Monday, May 3, 2010

How to Fight Writer's Block - A Layman's Approach

Writer's Block - what does it mean and how do you get past it?

There can’t be any one method that is guaranteed to work every time, or can there? Thousands of books have been written and programs sold to cure the so-called writer's block.


But what is writers block?

Simply put, it means you stare at a blank page with the thoughts in your head being equally blank. It might be in the middle of a story and you are simply stuck and don’t know how to move forward, or you have this great idea for a story, but for the life of you, you can’t commit it to paper. That - in short - is writer's block.

How to "cure" writers block?

In spite of what the informed try to tell you, there is no external fix for writer's block. As the saying goes...it's all in the mind. Yep, no shortcuts, no quick fixes - nada. Only you can cure your writer's block. Different people use different methods to try to curb writers block. These include:-

  • Making a habit of writing every single day. Doesn’t matter what you write, as long as you write some form of fiction.
  • Sticking to routine. This means your write at the same location and at the same time, everyday.
  • Write something completely different from that which you are stuck with. Focusing on an entirely different story, might give your mind time to compute and solve the problem you wrought with for the last couple of hours or days.
  • Using music like binary beats to enhance creativity in the brain while you write.

Looking at all of the above, it is abundantly clear that the only way to cure writers block is to put your butt in the chair and write.

So, whatever you do...keep writing.

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