10 Tips For Giving Writer's Block The Chop

This is a subject that has been covered many, many times in other blogs, books, podcasts, writers' groups - you name it. I'm just going to say the words. Here we go...

Writer's Block.

Using this term is becoming a little bit like uttering the name 'Voldemort' in polite wizarding society. It's like an infectious disease; many will never admit to having it, and others, those hypochondriacs of the writing world, will bemoan the woes of being a sufferer to anyone who will listen. They don't have writer's block. They have Procrastinationitis. For advice on this crippling illness, which can affect every area of your life, please click here for instant relief.






Ah look, a picture of some snow. The thing most feared by all writers.

Writer's block isn't just the curse of writers, of course, but of all manner of creatives. At some point everyone finds that the well of ideas has dried up; the bucket is coming up empty. It doesn't matter whether you paint ceramics, design interiors or make public speeches (ouch).


And obviously, I'm here to tell you that it's all in your head. I know. I'm only qualified to be writing about this subject because writer's block has blighted my existence for the past, oh I dunno... six years. Maybe more. But I'm quite a bloody-minded individual, and I got sick of avoiding my desk and feeling pathetic, fed up of fending off questions from family members about 'what I was working on' with 'oh, you know, a bit of this and that'. This was true. I wrote shopping lists, to-do lists, emails, Facebook statuses - hey, of course I was writing! Every day!


I had become the epitome of irony. I was a writer. I was a writer... who didn't write.







Yes, that's right. I had become the Ironic Woman.





                               

Source: tate.org.uk via Charmaine on Pinterest

So as I say, I got fed up with myself. I gave me a thorough good talking-to - with the dog in the room so no one would think I was talking to myself - and realised that curing writer's block is not about stalking round the countryside in frustration, and waving as each birthday flies by while enduring the agonising wait for the idea of a lifetime to come along like an extremely overdue bus. Nope. The fact is, that if you want to get somewhere, you just gotta start walking.


Here are my tips for beating writer's block. Let's just assume that the first step is to admit you've got it.


No. 2: When you're doing the same things in the same routine day in, day out, creative ideas can be few and far between. Do something different. Instead of watching Saturday Morning Kitchen this weekend get up. Go for a walk. Take photos. Of anything. Go to the cinema. Have a picnic in your car. Go through some old photographs. Go for a bike ride. Just get out of that old routine and stimulate your brain.


No. 3: Use a different medium. No, that doesn't mean you need to grab the Yellow Pages and look up your local soothsayer. She can't help you. If you usually write on a computer, hand write on paper. If you normally paint, try charcoal. If cooking is your thing - stop cooking and bake cakes instead. Doing the same thing in a different way will help you look at your craft from a new perspective, and it should help remind you why you love it so much in the first place. And writing by hand is therapeutic, so it should help you to relax and let those ideas flow.


No. 4: When and where do you daydream the most? In the shower or bath? When you wake up in a morning and are putting off venturing out into the cold? When you're out walking? Wherever it is, do more of it. Your brain will quickly form an association between that action and producing creative thoughts, and it will soon become your go-to saviour when writer's block strikes.


No. 5: As children we are encouraged to play, to make believe and engage with toys. But somewhere around the age of eleven or twelve years old, the boot is stuck firmly on the other foot. We are discouraged from taking a bear to bed, the toys are given away, it's no longer acceptable to have an imaginary friend, nor to skip down the street instead of walking. In other words, don't embarrass your parents. Grow up. Many parents worry that if they do not enforce this on their children then their offspring will be unable to cope in the cold, harsh adult world. Actually, those who really cannot cope in the adult world are the ones who were never given the freedom to play as children in the first place. They don't know how to play. They don't know how to interact and share with other children, solve problems, imagine scenarios from different perspectives or use that amazing imagination that every human possesses.

Pheobe had the right idea.

But as the saying goes, it's never too late to have a happy childhood. Trainers often use props such as puppets to get trainees to act out concepts and learn. No executive business type I've met (and I've met many) has ever had an issue with this, and you shouldn't either. So play! Imagine yourself in different situations, grab the kids and sit down on the floor to play castles. Read children's books. Make something out of toilet rolls. Play with your food. Stop worrying about what other people think. Children look at the world in such a special way, and readily accept even the most bizarre situations. One of the greatest tragedies of adult life is losing that ability. Play... and see what your imagination does.


No. 6: Set a timer for 30 minutes. Sit down at your desk. You must stay seated at your desk until the alarm sounds, but you don't have to write. You may not browse the internet. See what happens.


No. 7: Before you go to sleep at night ask your brain to come up with a new creative idea, or solve a plot problem you've been having. Believe that your brain will come up with a solution, and keep a notebook by your bed in case you wake in the night with an 'aha!' moment. It's pretty amazing what the subconscious gets up to when you're in the magical land of Nod.


No. 8: Start a blog. It can be about anything from sheep farming to lawnmowers to your Gary Barlow fan club (just don't ask me to subscribe to the latter). Decide how many posts you're going to commit to each week. You'll soon have a loyal group of followers expecting to see new posts, and you'll be forced to sit down and write every week. Ha. I can attest to this one working, as since starting this blog and its sister blog miss-beatrix.blogspot.com nearly two months ago I've never written so much. And it's surprising how many new ideas the very act of writing can throw up.


No. 9: Read others' blogs too. There is a whole world of ideas out there being shared on the internet daily by other creatives, just like you. You already know that, because you're sitting reading a blog right now (thank you!) but instead of just glancing through and drifting on, engage with other bloggers, and comment on their posts. Before you know it you'll have built up a network, and you'll be surprised how supportive and helpful they can be when you're experiencing a creative dam. Follow all sorts of blogs, because it could be a photographer or a mum of three or a llama enthusiast who inspires your next great idea. Join Pinterest, where you'll find reams of thought-provoking images posted by people who know something amazing when they see it.


No. 10: Buy a writer's block! This clever little book contains hundreds of prompts to kick-start your creative juices. Available from here. You could also join me here for Inspirational Wednesday each week, because I have no shame when it comes to promotion.




Yes, it's shaped like a block.





What is your fail-safe plan when writer's block strikes?


Now stop reading this and go and do something productive.