Overcoming Writer"s Block by Mastering Your Inner Demons
Every writer encounters writer's block at some point.
I can attest to the fact that it's brought me to my knees a few times.
"What's the problem?" you (non-writers) may ask.
"Don't you know where the story is going? Can't you just, you know...
write it?" The problem with this assumption is sometimes I really don't know where the story is going.
Some authors plot everything carefully before they begin writing.
Some are even organized enough to write an outline.
The rest of us are the "pantsers.
" We write by the seat of our pants.
I enjoy the organic flow of the writing, especially when it's going smoothly.
When that happens, it feels a lot like sitting back and watching the characters as they move about and tell your story.
Sometimes they even surprise me by doing something I didn't expect at all.
This is one of the best parts about writing! But this article is about not writing.
In some cases, I know where a scene is headed, but I get stuck on a page or even a paragraph.
Honestly, sometimes it is a single word.
Written, then deleted.
Rewritten.
Another word tried and discarded.
You get the picture.
Why does this happen, and what can you do about it? The first step to overcoming writer's block is to figure out its source.
There are plenty of articles out there which address creativity, organization, and generating exciting ideas, but this one addresses mental blocks.
Writing can be very private and every author has his or her own personal reason behind the blockage.
In my case, writing any kind of love scene is nearly impossible if I keep reminding myself that my parents and in-laws may someday read it! If your shyness demon urges you to worry about other people's opinions, I offer one possible solution.
Write like you're writing in your diary.
Pretend nobody will ever see it.
Write badly.
Write stupidly.
Write about what happened so far today until your fingers start to type out something that resembles your story.
The point is to write.
Give yourself permission to write ugly, terrible stuff.
The editing process will polish and organize your work into something you can be proud of.
A closely related obstacle is fear of failure.
If you never finish what you're writing, then you never have to face those rejection letters you're so sure will crowd your inbox the moment you try to sell your work.
This is true.
However, it is also true that you will never see your work published if you can't find the courage to try.
Weigh having a chance of publication versus an absolutely surety it will never happen, and which way do you choose? Your brain may accept this logic, but if your fingers still lock up every time you place them on the keyboard, try the solution I suggested earlier.
Write only for yourself, and promise your inner fear demon that nobody will ever see the results.
Once you're totally satisfied with your edited, final product, you can bribe that little demon with a chocolate bar and revisit the subject.
What if you're simply overthinking things or need some motivation? I'm a big fan of NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month).
This is a website where a bunch of crazy people, me included, get together every November and write 50,000 words of a book.
It's intense and difficult and exhausting, but I love it.
In order to hit the requisite 1,667 words a day that you need in order to stay on track, you don't have much time for staring at the blank page or second guessing yourself.
Lock away that perfectionist inner editor demon and go for it.
If it's not November, there are a bunch of similar projects going on year-round.
Employing all of the above methods, you may end up with a manuscript that needs a lot of work.
You plot lines may be all over the place and riddled with continuity problems.
Your high school English teachers wouldn't have approved of your sentence structure or grammar.
At the end of the day, though, you will have locked up those wicked mental demons long enough to finish your first draft.
There's nothing more satisfying than being able to write those two little words at the end of a very long document: "the end.
"
I can attest to the fact that it's brought me to my knees a few times.
"What's the problem?" you (non-writers) may ask.
"Don't you know where the story is going? Can't you just, you know...
write it?" The problem with this assumption is sometimes I really don't know where the story is going.
Some authors plot everything carefully before they begin writing.
Some are even organized enough to write an outline.
The rest of us are the "pantsers.
" We write by the seat of our pants.
I enjoy the organic flow of the writing, especially when it's going smoothly.
When that happens, it feels a lot like sitting back and watching the characters as they move about and tell your story.
Sometimes they even surprise me by doing something I didn't expect at all.
This is one of the best parts about writing! But this article is about not writing.
In some cases, I know where a scene is headed, but I get stuck on a page or even a paragraph.
Honestly, sometimes it is a single word.
Written, then deleted.
Rewritten.
Another word tried and discarded.
You get the picture.
Why does this happen, and what can you do about it? The first step to overcoming writer's block is to figure out its source.
There are plenty of articles out there which address creativity, organization, and generating exciting ideas, but this one addresses mental blocks.
Writing can be very private and every author has his or her own personal reason behind the blockage.
In my case, writing any kind of love scene is nearly impossible if I keep reminding myself that my parents and in-laws may someday read it! If your shyness demon urges you to worry about other people's opinions, I offer one possible solution.
Write like you're writing in your diary.
Pretend nobody will ever see it.
Write badly.
Write stupidly.
Write about what happened so far today until your fingers start to type out something that resembles your story.
The point is to write.
Give yourself permission to write ugly, terrible stuff.
The editing process will polish and organize your work into something you can be proud of.
A closely related obstacle is fear of failure.
If you never finish what you're writing, then you never have to face those rejection letters you're so sure will crowd your inbox the moment you try to sell your work.
This is true.
However, it is also true that you will never see your work published if you can't find the courage to try.
Weigh having a chance of publication versus an absolutely surety it will never happen, and which way do you choose? Your brain may accept this logic, but if your fingers still lock up every time you place them on the keyboard, try the solution I suggested earlier.
Write only for yourself, and promise your inner fear demon that nobody will ever see the results.
Once you're totally satisfied with your edited, final product, you can bribe that little demon with a chocolate bar and revisit the subject.
What if you're simply overthinking things or need some motivation? I'm a big fan of NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month).
This is a website where a bunch of crazy people, me included, get together every November and write 50,000 words of a book.
It's intense and difficult and exhausting, but I love it.
In order to hit the requisite 1,667 words a day that you need in order to stay on track, you don't have much time for staring at the blank page or second guessing yourself.
Lock away that perfectionist inner editor demon and go for it.
If it's not November, there are a bunch of similar projects going on year-round.
Employing all of the above methods, you may end up with a manuscript that needs a lot of work.
You plot lines may be all over the place and riddled with continuity problems.
Your high school English teachers wouldn't have approved of your sentence structure or grammar.
At the end of the day, though, you will have locked up those wicked mental demons long enough to finish your first draft.
There's nothing more satisfying than being able to write those two little words at the end of a very long document: "the end.
"
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