7 remedies for writer’s block

It’s not a disease, it’s not a symptom, and no, your writing career is not over. Take a breath and step back. Better yet, read this article and find some pointers on how to crawl out of that writer’s block that fell over your head and hid you from creativity.

You’re writing. You’re getting things done. Five hundred words…one thousand words…wait. You knew what you wanted to write. You had it. You were…and…

Remedy one: stop

When you’re writing, realize that your inspiration doesn’t flow like a waterfall. It’s more like a dam. It will fill when it rains, but after the flood stops, the water level will fall. But guess what, it’ll rain again. Just be patient.

Write what you can. When you hit a wall, sometimes all you need to do is take a step back. Let it sit for a day or two and come back. You won’t always be able to write a daily entry or get your word count, and that’s okay. Sometimes your brain needs a break. You can’t rush creativity or you might break that well-built dam of yours.

Remedy two: step away

Your brain doesn’t ride one train. If you hit that wall, do something else for a while. Give that part of your head a break. If you have another writing project, try working on that one. If not, do something else or write something else. Write about your day, write your troubles on paper, write about whatever you see to the right of you. Write about three blue things in your room. Just write something else.

Another option is to get away from writing completely. Knit a scarf (for me, of course). Read a book (sometimes this helps fuel your creative mind, especially if it’s similar to what you’re writing). Sing a song. Dance to music that doesn’t exist. Yell at a wall and kiss a pillow. Take pictures of five things in your yard and write a story about them together. Laugh until your eyes pee. Do something that will release those endorphins and make you feel nice. Drink a cup of tea, perhaps. Tea is good.

Remedy three: figure out what’s not working

Sometimes, your subconscious was demanding you to turn around one-hundred words ago. Backtrack a little and rewrite the scene. See if it comes out differently the second time and try to make it better. Who knows, your subconscious may be right.

You might even know what wasn’t working. That one line or paragraph or scene or chapter that just didn’t feel right. I’ve done this. I had a scene that I wanted, another one came out, and I hit a wall afterward. I tried too hard to make something work despite knowing, in some part of my brain, that it wasn’t what should have happened.

Remedy four: Make it messy. Whee!

Go for it! Write whatever comes to your head and don’t worry about grammar or punctuation or run-on sentences or missed hyphenation because you’re writing out your thoughts right now not your final draft and although it pains me to write this without punctuation I know I’m trying to get a point across and I’m stopping right now.

It will take everything in my power not to go back and correct that. Moving on. The point is just to write it out. Like venting. Type whatever the heck you can think of and don’t go back to read. If you don’t think hard, sometimes ideas will flow better. It’s hard to do this, so give it a chance if you can’t write something. Start with remedy two and write nothing at all, or even write out your thoughts and frustrations regarding your day, your life, or your writer’s block.

Don’t write for your readers. I’ve said it before. Write for yourself; edit for your readers. Write the story you want to write. Let it flow and form, but refine it when you know what you have. You are creating the story, but you can perfect it (or I can help you perfect it) after you figure out what that idea is. Don’t mistake this as a license to write whatever without looking back then expect your editor to decipher what you want. It’s your story, not ours. Write the story you want to write. Straighten out the edges and clean off the debris after you figure it out.

Then send it to your editor.

Remedy five: Change it up, switch a scene, flip the page

If you are stuck on a scene, drop it. Go to what you want to happen after that scene or what happens in another chapter. You don’t have to write in chronological order. If you want to, write a flashback to flesh out part of the story and save the flashback for your reference later.

Another option here is to write about your character. Interview them. Act like a crazy person and talk aloud. Draw a stick figure and pretend it’s Jeremy from chapter eight. “What are you doing tomorrow, Jeremy?” “Nothing, just stalking Sarah a bit. She still doesn’t think she likes me.” “Well, maybe she doesn’t.” “She does. She just doesn’t know it, yet.” Creepy guy, I know. But that’s Jeremy and we just had a conversation. I have no clue who he is. I just made him up, but I now know I don’t want him in my writing. Weirdo. Anyway, talk to your characters. Get to know them a bit.

Look up where they live, what the demographics and events are like, research the time period, their job, their lifestyle, their clothes. Really, anything. Learning about how to shoot a bow or even how to make a certain dish can go a long way in inspiring you by putting you in your characters’ shoes.

Remedy six: watch, read, talk

Watching. One motivational tool I love is the visual thing called a movie. I love movies, especially movies in the same genre as my novel. I get the writing itch before I make it halfway through some films or shows because they excite me, and the great fun of being a writer is the excitement of seeing what happens next…then making it happen.

People-watching is a thing, too. And it can be a very useful thing without being creepy. Sitting at a park, in a coffee shop, on a bench outside a store, in the shoe section, or even in a parking lot can be great for inspiration depending on the scene you have to write. If you’re writing a cliff scene, go hiking. Two people meeting at a dog park? Go to one. A man scaling a mountain in another country? Well, if you can afford it, why aren’t you there already? If you can’t afford it, YouTube has some awesome videos.

Reading. I mentioned reading a book, but I can’t stress how useful this medium is. You can learn so much by reading, whether fiction, a biography, or the newspaper still sitting in your yard. Pick it up. Reading other people’s writing not only benefits your creative mind, but it benefits your writing. You learn things you never thought you’d learn, and sometimes you don’t know you’re learning it, but it does show up in your writing. I’m serious. Reading is healthy. Do it.

Talking. You’re not talking to Jeremy from chapter eight. You’re talking to a real person now. Even if you hate their guts. If you think someone may benefit your story, talk to them. Tell them what’s going on and ask for feedback. What do they think should happen next? What would they like to see? What questions do they have? You can get a lot of feedback and useful information from people. No people? Find some. Get on a Facebook group like, oh, I don’t know…Authors’ Tale.

Or talk to other writers or people who truly want to be part of your journey. When someone reads your work and gets excited about it, your brain starts working. You want to give them the next thing. And that might be what gets you moving again.

Do you find yourself missing motivation? Read this post to get back where you need to be.

Disclaimer: I’m not advocating for a read-my-work post or query without the expectation of also reading someone else’s work. With writers, it’s unfair to expect them to help you if you won’t help them. Keep that in mind.

Remedy seven: Get outta there

Strangely enough, sometimes a venue change is all you need. It won’t take much; maybe, all you need is to go outside. Take a walk, write at a park, or stop writing and walk your dog. Fresh air, a cup of bookstore coffee, or a walk with a friend can be all the inspiration you need.

This is basically step one or two, but this is different from just stepping away. Do something. Have that person you need to call? Piles of laundry? Accomplishing other things will help you organize your thoughts, so don’t try to force writing if you needed to meet a friend for lunch or had that grill to clean from last night’s dinner. Be productive in your life, and you’ll be more productive in your writing.

Hopefully, I provided a tip or two that you haven’t tried yet. If you have other things you do that help you get over writer’s block, please let me know and I’ll gladly share it with everyone else. These are simply things I’ve learned and tried, and I have been blessed, so far, to have been able to make my way through the horrible barrier.

Whether writer’s block actually exists isn’t important. Everyone hits that point in their writing, and it’s okay. Don’t be ashamed or afraid of it because it’s natural. It’s like tripping over your foot. It doesn’t seem like it should be normal; you’ve been walking for years. However, everyone does it. You will, too. And guess what? You’ll get through it.