Ciao, SEers. In the spirit of the new year (and all things new) I thought I’d broach a subject that’s foremost in my mind these days—new projects. Specifically, starting a new story or series in a genre you haven’t written in before. There’s nothing more daunting than staring at a blank page.

Unless, of course, you’re staring at a blank page and are at a complete loss as to what to say.

It might seem counterintuitive that a writer, whose primary purpose is to tell a story, would sit to start brainstorming or plotting or writing without some idea in his or her head. I suppose it is, if you think of a writer starting with a completely blank slate. I mean, who among us would try to tell a story without at least a seed of an idea to nurture?

That’s not what I mean. I’m talking about waking…