How to Combat Writer's Block
Practical Tips To Combat Writer's Block- Part II
As a student of creative writing and journalist for over 25-year, I always wondered what causes writer’s block syndrome. In my own experience, working as a journalist with an organisation is very different from working as a freelancer. Being a freelance journalist there are moments when I feel stuck and find it very difficult to transfer an idea from mind to manuscript. I must say, it is a very stressful and frustrating experience. It feels like you have a complete map of your journey, but you cannot work out the physical location of the starting point. Why does this happen? There are so many reasons and causes that just won’t let it happen. I lost my writing power when I left my country, and then my daughter’s birth and my father’s death in the same week added fuel to fire. My thoughts were completely paralysed, I was in a state of celebration on the birth of my first child and grief at the same time, as was my creative thinking. I realised stress was a major contributor to my creativity block. During those times my mind felt just like a fused bulb. I just couldn’t think straight or progress an idea to its completion. But my reading habits were my saviour. Initially, I was unable even to read. I remember staring at a book for ages, not reading even a single word. Then gradually I started reading craft books to find a way-out, but it took long ten years.
