Writer's Block

Hello,

I originally started writing this post on February 24th and then immediately gave up on it and the irony of me doing that with a post titled "Writer's Block" has not been lost on me. Obviously I am someone who struggles with writer's block. For years the biggest obstacle between me and getting has been published has been my own mind. I become so caught up on getting the words right that I end up getting no words down at all. I was recently at an event for writers where I heard someone say "you can't edit a blank page" so in spirit of that I'm picking up this post again and telling you about all the things I've tried in the past few months and which have actually worked.

1. Just writing random words

In my experience this does not work. I get that in theory it's supposed to get

your brain moving, leading to actual writing. But I always end up with a

bunch random words that I don't want to go through to see if there's any

meaning.

2. Going to events for writing with prompts and guidelines

This one has been iffy for me. If the prompts are good and there's a lot of

options to pick from then it definitely works. Otherwise I haven't found it

useful. If you want to try this out I recommend going to a few events or trying

a few different prompts before you decide it doesn't work.

3. Recording yourself talking

This is by far my favorite. I find that I'm not nearly as worried about getting

everything perfect when I'm talking and it feels more natural and

comfortable. Plus, I've always written in a very conversational style so I don't

have to do too much editing afterwards if I decide to use what I

came up with. My favorite way to do this is to go to somewhere I'm

comfortable and know I won't be interrupted for awhile. I like to

hop in my car and drive around a nice neighborhood while trying this

out. I also like to use an app that transcribes audio (I use otter.ai but there are

others) so I don't have waste time listening to audio over and over again to

get all the words.

4. Bonus tip

While this isn't necessarily a "writer's block tip" I've found that trying other

types of writing helps a lot with getting the words out. I struggle a lot writing

narratives and essays. Poetry and journaling come easier. Recently I also

joined a student newspaper which uses AP style writing. All three of these

styles are very different from narratives and often after I'm done with one of

them I feel more ready to tackle a narrative.

I hope you find these tips helpful.

- E.B.