How I Deal With Writer's Block
Five Tips to Help Reignite Your Imagination | From the Archive
This post first appeared here more than a year ago. It deals with a pressing and sensitive topic that many creative writers struggle with off and on. (You are NOT alone! See below.) What I wrote back then is still very relevant—and hopefully helpful—so I thought it worth sharing again, along with some tweaks and additions.
Some days, no matter how much I try, I can’t get a decent thought on the page for anything. Eventually, I give up trying, feeling frustrated, puzzled, worried. What the heck is going on here, I’m wondering?
Sound familiar?
Some call this writer’s block. Others believe there is no such thing. I won’t debate about terminology or definitions. I will say this though: wherever you fall on the writer’s block belief spectrum, if you write long and hard enough you WILL eventually hit a persistent slump. It may be a lengthy one or a short one. But when it happens, probably the worst thing you could do is hope it will soon go away on its own. That is not usually how it works. In my experience, the longer you let a writing slump hang on, the harder it will be to break free.
So get proactive. Below are 5 tips you can try to kick that pain in the butt. They’ve worked for me. But here’s the thing. They won’t work for you unless you actually try them.
Instead of a power nap, take a creative nap. How does that work? Before you drift off to sleep, think about the part of your writing where you got stuck. Often your mind will get busy while you’re sleeping and solve the problem for you. If a nap won’t do the trick, try this at night before drifting off. Yes, it really can work. I’ve used it many times with great success.
Read nonfiction books. They can be inspirational books or books on the craft of writing. This often gets the writing wheels churning again, and when I do this I find myself itching to get back to work. I listed a half dozen books that I have found helpful over the years in another post titled Ink and Insight.
Try mind mapping. In the center of a blank page write a a few words describing the scene or character you’re stuck on and draw a circle around it. Then let your mind wander, adding whatever comes up, using branches and more circles.
This allows you to write freely without the confines or structure of thinking in sentences and paragraphs or trying to follow your outline. You can find lots of websites and books on mind mapping as well as software and apps if you prefer to work electronically. One of my favs is Scapple by the makers of Scrivener. It’s like mind mapping on steroids.If you need a more long-term fix, go learn something new. This should get your brain out of a deep rut and really shake things up. Some ideas: dancing lessons, yoga, and meditation. I took up jewelry design. Thinking of trying collage-making next.
Finally, here are a couple of hugely successful books that will help you deal with the negative inner voices that can lead to fear and blocks. (Yes, it’s mostly in your head, my head, our heads.) The Big Leap: Conquer Your Hidden Fear and Take Life to the Next Level, by Gay Hendricks, and The War of Art: Break Through the Blocks and Win Your Inner Creative Battles, by Steven Pressfield.
Remember, it’s not uncommon for creative writers to face moments of doubt and writing slumps. The key to moving on is to meet them with intent and a proactive approach. The tips above should help you conquer these challenging phases and reignite your imagination and creativity.