Writer's Block

A young writer goes into a cafe to try and find inspiration for his next story

I just really wanted to write something. I didn’t care how what it was about, or how good the story even was, I just needed an idea. It had been a while since I had wrote anything fictional, and I decided that now was a good time to start up again.

I walk into the small cafe down the block from my apartment. I wasn’t expecting it to be super crowded, but I was disappointed to see that there were only two other people inside. One of them was the cashier, the other one was an old man who was sitting alone at a table reading a newspaper. I was hoping to maybe have found someone a little more interesting to write about, but I guess I would just have to make do with what I had.

I order a cappuccino, then went and sit down at a table near the window. Maybe there was someone outside that I could write about. I glance outside. It was pouring rain. No one would be outside one a day like this. I sigh as I opened up my laptop. I look back and forth between the cafe’s two occupants. Which one should I write about? What is their story?

Before I could make up my mind a blonde haired girl wearing a bright red coat walks into the cafe. I try not to look too excited. She would be a perfect main character. She was really beautiful. She must have a boyfriend. No, I thought, she will have a boyfriend. I guess I’m writing a romance story.

First, I need to decide on a name. I try thinking of a really pretty name. I mean, she’s a pretty girl. I should give her a name that suits her. Nothing comes up. I look at the girl a few times, trying not to look like I was checking her out. I guess she looks a bit like Taylor Swift. Maybe I’ll call her Taylor. I wish I could have been more creative, but I write for fun. It’s not like I plan on publishing whatever it is I’m about to write.

I watch her for a while, as I decide on some traits. I bet she’s really popular, I bet she has a lot of friends. It’s usually the pretty girls who are the popular ones anyways. However, I notice she bought three drinks. Maybe she only has a few close friends. Or maybe she’s going to meet up with some more friends somewhere else. A party? Sure, why not. I was never part of the popular group, but I still knew about all the parties. I’m not going to lie, but I watched all the videos that ended up on Facebook. One or two of them may have ended up in the format of a story that I posted online.

I realize this could be where the story starts. Taylor is waiting for her friends at a small local cafe. Then they’re going to go to a party and meet up with some more friends. Then what? Something scandalous? She meets the boy of her dreams? Why not both?

So now I need to start thinking about this boy that Taylor meets. I think briefly about doing a self insert, but I quickly decide against it. Self inserts are kind of lame in my opinion. Although, I wouldn’t mind ending up with a girl as beautiful Taylor. I guess looks aren’t everything though. I start thinking of some traits. Should he be a popular jock or a nerdy underdog? I feel like either option would be cliche. I’ll come back to it. I guess he needs a name...

Before I could start thinking, a teenaged boy walks in. He’s short, and scrawny. He’s wearing thick glasses, skinny jeans and a grey hoodie that looks like its two sizes too big. His curly brown hair looks like it hasn’t seen a comb in weeks. I guess maybe he can be the love interest.

“Hi Richard,” Taylor says, waving to him.

“Hey Scarlett,” Richard says back.

Scarlett. So that’s her real name. It really suits her. I wish I had thought to use that name.

Richard goes and sits down with Scarlett. She hands him one of the drinks. Richard thanks her and takes a sip.

“Cathy should be here soon,” Scarlett says to Richard, “I’ve told her all about you.”

I frowned. So what was happening now? Was Scarlett playing matchmaker with Richard and whoever Cathy was? This could make for an interesting story, too. I am almost done my cappuccino, but I decide to stick around for a while. I’m curious as to how things are going to play out. Some of it might prove to be good story material.

A few minutes later, someone else walked into the cafe. At first glance I thought it was a boy, but upon closer inspection, I realized that it was actually a girl with very short hair. She was wearing a black sweatshirt, and baggy shorts. Why anyone would be wearing shorts when it was freezing cold out was beyond me. She went and sat with Scarlett and Richard, which lead me to the assumption that this was Cathy.

“Hey Cathy,” Scarlett said. I guess I was right.

Cathy goes and sits down next to Scarlett. “Hey Babe,” she says sweetly. Scarlett smiles and leans in close to Cathy and kisses her on the cheek. I couldn’t help but to feel shocked. It had never crossed my mind. Not even for a split second.

I can see the cashier looking at them in disgust. “Lesbians,” he mutters scornfully. If Scarlett or Cathy heard him, they paid no notice.

“This is Richard, by the way,” Scarlett says, gesturing to Richard once she pulls away from Cathy.

“Hey,” Richard says awkwardly. He looks extremely uncomfortable. I would be too if the cashier was glaring at my table the way he was glaring at Richard’s.

I quickly glance at Richard. I decided my story wasn’t going to be about Scarlett. It was going to be about Richard. I had a new idea now.

A socially awkward teenage boy third wheeling a lesbian date. Now that was a story to tell. I got to work at once.

Reviews

[The Butterfly Writer]

Cafes are one of my favorite places to write. As cliche as that is, sometimes it's easier, it's more relaxed and you can let your thoughts flow and sometimes even get ideas for scenes. It's a great starting point if you don't know where you want to go with a story. It's easy too when there's not so much pressure on yourself to write something.

[Durowa]

Hah! This struck a chord with me; I use people watching to spark short story ideas often, especially when I'm stymied on my bigger work.

There was some tense shifting, like this line, where you change from "glance" to "decided."
"I quickly glance at Richard. I decided my story wasn’t going to be about Scarlett. "

It might also strengthen your writing to go through and weed out the adverbs. Instead of saying "he looks extremely uncomfortable," perhaps you could use that as an opportunity to give a peek at the character's mannerisms and personality. You could describe what Richard's discomfort looks like; is he fidgeting? Is he picking at his cuticles? Looking anywhere but at the two girls sitting next to him?

Nitpicking aside, I liked the use of the present tense to narrate the flow of thought. That made the story feel more realistic, and flowed with the quick pace of events. I also felt for Richard from the moment Scarlett said "This is Richard, by the way." Ouch. I'd have ended up writing about him, too.

[Marie]

THis is good. And kind of the way a writer works.