• Do something repetitive. Something that you can do with your eyes closed. If it’s mundane and boring, that’s when your mind has time to wander and it can really help you think things through. Washing dishes by hand is a good chore that doesn’t take a lot of alternate brain power. You can suds it up fine while letting your mind wander.

• Go for a drive. This is one of my favorite things to do. Just me and the car. No radio or audio book, or anything distracting. Just complete silence and an empty road. That’s when I do my best thinking. I don’t want a busy town or anywhere where there is plenty of traffic, because it distracts me from my thoughts. Country cruising is the best for me.

• Take a bath.  Lie in the bath tub and soak up all that glorious comfort. Close your eyes and just let your mind take you wherever it wants to go. Whatever you do, don’t fall asleep in the tub.

• Sit in a park, coffee shop, or book store and people watch. It’s amazing how many scenarios you can come up with about the strangers you watch passing by. Imagine they are an undercover agent trying to find a top secret jewel before the bad guys get their hands on it. Or, something else, if you’d prefer. J

• Free write. No stories or scenes allowed. Just sit with pen and paper in hand and write whatever comes to your mind at the time. You can do this at the computer, but I really do my best work with a real pen between my fingers. To each his own, though.

I’ve had many days when I just couldn’t seem to come up with anything decent to write about, and that’s okay. But, occasionally, just allowing your mind a little downtime can really help get the creative juices flowing.

This list is just a few simple tricks I’ve tried. I hope it can be of some help to you if you ever need it, but here’s hoping you don’t. If you’ve got some extra tips, leave a comment and let me know. I’d love to add to my arsenal of weapons. Good luck and happy writing!