I had an email asking me whether I ever use freewriting and whether I recommend it. Freewriting means writing whatever comes to mind for a set period of time without stopping. It’s a good way to warm up. I don’t do that version very often but I do use a form I call targeted freewriting.
For instance, let’s say you’re writing a novel or screenplay but can’t figure out what comes next, or perhaps what you thought comes next isn’t working. In that case I’d suggest five to ten minutes of freewriting about your protagonist and any other important characters in that part of your story; another session freewriting about what led up to the part where you got stuck; and another session freewriting about as many possible next steps as you can think of. Then re-read all of these and quite often you’ll find a solution to your problem.
It’s still freewriting in that you’re allowed to go off topic if that’s what comes to mind. You might start writing about your protagonist’s feeling, which reminds you about an experience you had (so you write about that) and that leads you to writing about a story you read in the paper. When you go back to re-read that, stay alert for any clues that could help you solve your story problem—they may be hidden in the news article or in your own memory, for instance.
(for a wealth of techniques for writing your book or screenplay, see my book, "Your Writing Coach," published by Nicholas Brealey and available from Amazon and other booksellers.)
