# How do you overcome writer's block?



## laura (Jun 15, 2012)

Hello, I am a brand new member here and I am still learning how to use the forum. I have a quick question, what do you guys use to overcome writer's block? I am a boat lost at sea.


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## Robdemanc (Jun 15, 2012)

It depends why you have writers block.  Is it because you are stuck for ideas?  Or is it because a problem in your life is stopping you from writing?

Sometimes it is best to take a break and forget about writing, then usually an idea will come.


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## Abdul-fattah (Jun 15, 2012)

When I'm stuck it's usually because I have a good idea of where I want the story to go, but no idea on how to get there. 
Unfortunately I've found no solution for that. I usually just sit it out and spend my time on another story.


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## JosephB (Jun 15, 2012)

Give up writing. Use the time to watch more TV.


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## Nemesis (Jun 15, 2012)

i play video games and listen to music, one or the other usually fills my creative stores back up


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## TheStory (Jun 15, 2012)

I only reach a true block when I am either severely depressed from something else or I didn't care much for the project to begin with. There isn't much I can do about it. However if I need to get into a writing mood I do a lot of daydreaming and listening to music. Lots of calming activities in a quiet calm environment.


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## Nemesis (Jun 15, 2012)

TheStory said:


> I only reach a true block when I am either severely depressed from something else or I didn't care much for the project to begin with. There isn't much I can do about it. However if I need to get into a writing mood I do a lot of daydreaming and listening to music. Lots of calming activities in a quiet calm environment.



It's funny you mention calm. I was just thinking about it and for some reason I always want to write when it's all crazy around me. I guess I just thrive on chaos.


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## shadowwalker (Jun 15, 2012)

The only cure for not writing (commonly referred to as 'writer's block') is writing. Where butt meets chair and fingers meet keyboard.


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## Terry D (Jun 15, 2012)

Writer's block is what people who want to 'be a writer' call it when they don't want to actually write.  In my opinion, if you have to be in the "right mood" to write, you aren't yet serious about the craft.  If you want to write as a hobby it's fine to wait for inspiration.  If you want to write to be published then it is work, and work requires the discipline to show up and do the stuff that's not fun in order to get the job completed.  If you take shadowwalker's advice and regularly plant derriere in chair and cough up a few hundred words, you will find that it gets easier.  Your mind and your creativity will grow accustom to the routine.


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## Jeko (Jun 15, 2012)

> i play video games and listen to music, one or the other usually fills my creative stores back up



Me in a nutshell.TV also helps.

I had no idea how to write a scene in my novel, the hardest scene I'd probably ever write for it, but then I watched the artistic 'britain in a day' documentary/thing, which gave me inspiration to why writing the scene wasn't working so far.

Even if you think you'll fail, try to write. Then you'll know if you're _failing. _And failing is never bad - it only means in the future, you will be succeeding. In the present, you just have to try. Your writer's block might not be as big as you think - it may only exist because you're worrying about writer's blocks...


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## Nemesis (Jun 15, 2012)

Cadence said:


> Me in a nutshell.TV also helps.
> 
> I had no idea how to write a scene in my novel, the hardest scene I'd probably ever write for it, but then I watched the artistic 'britain in a day' documentary/thing, which gave me inspiration to why writing the scene wasn't working so far.
> 
> Even if you think you'll fail, try to write. Then you'll know if you're _failing. _And failing is never bad - it only means in the future, you will be succeeding. In the present, you just have to try. Your writer's block might not be as big as you think - it may only exist because you're worrying about writer's blocks...




I've had blocks spanning the space of years. Every time I tried to write something or force it out, it was terrible, complete and utter crap. So I waited untill it felt right again


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## Gamer_2k4 (Jun 15, 2012)

My writer's block comes from knowing where I want to be in my story, but not wanting to take the time to get there.  In the end, the solution is as simple as people have been saying: Just sit down and do it.  If it's awful, you can edit it later, but the important thing is progress.


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## Bloggsworth (Jun 15, 2012)

There is no such thing as writer's block, it is a psychosomatic condition. You just wrote your introduction, yesterday you wrote a shopping list, what you may have done is to convince yourself you can't write what you think you ought to be writing, so write about a boat in a calm...


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## akrathan (Jun 15, 2012)

I think writer's block is a less of a struggle to come up with ideas, get ideas down on paper, etc., as it is a mental refusal to write what you keep telling yourself you _should _be writing. I spent five years wanting to write a literary, poetic, prosey masterpiece like this author or that author. Then once I decided I wasn't up to the next great American novel, I would just write a genre fiction page turner, alla Ken Follett. Then I spent a year, full time, struggling to come up with that. One day, amidst struggling, I wrote something I actually wanted to write, that came from absolutely no where, just flowed out. And I haven't been able to stop since. It ain't genius prose, it's just a story in my head. But at least I'll have something at the end to show for it. You just got to tap into that spring that writers are always talking about, and let it flow out of you. Don't think too much on it, don't expect genius prose on the first draft, don't imagine all sorts of plot twists and deep symbols, just tell something true and simple. If it's good enough for Hemingway, it's good enough for me.


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## TheStory (Jun 15, 2012)

Noxicity said:


> It's funny you mention calm. I was just thinking about it and for some reason I always want to write when it's all crazy around me. I guess I just thrive on chaos.



Terrible haha. That would kill me. I was just at my mothers the other day and had nothing better to do so I decided to spend some time writing. See my older sister lives with my parents with her family currently, plus I have a few very young sisters still living at home so it is very noisy. I could hardly spit out a paragraph from the noise. Too much going on when I'm trying to work grates on my nerves for some reason while otherwise I wouldn't care.


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## Kyle R (Jun 15, 2012)

It depends why I'm blocked.

If I'm stressed out, I'll have to de-stress before anything can happen. 

It's scientifically proven that parts of the brain responsible for creativity and learning actually "turn off" when cortisol (stress hormone) is high. All the activity goes straight to the motor functions for fight-or-flight, which is why when people are nervous they shake and feel butterflies and are twitchy, you're ready to fight the cougar or run from the lion, but you're most likely not ready to create a work of art or weave beautiful prose.

Staring at the sky for a few minutes usually helps, for me. It's like looking at a giant piece of ever-changing art.

If I'm blocked because I can't come up with any ideas, I go to outlining. I brainstorm different scenes and things I would like to happen in my story, then I write down one sentence summaries of each of these. Then I try to come up with what happens in between. It's a lot easier (for me) to create a ten to twenty sentence outline, when creatively blocked, than it is to write prose. I'll stick with the outline until I feel inspired to write again.

If I'm blocked because I can't write any good prose.. well, then I don't worry about it, I just write crappy prose! I know that in the revision stage I can go back and delete, rewrite, rearrange, insert, etc... Just getting the basic skeleton of the story down first works well enough for me. Then in the second draft stage I'll fill in the body.

And finally if I'm blocked because I have no enthusiasm or motivation, then I'll read my favorite authors. Ray Bradbury, Jennifer Egan, Karen Russell, John Irving, H.G. Wells, Jack London... Seeing their work reminds me of all the wonderful possibilities and I allow them to awe and inspire me until I'm biting at the bit to break from the starting gate!

Best of luck!


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## TheFuhrer02 (Jun 15, 2012)

This law should help: http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/ChandlersLaw

_"When in doubt, have a man come through a door with a gun in his hand."_

Or, as my friend AvA would say, "Make ninjas fall from the ceiling."


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## wyf (Jun 15, 2012)

when i get blocked i write angry. I rant about all the shit that bogs me down and makes me feel bad, i write horrible, nasty, hateful stuff and when its finally out of my system, I delete it.


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## El Chacal (Jun 17, 2012)

I watch a David Lynch movie.


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## Hela Depths (Jun 21, 2012)

Any time I get to a "writer's block", I can do either of this things:
**Try harder to write.* The thing that is most difficult for is to get _X guy_ from _A point_ to _B point_ (where the cool thing should actually happen). When that happens, I would write that part in _B point_, and then go back to the _A point_, without all that anxiety about where my guy should go, so I write freely. It takes longer, though, but I'm always happy about how it turns out. Even if you are not, you have written something, and you can always get something good from everything you write.
**Or do something else.* I like reading mangas. Sometimes, when I run out of ideas or don't know what to do next or where my story should go, I read some mangas from the same genre as my story. I actually don't plagiarize, but cool ideas often come to me when I read something I enjoy. You don't have to read mangas if you are not interested in them: watch a movie or some chapters from a series... Sometimes it helps  (it always helps me)


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## philistine (Jun 22, 2012)

To tell you the truth, I don't believe in it. Writer's block seems to exist only for those who have a rigorous writing schedule, or regimen of some sort. For those who write every other day, or steal half an hour whenever they can, it seems only to be some kind of ridiculous cliché one reads about in Garfield comic strips.

To a writer who sits down in front of his computer, his typewriter, or even his moleskin diary with sod all on it, I'd simply tell them to go and do something else; polish your vocabulary, read, watch a film (something inspiring, mind), or anything which might oil the gears. Perhaps you could even read through your notes.




El Chacal said:


> I watch a David Lynch movie.



Surely that'd worsen matters, non?


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## shadowwalker (Jun 22, 2012)

philistine said:


> Writer's block seems to exist only for those who have a rigorous writing schedule, or regimen of some sort.



Actually, I would think it would have even less chance of existing for those writers - they know when they sit down they must write. So they write. Period.

??


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## philistine (Jun 22, 2012)

shadowwalker said:


> Actually, I would think it would have even less chance of existing for those writers - they know when they sit down they must write. So they write. Period.
> 
> ??



To write, as in, simply produce words, no matter their weight or 'successfulness'- sure. Though if you have a structure of some sort, or plan, then it could possibly lead to deviation, writing nonsense, or just uninspired tat which you might throw away the next day. 

I suppose the basis of that theory would tie in to the whole 'do I plan, or do I not?' dichotomy.


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## Kyle R (Jun 22, 2012)

I'm currently walking the plank, trying to finish a piece before a submission deadline, and I notice that as the date looms closer, I write more furiously, but the ideas themselves still come at a steady rate.

By that I mean, let's say I normally write five hundred _quality_ words a day, and the rest is filler. Lately I've been writing a few thousand words a day, but still only producing five hundred words or so of _usable _material in each session.

From this I've learned that, at least for me, the pressure of a deadline can help increase my _output_, as far as word-count goes, but it doesn't increase my _creativity_. Likely, it cramps it from the stress of trying to rush.

Fortunately I've found that reading gives my creativity a boost. So before each writing session, I read a short story, or a chapter, from one of my favorite authors, and then I immediately jump into my own writing, trying to ride that surge of inspiration.

So far that's the best approach I've found. I think, "Okay, I've got this many days before this needs to be finished." So I look at my bookshelf and ask, "Who's going to inspire me today?" Then I pick up a book and start reading. I keep my laptop open for the moment that reading turns into a creative spark, and when it does, I toss the book aside and get to hammering the keys. :encouragement:


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## badboi scene (Jun 22, 2012)

Michael Legat mentions in his book, _Writing for Pleasure and Profit_; 

_'*Writer's Block*_

_This is the term that is used when for some reason or other an author feels unable to get on with whatever he is supposed to be writing. It seems to come in three varieties:

Firstly, there is the block caused by outside events, and especially by a major personal problem or tragedy. Serious anxieties over money, or perhaps a bereavement, can certainly smother the creative urge, and for writers who suffer in this way one can only sympathize and wish them a speedy release from their anxieties.

Secondly, writers are sometimes held up because some vital piece of their research is missing.

Thirdly, there is the kind of block which has no apparent cause...'_

You could simply put your writing aside for the time being and reattempt it once you feel ready. On the other hand, if you are impatient like me you could spend those exasperating moments further researching for your story, or randomly writing an unplanned, chain of events. I once aimlessly wrote a never-ending tale involving as many of my dreamed up characters from several, separate story ideas, because I suffered from writer‘s block. It was extremely unrealistic, and of poor quality, but eh, I managed to write something, and it was astoundingly fun.


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## Dave Watson (Jun 22, 2012)

Personally, I find coffee and weed does the trick. I might churn out absolute nonsense, but at least it gets the gears going again. I can always go back and edit it if it's truly terrible.


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## philistine (Jun 22, 2012)

Dave Watson said:


> Personally, I find coffee and weed does the trick. I might churn out absolute nonsense, but at least it gets the gears going again. I can always go back and edit it if it's truly terrible.



You've been watching _Wonder Boys_, haven't you? 

Have your own _The Arsonist's Daughter_ in the works?


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## shadowwalker (Jun 22, 2012)

philistine said:


> To write, as in, simply produce words, no matter their weight or 'successfulness'- sure. Though if you have a structure of some sort, or plan, then it could possibly lead to deviation, writing nonsense, or just uninspired tat which you might throw away the next day.
> 
> I suppose the basis of that theory would tie in to the whole 'do I plan, or do I not?' dichotomy.



Hmm, not so much that, I would think, as "If I write _something_, versus _nothing_, eventually I'll have something worth _keeping_."


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## philistine (Jun 22, 2012)

shadowwalker said:


> Hmm, not so much that, I would think, as "If I write _something_, versus _nothing_, eventually I'll have something worth _keeping_."



Ah, the diamond mining analogy. I guess it's true. I can never bring myself to write without something in mind, so I've never gone through such a process.


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## PassTheDrinks (Jun 23, 2012)

Unfortunately, I am struggling with writer's block at the moment. The good thing, though is that I seem to be slipping slowly into the inspiration that I need to start writing again. It's been 4 years, so I'm a little rusty. But I don't think there is any real way to overcome writer's block. Everybody finds a way out of it differently.


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## MacNeal (Jun 30, 2012)

My problem is, when I do that, my work is crap.  Whenever I force my writing, I delete it, because it does not have the same 'flow' as the rest of the book


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## shadowwalker (Jun 30, 2012)

But at least you're writing - and at some point you're bound to find that sentence or phrase that clicks. If you allow this 'block' to take over and don't write at all - well, you definitely won't find anything that clicks.


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## PaulMcElligott (Jun 30, 2012)

A. Switch to writing something else. Just free-write, bang away at the keyboard, loosen up the clogs in your creative plumbing...

2. Sometimes I'm blocked because I'm not happy with the way a scene progressing. Either move on the next scene or go back to the beginning of the scene and start from scratch.

III. Take a break, but set yourself a deadline to return to it. It's too easy for a couple of days to turn into weeks and months.


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## bluewolf301 (Jul 9, 2012)

i'm having writers blog now, its impossible to get over it, i have so many ideas i do not know what to write about


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## Extinct_Stimulus (Jul 10, 2012)

MacNeal said:


> My problem is, when I do that, my work is crap.  Whenever I force my writing, I delete it, because it does not have the same 'flow' as the rest of the book



This might be in your imagination. Wait a while, go back to it, and you'll see that it's the exact same stuff. It just doesn't feel the same coming out.


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## Nemesis (Jul 10, 2012)

I don't know, I'm in the same boat and it really is crap. I'll stop, go away, come back and want to vomit on the keyboard its so bad. It all get's deleted. Then I wait until my muse comes back and rewrite it well.


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## Loulou (Jul 10, 2012)

Personally I don't believe in muses.  Why should they get all the credit?   Why should I sit around waiting for some temperamental, mythical, symbolic, metaphorical creature who might not even show?  When I write it's me.  My work, my ideas, my words, my creativity.  As for writers block - I agree with the few who said that there's only one cure.  Writing.


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## bo_7md (Jul 10, 2012)

*Depression...works like magic.*


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## Extinct_Stimulus (Jul 10, 2012)

Noxicity said:


> I don't know, I'm in the same boat and it really is crap. I'll stop, go away, come back and want to vomit on the keyboard its so bad. It all get's deleted. Then I wait until my muse comes back and rewrite it well.



First drafts should be vomit-worthy. Let editing catch it later and just keep chuggin' on.


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## Nemesis (Jul 10, 2012)

no, they were not salvegable. They were utter crap.


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## sunaynaprasad (Jul 10, 2012)

I change what I'm writing to make it more interesting, but still relevant.


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## Alabastrine (Jul 10, 2012)

Music. I turn off the lights, light a candle or two and plug in my earphones. I am not talking about the drivel on the radio like Justin Bieber or Lady GaGa. I am talking deep, powerful, moving, passionate music. The kind that moves you to your soul. Also, walks along scenic trails, photography, and reading. Taking breaks is essential for burn out.


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## Jon M (Jul 10, 2012)

Rubbing one off.


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## JosephB (Jul 10, 2012)

If that worked, I'd have ten novels on the shelf.

(Maybe this is Sam's secret!)


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## SerenataImmortale (Jul 11, 2012)

For me, it's always music that gets me unstuck - I usually listen to soundtrack instrumentals, so once I find something I haven't heard before, I tend to get ideas. That, or walking around town or riding the bus and observing people.


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## Loulou (Jul 11, 2012)

Jon M said:


> Rubbing one off.



Best tip for 'writer's block' ever.


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## Chaeronia (Jul 11, 2012)

JosephB said:


> If that worked, I'd have ten novels on the shelf.



Just this morning.


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## Krak (Jul 11, 2012)

I find drinking vast amounts of coffee (or other such stimulants) and then sitting down, followed by writing, which generally begins to blast through writers block, if a little random I can usually salvage something from it.


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