"I'm an amateur scifi writer with a severe case of writer's block, but some good ideas. I need all the help I can get if I'm going ever get any of it finished, much less published."
Word of advice about "writer's block". Ignore it and write. Let it come out lame. Let it suck to high heaven. You can always rewrite bad work, but you can't rewrite nothing. That should be the least of our worries.
Agreed. Just sit down and start blathering on paper. It's called 'freewriting'. You'll get something within a few pages.
Get drunk.
Keep paper and pen handy.
When you feel the buzz coming, let your mind wander.
As soon as you can, write down thoughts. Just thoughts, not sentences. (they tend to travel upward off the line and then the page, trust me)
You may surprise yourself and become Hemmingway style writer.
Wise words. Just write. And don't hit the "send" button. Can't forget that one.
Very true, and very edifying!
I tend to get frustrated because everything I attempt is so imperfect, so I just stop. JenB got a group of us into doing NaNoWriMo every year, which is a help. Teaches you to bind your internal editor in a dark corner with duct tape and just *write*. But it can be hard to continue throughout the year with that same attitude.
I'm also one of those irritating folks who obsess about the material side of writing: I like nice pens and nice paper, old typewriters, writing gadgetry and all that. I can spend hours surfing the net reading about the tools instead of actually using 'em. It's a fun way to procrastinate, admittedly, but...