Okay, I have spent the last 48 hours self-assessing my process/reminding myself how *I* write, and I'm going to share a little about it. Again, this is how it works for ME. Not prescriptive.
1. I don't write in order. And I'm not talking about chapters. I mean I don't write the SENTENCES OF MY SCENES in order. So the first thing I do is write a short summary of what I want in the scene.
2. The writing of the summary is itself useful, because I find myself veering between plot notes and character/emotion notes, and that often helps me with lines of dialogue and tiny fragments of prose.
3. At some point in the writing of the short summary--or blocking as I think of it--I get distracted and start writing my actual lines. Every time I get stuck, I return to my blocking and use that to help me get back in.
4. The blocking/summarizing comes from writing many, many, many synopses, and also very plot-driven/plot-dependent works (see: thrillers, mysteries, etc), where I NEED to plan my actions a bit. And truth be told, I love scaffolding.
5. I apparently have to relearn this system every single time. But it works for me. /ramble
(One more thing: I treat the process of that blocking/summarizing as a kind of freewrite. I'll ask myself questions. Test out directions. Write them all down. The summary is where I let myself test, poke, prod, and err.)
