When I get stuck while writing a story, when asking the ‘what next?’ question yields no fruit, I often write a memory. I delve into my characters past and write about something seemingly unrelated to present day events. As I’m writing these memories it usually feels like I’m buying time or procrastinating, in hindsight though, the memories usually teach me more about my character, informing deeper meaning it what came before and definitely affecting what I write after. It’s a good tool for writers block, I think, whether the memories stay or go in later drafts.