by S. J. Reisner

Created on: February 08, 2007   Last Updated: May 14, 2007

Remember back to your childhood and consider all the time you spent playing with your invisible friends, or pretending you were riding a horse across an open plain. Recall how fertile your imagination was. Now take a look at yourself today. Do you still enjoy playing with invisible friends and pretending your garden is the courtyard of a castle? Or do you just save those moments for when you're sitting in front of the computer writing your stories?

Recently, a writer friend told me, "I got a lot of thinking done on my new story over the weekend." Both she and I knew exactly what she meant. She spent the weekend pretending and interacting with her new invisible friends (her characters). She didn't put it that way because that sounds crazy. Right? But let's be honest. Writers spend lots of playtime pretending with their imaginary friends. It's how we make our stories come alive on the page. We just don't admit it because we're supposed to be adults who aren't allowed to pretend, or have invisible friends. That's too bad, too. Pretend time has played a vital role in my writing over the years. It is the method by which I've worked out plot problems, gotten to know my characters, and it's how I build my worlds. Writing goes beyond outlines, sketches, and research. Especially with fantasy if you can't live it, you can at least pretend.

Now before you start wondering what drugs I'm on, let me assure you that I am perfectly sane (psychologist approved) and well-grounded in reality. You can be both of these things and still spend 85% of your life living in your own fantasy worlds. If you already have pretend time and invisible friends, then you probably don't need this article even though you will find comfort in learning that you aren't alone, nor are you crazy. Congratulations, and good for you! But for the rest of you, I'm going to walk you through some pretend time to solve some of the most common writing issues we all face. You may be uncomfortable with the method at first, or maybe not. Maybe it will work for you, maybe it won't. Just remember to relax and have fun! Pretend time is work that doesn't feel like work, and it works.

~Getting To Know Your Characters

First, you have to put yourself in one of your character's POV. Are you your MC? The best friend? The significant other? The bad guy? What role are you going to play? Choose one. Then pinpoint a particular issue or scene you are trying to work out. Let's say you just don't know who your characters are right

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