Dealing With Writer's Block

Every writer has to deal with writer's block at some time. This is that moment when you just can't focus on the story when you've run out of steam, when you look at the screen and nothing appears on it; these moments are the ones that every writer dreads. While there are many causes, there are some simple ways to deal with them and get back to writing.

Having Rituals is not Just For the Obsessive

For some people, it's necessary to do certain actions to get into the writing mood. Think about how many of our actions require some sort of previous action before we start: When we eat dinner, it tastes so much better when we take part in its preparation. At the very least, there are rituals to preparing the table, such as setting the places, washing hands, and even praying; all of these help us prepare for the meal ahead. Some people need to come into work through the same doors, grab coffee more out of rote than because they like the flavor, and need a certain amount of gossip before they can begin. Even sex is better when there is some foreplay to set out expectations and establish the rules beforehand.

Writing is no different. For some those rituals are the order in which they exercise, bathe, catch up on news, and start writing. Others just require sitting down in front of the computer while others have specific foods to eat or other actions before they feel comfortable writing. Others need to listen to specific music or watch certain shows or movies when they write.

This applies to your method as well. The order in which you edit the previous day's work, adjust your outline, deal with marketing issues, write, and even start wrapping things up all becomes a ritual over time. That ritual helps your writing.

In this regard, setting up those rituals is not a bad thing; by creating those rituals you establish to yourself that you're going to write, and that puts you in the mindset to write. It's just a matter of figuring out which rituals work best for you and put you in the mood to do your best writing.

Have a Plan 

Yeah, I know pantsers hate hearing this, but it's true: Writing is all about solving problems on the fly, and the more of those problems you have solved before you start the fewer will pop up when you write. Conversely, when all you're doing is dealing with problems, it's going to wear you down; it's only a matter of time before you seek easier pastures. The obvious solution is to take off all of the legwork before you sit down to write; do your world-building, character designs, necessary research, and outlining before you sit down.

First, don't make the mistake that once you do something it's written in stone. You can change your outline or world details as often as you need to; if you're finding something isn't working out there is no reason you can't change it. Just because you've done two hours of research into the minutiae of bat wings doesn't mean you need to include it; you learned something neat so take the loss and move on.

Second, you fly a lot faster if you build the engine before you hit the ignition. If you're constantly building the engine in flight, you're just not going to fly as fast and that may annoy you. There's a reason carpenters measure twice, cut once: It means that you're not constantly having to re-cut boards to fit. So do the legwork before you start writing and you'll find it's a lot more enjoyable; know what you need to know and the story will come out that much easier.

Take Care of Yourself

If you're thirsty or hungry, you won't be able to focus on what you're doing. If you're tired, you simply won't see the screen. So make sure you're taking care of yourself. But also track the mental: If you're having issues, such as fighting with someone, then it's going to affect your writing; you need to resolve those issues before you start typing. Any issues that you are dealing with will affect your writing, so try to deal with those issues before you get behind the keyboard.

Oh, and if you're one of those for whom writing is therapy, that's fine. However, if you need some sort of real-world drama to write, then you need to seriously debate something else: Creating drama is not healthy for anyone and should be avoided as much as possible. Put another way, that's the easiest way to burn yourself out, be forced to deal with some serious psychological fallout, and eliminate any much-needed support, so avoid the drama as much as possible.

Touch the Grass

Sometimes you just need to take a break. Another issue to consider is that sometimes writer's block is caused by thinking too hard about the story and all of the thoughts are log-jammed so hard that nothing is coming through. You need to give all of your little lumberjacks time to clear things out a little. You need to get away from the keyboard, go play some games or just go outside, and stop thinking about the story. Heck, sometimes you need to break out of your established rituals; getting into a rut can cause its own problems as well. So take some time off or you'll drive yourself nuts.

This also means that you should be talking to others every so often. While discussing things on boards can work, talking to someone in real life, even if it's just a store clerk, can work wonders. So make sure that you're taking some time off to just talk to others every so often or you will go insane, and that's never good for your writing.

Dealing with writer's block can be easy if you prepare for it right: Have your rituals, have a plan, take care of yourself, and take a break every so often; this is how you deal with writer's block. It's not going to be completely dealt with, but at least it's been dealt with as much as you can, and sometimes that's more than enough.