Jess asked Katie McGarry:

Does writing from past experience actually make writing easier or is there another way to start writing when you don't know where to start?

Katie McGarry Hi Hoody,

Writing from past experiences--or for me inspired by my past experiences-- sometimes does make starting a story easier. There are times though that my emotions become too intense and that makes it tough for me write.

If I don't know where to start a book, it's usually because I don't know my characters very well yet. As in, I may not have a good grasp of the their goals and what emotionally upsets them. I open a book with the inciting incident--that moment where everything for my character changes.

I usually start in a place where I show the characters vulnerabilities as well as their strengths. For instance in Crash Into You, I start with Isaiah alone in a parking lot of social services. He's supposed to meet with his mother. I wanted to put him in a place where the reader sees how he's hurting because of his past relationship with her.

I hope this helps!

Katie

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