Writer’s Block

We’ve all faced it. The blank page with no words at all. Nowhere. It’s writer’s block and it can be scary. It can also be overcome. Notice, I said it could be overcome. I did not say it could easily be overcome. The first step towards overcoming writer’s block is to try to figure out what caused it. Then you can figure out how to overcome it.

Writer’s block can have many causes — an over crowded life, stress, lack of sleep, you get the picture. Any of these could cause the block. Writer’s block could last for a few minutes, an hour, a day, a week or a month. It depends on what you do about it. You can do something about it. You can fight it. Waiting for it to go away on its own, won’t do it. You have to combat it like a disease. There are cures, but you have to know the cause first.

Take a deep breath, relax, and think. Did you get enough sleep? Adults need at least seven hours of sleep per night. Lack of sleep can make a nice word block. You are simply too tired to focus. If you aren’t getting enough sleep, try to get more, through meditation, pills, whatever helps you. I use meditation. If it’s stress, try to eliminate the stressor from your life. If you don’t know what is stressing you, see a doctor, it could be physical. For an overcrowded life, cut back on a few things. Try to find some time for yourself. Not writing time, you need time to be alone and relax.

Once you do that, you can work on the block. Sometimes all you have to do is sit down and write down all the words that come to your mind — free writing. I have found that sometimes when I am blocked, I’m not actually blocked. I just want to write something else. If you don’t fight it and just write what your mind wants to write, the block goes away and you can write what you need to write. Maybe you have written yourself into a corner. There’s no escape. Step back. Look at the whole piece. Can you make a change so that you aren’t in a corner, but in a doorway? Sometimes the process of writing involves more thinking than actual writing. Think, then write.

Writer’s block is something you have to work on to make it go away. It might go away with a little free writing. It might take working on something else. It might even take medication. My point here is that writer’s block won’t go away unless you make it go away. Find the cause and fix it. I don’t promise that it will be easy, but you can do it.

About pebblepup

I am not one who is comfortable talking about myself but here goes. I enjoy writing, family history, and reading. I decided to do this blog because I wanted to try something new. I decided to make it a weekly blog because I wasn't sure that I could keep up with a daily one, and monthly seemed like I was writing a magazine. I think I did ok with my choices. You'll notice that there are not a lot of graphics on my site. That's because there are graphics plastered everywhere on the Internet and those sites sometimes take forever to load. This blog is a place where you can kick back, relax and be ready to be amused. At least I hope I willbamuse you. This blog is on a variety of subjects from my ficitional cat agency, the FFL, which is monthly, to instructional blogs to editorials, which are my opinions only. I admit that I don't know everything and could be wrong -- I frequently am. Now, stop reading about me and read what I have to say!