I really do. Think up a fun character, put him through crazy/stressful/funny things, have him meet crazy/stressful/funny people, pretend I'm the next Newbery Medal winner...
And then I hit a transition scene. Big scene A: Main Character and Da Boss have a conversation, which is going to wind up with MC getting into a fight with That Jerk. But between chat and battle must be a transition. He can't just leap from one to the other. I really really hate that.
He strolls down a street, he's got to stop for a meal, he notes passersby and city sights and waxes philosophical about life, the universe, and everything.
It bores me. It's necessary, which means I need to figure out how to write it so that it'll be short, decently interesting, and MAKE SENSE. And not turn into a description of different bricks in his fireplace wall. And instead of figuring it out, I'm whining on my blog. Nice.
Know what's really pathetic? I know what these transitions need to be. They need to be integral to the story, preferably give a little more sense of this guy, this MC whom I am trying to turn into a guy interesting enough to hold people's attention for 70,000 words or so. I feel like I must have read transitions somewhere that were brilliantly interesting and succinct and brisk. They're just not coming to mind.
Well. I am doing one thing halfway right. I will not write my next scene until I have written the transition leading up to it. Even if Da Boss is going to reveal that he knows the Main Character's big secret, and the MC in return is going to tell him a sad truth about Da Boss's loser son, which will kick off the major plot of the story....
Who am I kidding. That stupid transition can wait.
That's why you need colorful secondary characters, to give you something to carry those transitions. At least, that's what I often do.
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