4 Proven Methods to Overcome Writer’s Block
Have you ever stared at a blank page, feeling like your creativity has been swallowed by a void? You’re not alone, every writer has had to deal with the dreaded writer’s block at one point or another. They’ve all shared this exact experience:
You know what needs to happen, your characters are in the right place at the right time, you’re ready to work, and… Nothing.
Not one single ounce of creative juice can be squeezed from your brain. It’s like a brick wall, a hard barrier that won’t allow you to press on.
It sucks, I know.
And it can be hard to overcome, but with these four simple methods, I’ll help you beat your writer’s block, and have you writing like a fiend again in no time.
The 4 proven methods are a follows:
Develop your habit
Have a plan
Set achievable goals, and don’t be afraid of taking a break
Free-writing
Of course, I will go further in-depth on each of these four methods below, but those are the main points.
So let’s dive right in with
Method #1: Develop your habit.
Writers’ brains can be such fragile things. One niggling noise, one brick out of place, and the entire structure comes crumbling down. Whether it’s too hot, whether the fan has a slight rattle, whether the neighbours are being slightly louder than usual, it’s ever so easy to halt a writer in their pursuit of ponderous prose. That is why it’s so important to develop your habit. Develop your space, develop the signposts that will signal to your brain that it’s time for work.
For me, I use writing playlists to put myself in ‘writing mode’, and to help eliminate distracting noises.
For you, it can be whatever makes you comfortable and elastic and ready. I can’t give you too much specific advice on what your habits may be, but most writers I know will be able to tell you exactly what they do to prepare for a writing session, almost a ritual, if you will. Once you have yours in place, the words will flow with a natural ease.
Method #2: Have a plan.
Once you’ve developed your writing habit, the next step is to ensure you have a clear plan to guide you.
As famously stated by George RR Martin on many an occasion (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qkCDevjQISw) , writers can broadly be separated into two distinct groups: the gardeners, and the architects.
Gardeners cultivate the story, and allow it to grow and bend as it sees fit, writing the scenes as they happen, almost improvising what would make a good plot as they advance, with only the barest of guidelines.
Architects plan out the entirety of the story before writing even begins, forming a skeleton or framework that will guide them along the process of writing their story from the very beginning, all the way to the very ending.
I touched on this briefly during my last blog post (https://www.lachlanbondauthor.com/blog/5-simple-steps-to-plan-your-novel) but I am a huge advocate for planning my stories beforehand. Not in every meticulous detail, but I do plan all the major plot points and scenes well ahead so I know where I’m going, and can add symbolism and detail as it comes to me during the actual transcription process.
All this is to say, I tend towards the archetype of the architect. I’ve found one amazing way to beat writer’s block is to have a plan. On the simplest of bases, it means you simply know what needs to happen. You know what actions will be taken, what reactions they will incite, and how your characters will feel about this all before you write, then all you have to do is add layers of prose, symbolism, character, and foreshadowing. If that doesn’t work, I’ve also found that skipping ahead to a scene you’re excited to write can help with writer’s block. It allows you to flex your creative and passionate side, while still working on your transcript.
This method may not work for strict gardeners, but most authors use a mixture of both architecture and gardening when writing. Even if you are a strict gardener, you might alter this method simply to think ahead to what MIGHT happen, instead of a firm plan.
Method #3: Set achievable goals, and don’t be afraid of taking a break.
So we’ve developed a plan and a habit, but now we need to implement them. This method is somewhat simple, yet endlessly effective. Writers are prone to burnout and frustration, especially when dealing with writer’s block. It’s an unfortunate reality, but one we must accept and work with.
This strategy is exactly what it sounds like. Set small goals, that you know you can achieve, and take breaks if you need to.
Your goal may be: ‘I am just going to finish this conversation’, or ‘I am going to finish this chapter this afternoon, then I can relax for the rest of the day.’ They needn’t be grand. Any progress is better than none, after all.
Take breaks, allow your mind to refill with ideas and revise concepts and inspirations that you’ve been toiling over for so long that they’ve become knotted and misconstrued in your mind.
Relax. Take a breathe. Take a nap. Come back with a fresh mind.
Don’t take advantage of your own allowance, however. Don’t let yourself go days without writing anything. It’s a fine line to walk, but eventually you’ll find your balance.
Method #4: Free-writing.
This method is my personal favourite, and can tie into method #2 if you are, like myself, prone to planning your stories in advance.
The method is called free-writing, and it essentially means to write whatever you like. Whatever takes your fancy, whatever you’re feeling like writing in the moment. Just write something, anything. It may be a scene later in your story, if you’re a fellow architect. It may be a scene of your characters but in a different story. It may be an idea for a scene you had but don’t know where it fits into your novel, or it may be a completely separate narrative altogether.
It doesn’t matter, just write SOMETHING. Exercising your mind will often help you to re-establish your flow and get back on track, and may even inspire a moment or plot point or scene in your main narrative.
It’s an excellent way to combat writer’s block, and also excellent fun to just flex your muscles a bit, free of pressure.
When I was having trouble with a particular scene I took a break, and wrote a charming little conversation between Arno and Madeline, where they just spend time together and discuss how they’re feeling. Parts of that conversation even made it into the final cut, and helped me to advance in the scene I was struggling with.
It really does work wonders.
So there we are. I hope you got something out of that, even if it was just one point to help you in your writing journey. What’s your go-to method for overcoming writer’s block? Let us know!
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