Goodreads asked Juliette Harper:

How do you deal with writer’s block?

Juliette Harper Since there are two of us working as a team, writer's block doesn't get its way with our alter ego Juliette Harper often. Certainly there are days when no matter what we do, the words don't happen, but generally our work day starts with a conversation. We like to explore our characters' motivations. Why do they say what they say? Why do they use those words? What experience in their background is a driver in any given situation?

Just after we finished the first book in the Lockwood Legacy series, we took a course on "story beats" taught by Sean Platt (who writes with Johnny B. Truant.) We have a lot of respect for the guys over at Realm and Sands. They are prolific writers with fantastic ideas about process. Their book "Write. Publish. Repeat." is, in our opinion, indispensable for Indie authors.

The story beat process forces us to "tell" our books to each other first. The process creates the roughest first draft you can imagine, but it also builds a blueprint for the story. That lets us come in and really hit the chapters at a good clip.

Writer's block feeds on hesitation. We think that being able to write at a steady pace with a clear direction in mind is a huge safeguard against getting stalled. Between that and being able to turn to one another and say, "What do you think should happen next?" we really don't grapple with writer's block that often.

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