Okay recruits. You got to sleep-in and take it slow, but those slow days can sometimes be your most creative. Tap into your inspiration today and write.
If you're feeling blocked, here's an idea: Have two characters go on a first date with each other. In my first book, the protagonist goes out to dinner with an FBI agent. I used the scene to reveal character and develop tension between the two of them. You can write out first dates between different characters--even if they will never get together in the book. Figure out what they have in common and where they clash by going out to dinner, a show, and writing out their conversations--in character, with their appropriate voices. Don't skimp on these scenes--write them as carefully as if they were to be published. Show, don't tell. You might be surprised by the actions and conversations.
What kind of restaurant would they choose for dinner--would the other character like it or not? What would they order and how much would they tip?
What kinds of questions would they ask each other--favorite music, hobbies, color? Would these two people get into an argument? Where would they disagree and what would push them from polite conversation into argument? One question my protag asked the agent halfway into the conversation I like a lot and now use on all my characters:
“What do you like to do while you’re alone on a Saturday, listening to the Cure? I know nothing about you. The real you.”
Make it interactive, between the two of them. Where would they go after dinner? A movie? A show? A cultural festival? Their apartment?
And yes, would these two characters in the right circumstances sleep together?
