Brian McMahon
It depends on what stage of the writing process I am in (drafting, revising, general brainstorming, etc.), but for the most part I try to step away from the work.
If I need a full-on break, I'll read or go for a run. If I feel like I need to stay engaged with my work and wait for ideas to flood back in, I like to go back to my "background" documents. These aren't even outlines; I use them as a space to fill in details about characters and settings: what school someone went to, what shows they like, what the menu board looks like in the local deli. A lot of these details won't even find their way into the story, but they help me process how characters move through their given world -- and how that world affects them in return.
If I need a full-on break, I'll read or go for a run. If I feel like I need to stay engaged with my work and wait for ideas to flood back in, I like to go back to my "background" documents. These aren't even outlines; I use them as a space to fill in details about characters and settings: what school someone went to, what shows they like, what the menu board looks like in the local deli. A lot of these details won't even find their way into the story, but they help me process how characters move through their given world -- and how that world affects them in return.
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