How I Beat Writer's Block

Hello everyone! Welcome, and welcome back! Today I decided to do a how-to post for my fellow writers. I’m going to explain some things about how I overcome writer’s block. When I get writer’s block, it doesn’t usually last long. I have periods of laziness that last longer. Not all of my strategies will work for everyone because we’re all different, but hopefully you find something here that helps. Here are some things I like to do to overcome writer’s block:

     1. READ!

My favorite way to beat the blockage is to read. I usually go for a good old classic when I need inspiration. I’ve read most of my classics several times over (some of them never get old), while I have others that I still haven’t gotten around to reading. It’s hard to pick up that copy of Pride and Prejudice (that’s right, I still haven’t read that one) when The Magician’s Nephew sits on the next shelf, or I can read To Kill A Mockingbird again etc. IMO the Twilight series doesn’t make a very inspiring read so if you’re trying to get past a block, skip it. I only read the series out of curiosity since it was getting a lot of hype at the time. If you want a vampire book for inspirational purposes, I recommend Anne Rice’s novels. When I choose a book to read, I don’t really have a specific subject genre, or author in mind. I go to the bookshelf, take in the pleasing scent of all my books, and am usually drawn to one. It’s like magic. There are a lot of ways that reading a good book can inspire you to write. You might like the author’s writing style, or at least something about it that you decide to adopt consciously or otherwise. You could fall in love with a fantasy world and decide to create your own, making everything just the way you want it. Something else I just thought of that makes good inspirational reading, the letters that authors like Lewis Carroll, JRR Tolkien, CS Lewis, and others, sent to each other. Sometimes there’s even inspiration in the newspaper, anywhere in the newspaper if you turn on your imagination first. Try not to replicate the materials you read, rather let them cause you to feel something and base your writing on that feeling.

2. TALK TO KIDS

Small children have such wild imaginations. If there is a child in your life that you’re close with, ask questions and pay attention to what they say. I like to interview my four-year-olds on their imaginary friends, and the funny little imaginative games they play. Give them paper and crayons and ask them about what they drew. This is also helpful when you’re writing a child character, to give you insight on how they think. Watch them play and just listen to them. Kids are so creative with everything they do. I get a lot of inspiration from watching, talking, and playing with my kids. If you’re a parent, aunt, uncle, older sibling, or babysitter, really hang out with the kid and let your inner child free. Even if it doesn’t cure your writer’s block, it isn’t a waste of time and I doubt you’ll regret it.

3. MUSIC

I prefer instrumental music without lyrics for inspiration. I don’t like to write based on a song, but how it made me feel, and what I saw in my mind as I heard the music. Choose whatever music makes you feel good. Relax and let the music carry you away. Pay attention to how you feel, and what it makes you think about, and write it down.

4. DREAMS

I don’t know about you, but I have some crazy dreams sometimes. A lot of the time they’re really boring, like the other night when I had a dream nightmare I was doing endless laundry, but even that’s something that could make an entertaining story. Keep a journal by your bed and write everything you can remember from your dreams each day, even if you don’t have writer’s block at the time. You can read it when you do. I’ve done this for years. Sometimes it’s the only writing I get done, and I haven’t really done anything with it yet, but I know I will and I have a lot of dreams to choose. Keep in mind, Robert Louis Stevenson wrote ‘The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll And Mr. Hyde’ after a dream that he had.

5. NOTEBOOK

Carry a notebook and pen all the time. You’ll find inspiration everywhere if you look for it. Anytime you have an idea, even if it’s not a complete idea, write it down. This is another practice that can be done whether or not you’re experiencing a writer’s block because you can go back to it for ideas later. I keep notes in my phone these days. Most smart phones come with some sort of memo or notepad factory app, or you can probably find a free one to download. I use the factory app because I can’t justify using up space on my phone for apps that I don’t think are necessary. Sometimes I transfer the notes into a physical notebook after I get home. No matter what you decide you like to do to beat writer’s block, keep a notepad and pen handy!

Thanks for reading! Be sure to follow me on Pinterest, Facebook, and Twitter so you don't miss new posts! Bye for now.

disclaimer