings fit the mood of the scene and really give it life. Paint a vivid picture of the area in which your scene will take place.
3. Is the action taking place with people or things outside or inside their own minds, or both?
4. Where are you? (city, country, park, in a building, the forest)
5. Are there street signs or business signs?
6. Is there snow? Fall leaves? Houses? Cars? Animals? Water? (stream, lake, ocean, brook)

In your mind, visualize your characters there. See it as if you were watching a movie. Let your imagination wander. Let loose. Write down all ideas as they come. You can filter out the ones you don’t like later.

What Happens With Your Characters?

1. Is there one character, two, three?
2. What are they doing in that location?
3. How long have they been there?
4. What are they thinking about?
5. Are they doing anything besides just sitting there; smoking, drinking, eating, crying, texting?
6. What would make it more exciting?
7. Could maybe someone come to them with good or bad news?
8. Could there be something that happens that pushes the story forward?
9. What could happen that’d leave your reader wanting more, eager for the next scene?

If the location you’ve chosen isn’t igniting your creativity, get back in your car and drive around until a location piques your interest.

I love doing this. It sparks my creativity and I get some page turning scenes out of it. I recently saw an abandoned house and my mind went nuts with ideas of what my characters would do if they were in there. It really develops my creativity doing this.

Have fun and Happy Writing!

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