Newsflash: everyone has writer’s block, not just authors whose livelihood depends on their capacity to churn out amazing poetry or prose. If you’ve ever written a memo, created a proposal, drafted a lesson plan or used the written word to communicate, then you’ve experienced writer’s block.
I’m not sure what causes the syllabic logjam preventing thoughts from traveling from the brain through the fingers onto the page (or computer screen), but I have learned how to break it up.
When you feel stymied by your writing progress do this:
1. Drink 8 ounces of water. Water. Not coffee. Not Red Bull, lemonade, tea, wine or hot cocoa. Water. When you hit a brick wall, your brain is telling you that it requires hydration. If you feel fancy, add mint, cucumber, lemon or lime, but drink a full glass of water.
2. Move your body. Stretch, do jumping jacks, dance in your kitchen, take a lap around the block. When one of the triad (body-mind-spirit) is blocked, the secret to breaking it up and getting things moving along again is to switch gears. Moving your body activates other centers in your brain, allowing the pressure on your “CREATE, DAMN YOU” muscle to dissipate.
3. Write about something unrelated to your task. A trick I use is to put a few knick knacks into two separate opaque bags (rocks, stuffed animals, rings, whatever). Raid your junk drawer. Now pick one thing out of each bag and write a few sentences that creates a mini story about them.
For instance: if you pick out a bottle cap and a rubber band, you may write:
“Rebecca sat in class, fuming about the jerk on the bus she was forced to sit next to on the way to school. Absentmindedly, her fingers traced the nubs of the bottle cap she had in her pocket. She had picked it up as she crossed the playground. As she felt the sharp metal, her gaze fell upon the rubber band sitting on her neighbor’s desk. It would make a rudimentary, but effective weapon for jerks on the bus, she mused.”
Once your brain has shifted tracks, go back to your writing task. Chances are good, you’ll be able to complete it.
4. Look up the wrong word. Sometimes when I’m writing, my brain seizes up in an attempt to find the exact word I wish to use. I envision a frustrated neuron, trying to leap across a synaptic chasm in my brain, only to keep falling short of the mark. During these times, I’ll go to the thesaurus and look up a synonym of the word I actually wish to use. More often than not, the word I’m looking for (for which I am looking) will be among those listed. On the off chance that it’s not, by the time I’m reading the list of synonyms, my plucky little neuron will have succeeded in leaping across the chasm, and the word I wanted pops into my consciousness.
5. Explain it to someone. Pretend you’re describing something that’s happening to a friend. Switching to a passive voice can sometimes flip a switch in your head. Tell your plot line or writing topic to your dog, your reflection in a mirror, your roommate or your spouse. Again: by shifting planes of communication (internal to spoken), you are shaking up your communication muscles.
6. Do something else. If you really are blocked, after 20 minutes of willing words to appear, get up and do something else. Take a bath. Make a sandwich. Staring at a screen or a blank piece of paper is counter productive and will negatively reinforce your relationship with writing.
I’d love to hear some of your ideas for breaking through writers block — leave a comment below or dash off a toot my way — I’m on Mastodon as @mckra1g .
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