Have you been staring at a blank page for days and even weeks on end, wondering where your creative juices went? You might be suffering from every writer’s fear: writer’s block. Every aspiring writer has suffered from it at one point — even bestselling authors like Stephen King and F. Scott Fitzgerald experienced it!
In this article, we’ll discuss writer’s block in-depth, including clever tips to beat the dreaded writer’s block once and for all so you can get back to writing no time!
What Does Writer’s Block Mean?
Writer’s block is the notion you are unable to come up with new ideas to write about. Either because you’ve written too much and can’t think of anything else to write about, or you just don’t even know how to start your first draft. Simply put, something is blocking your creativity.
Regardless of the reason (more on this later!), writer’s block is real and happens to amateurs and even professional writers. The good news is that it is possible and easy to overcome it.
What Causes Writer’s Block?
The common causes of writer’s block include poor timing, perfectionism, and fear.
Poor Timing
Sometimes, you feel that it is not the right time to do your writing, or you are just too late in writing your piece. This is when you lose your ideas, and you end up procrastinating. Usually, in this case, you may need to spend some time processing your ideas.
The Idea of Perfectionism
This is when you want your writing to be perfect. You end up spending too much time fleshing out your ideas. Perfectionism can be very tempting, but if your writing isn’t done correctly, you may end up writing nothing at the end.
Fear
This is horrible and happens to all of us. You don’t want your audience and others to criticize your piece. In fact, fear, even the mere thought of it, is the big reason why most potential writers never make the first move.
Lack of Inspiration/Motivation
Feeling inspired and motivated can give you not only fresh ideas but also the direction and unique perspective you need to get your creative juices flowing. Unfortunately, inspiration can be hard to come by when you don’t know where to start or you’re already burned out.
What Are the Symptoms of Writer’s Block?
If you suspect that you are suffering from writer’s block, you may experience any of these symptoms:
- Irritable
- Anxious
- Frustrated
- Restlessness
- Headaches, muscle tension, and other physical symptoms
14 Ways to Overcome Writer’s Block
If you suffer from writer’s block, great news! Our ten tips below will hopefully help you unblock yourself and get writing again. Not all of these will work for you, but you should at least give each a try to see if you can get back to writing.
1. Address the Underlying Causes of Your Writer’s Block
Are you afraid of rejection, or do you lack the dedication to continue writing? Addressing the root causes of your writer’s block in the first place can, most of the time, solve your creative problems.
2. Take a Break
Your brain is not a machine, and it will get tired and wear out. Take regular breaks and let your mind rest. Research shows that the human mind is more creative when it is at rest. So, get a full night’s sleep and take naps when you need to. Also, make sure you take regular breaks throughout the day. If you are worried that you may take too many breaks, use Tomator Timer.
3. Change Your Scenery
If you always write in the same place at the same time every day, try moving.
Go to a place where your sole intention is to write. Also, leave your phone behind and unplug from the internet; emails and other notifications can easily distract you from writing.
Changing your perspective while writing makes you think more creatively, and you may find new inspiration that you wouldn’t have found otherwise.
4. Go out for a Walk
Sometimes just walking outside in nature can unblock your thinking. Even a walk around the block if you aren’t close to nature can do wonders for your creativity.
5. Always Have a Notepad to Jot Down Ideas
Inspiration and ideas can happen anytime and anywhere – perhaps when you are out for a walk! So, make sure to always have a notepad like a Moleskine notebook with you.
6. File and Handle It Later
If you are getting bored or stuck, give it time and finish other things first. Doing things in pieces can make your writing fun and exciting. You’ll complete your writing naturally without ever getting stuck or frustrated.
7. Meditate
Meditation has many great health benefits. Our favorite app is Calm, which we use to take a few minutes out of our day to focus on just us. You can also do yoga!
8. Look at Social Media or Read News Headlines
Typically, social media is a distraction, but if you’re in a pinch and you need some quick inspiration it can be a great way to find it as long as you don’t get lost in kitty videos. Try pursuing more visual social media platforms like Pinterest or Instagram and see if any posts spark interest. You can even search for topics or hashtags on the platforms for topics that you want to write about to see if anything pops up.
You can also try reading headlines on news websites to see if any local or national news sparks an idea for your writing.
9. Listen to Music
Music is scientifically proven to increase creativity and expressive thinking. We recommend listening to music without lyrics since lyrics tend to distract our minds from thinking about the topic at hand. Our favorite Spotify playlist is Deep Focus. If music isn’t your thing, try listening to ambient sounds like rain or cafe sounds.
10. Use Mind-Mapping to Create an Outline
Mind mapping involves visually outlining all your ideas and thoughts into one place without worrying about either structure or order. Plus, you can keep expanding on your ideas as the mind map grows!
To get started with mind mapping, you can find some great resources here.
11. Use Brainstorming Tools
Sometimes, when you’re stuck thinking about topics to write about, you just need a nudge to get started. We have several idea-generation tools. Our blog title generator just requires you to enter a noun and it will spit out 10 blog title ideas to kickstart your brainstorming. Our writing prompt generator will give you new topic ideas to consider, and our essay title generator will help you think of new prompts as well.
You can also try some other physical brainstorming tools that will generate new ideas for you and can be carried around wherever you plan to write.
12. Get Help in Areas That Make You Stuck
It is common to get stuck if you are tackling a big or unfamiliar subject. If you ever get stuck and have no way out, try seeking help from another writer. Identify those gaps that made your project come to a standstill and ask for advice on how to get through it. Panic will never solve anything. In fact, it will just waste your time. The sooner you find help, the faster you can get back to writing.
13. Hold Yourself Publicly Accountable
Nothing motivates people more than the thought of embarrassing themselves in front of loved ones. Make a public statement on social media or by phone to a loved one that you will have your article written by the end of that day. If not, you will owe them dinner, a long phone call, or something else that might be mildly annoying and costly for you. This is sure to motivate you quickly and force you out of your writer’s block.
14. Just Start Writing to Break Writer’s Block
Sometimes, the best way to unblock yourself is to just write about whatever is on your mind, even if it isn’t related to the topic you were supposed to write about.
It sounds weird, doesn’t it? But it works!
Try removing all distractions and spend a solid 20 to 30 minutes (timed writing sessions) writing anything that comes to your mind — even if it is crap, gibberish, or junk. And, don’t try to correct grammar or spelling mistakes, just write.
This technique is also known as “free writing” since you are just writing freely with no agenda.
Remember, it is better to write something than to do nothing.
Conclusion
Regardless of whether you are a prolific writer or an amateur, remember that writer’s block happens to nearly everyone. Hopefully, after reading our guide, you can find the right words to jumpstart your writing journey again and defeat the writing funk!
