I seem to be on a roll with life-organisational things, here. This one isn't quite as dull as the last two concepts, but equally important.

Not everyone creates the same way. Some of us are spaghetti-flingers, some of us are meticulous outliners. Bottom-up, Top-down, sideways or painstaking-research worldbuilders. Morning-writers, evening-writers, hours-that-no-sane-person-should-be-awake-writers. Napkin-writers, notebook writers, netbook writers (and, probably, iPad writers).

There's really no way, short of trial and error, of discovering how you work, especially when it comes to creative processes. What worked when you had to write an essay in school might be a mind-killer when it comes to a novel. But what works for a novel might be totally different to what works for a series. What works for science fiction might be completely different to what works for horror, for you. Don't be afraid to try a new system - in fact, I heartily suggest that you at least attempt to write something with a different process whenever you start a new project. Nothing is wasted, you might well find that the attempt inspires a new direction, even if that particular process ultimately doesn't work for you.

Equally important, keep a record of it. I (try to) keep a diary alongside my work, where I take note of how I'm approaching something, what is and isn't working for me about it, how I might consider doing it differently, as well as the regular musings-to-self about the story's development. Over time, you'll find yourself a pattern that helps you work. Not only does this mean less heartache during that "I don't know what I'm doing" phase of the story, but it means you can put tricks in place to help you over your blindspots. Do you have a tendency to create a kind of character? To rely on a certain plot trope, or forget to establish setting early? Does it not occur to you to invent a particular aspect of your world, relying instead on heavily borrowed sections of ours?  Note this, and adjust your process to deal with the problem.

But keep in mind that people change, and that every project is different - even if you've been writing your way for twenty years, mis it up now and then. Try something new. Write the story backwards, skip all over the plot, plan it on index cards or write blindfold. Take your laptop to a cafe or a roundabout and write there.

Because changing your work process gives rise to new perspectives, new thoughts. New ways of looking at the problem - and not just to solve the current character's dilemma, but inspire entirely new themes and issues to write.

So:

1. Try new stuff
2. Document what happens
3. Find what works
4. Repeat from 1.