What if? Two little words that mean a lot. Well, if you’re a writer they do.

There are times in every writer’s life when the brick wall looms in front. How do you get your hero to do something that will move the plot forwards? How do you manoeuvre your villain into the right place to wreak his or her havoc? And just how do you bring about your happy, or otherwise, ending?

What if …?

The beauty of writing fiction is that those two little words can bring about a sudden change in a character’s fortune for the better or the apocalypse. The page is blank, your characters await their instructions, or do they? What if they refuse and do their own thing? Not possible because they aren’t real, you may say. Funny thing is, I used to think that. But what if your intended outcome disappears as you type? What if you then have to rethink the whole chapter, or heaven forbid, the entire book?

What if your readers could see your notes and reams of research? Maybe its as well they can’t, because what if those notes don’t bear any resemblance to the finished work?

Two little words that the novel writer can’t do without … What if?

What if your no-one reads your work? What if they do but don’t like it? What if your hero becomes ill …now that’s a thought … I just have to go and change something, see you later!