Bracket System
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The Bracket System is a method of working through writer's block, explained/coined/(created?) by author Piers Anthony.
When a writer has trouble continuing a piece of writing, he or she may stop the story itself and begin writing in brackets, explaining in whatever terms available what the brackets need to replace. This can include the problem that the writer is having at this junction, ideas to solve it, and other decisions and research that needs to be done. The writer may emerge from the brackets (with an end bracket), and continue along with the "actual" writing, with the intention of replacing the bracketed text on the next draft.
"This does two things: it keeps you writing, which is important for momentum, and it solves your snag." -- Piers Anthony in a June 2001 interview with Science Fiction Weekly (link below).
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Piers Anthony explains the Bracket System in an interview with Science Fiction Weekly.
