Why is my transaction not getting confirmed and what can I do about it?

[cryptonoel]

I sent a transaction
1: without (or with an exceptionally small) transaction fee
        2: using extremely small or unconfirmed inputs
3: while the stars were not standing right.
For whatever reason, I have been waiting forever for my transaction to confirm.
Why is it taking so long for my transaction to confirm? What can I do to speed-up the transaction’s confirmation?

[Thirdspace]

I sent a transaction
1: without (or with an exceptionally small) transaction fee
        2: using extremely small or unconfirmed inputs
3: while the stars were not standing right.
For whatever reason, I have been waiting forever for my transaction to confirm.
Why is it taking so long for my transaction to confirm? What can I do to speed-up the transaction’s confirmation?

are you asking or stating the obvious reasons?
you numbered statements are all the reasons for your transaction not getting any confirmations
low transaction fee and unconfirmed inputs are the top 2 reasons for unconfirmed transaction
I don't understand #3 though, what do you mean by that?
can you tell us the transaction id? what wallet are you using to make the transaction?

[buwaytress]

This is the best starting point for all queries related to "stuck transactions". It's the sticky in this thread so you can't miss it. https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=1802212.0

@Thirdspace, his #3 is either a troll or just a way of saying "something inexplicable went wrong, wrong place wrong time". Ordinarily, I'd also agree that low fees and unconfirmed parents/inputs are the only reasons for transactions getting stuck, but there are several other ways that could happen. Until OP gives a transaction ID, type of wallet and other details for reference, nothing anyone can do to speculate.

[Thirdspace]

oh geez... I fell victim to a copy paste spammer OP
I was a bit curious when reading your (buwaytress) reply about #3, so I searched on google
and I found this on stackexchange posted in 2013 with exact same title and contents  
https://bitcoin.stackexchange.com/questions/9046/why-is-my-transaction-not-getting-confirmed-and-what-can-i-do-about-it