We’ve all had those amazing, brain-blasting moments where we write like the wind; the creative juice is flowing; the words keep coming; and you write into the wee hours of the morning.
Likewise, we’ve all had those dull, brain-squeezing moments where it feels like we can’t string two words together. Plot pieces aren’t connecting. We can’t find the words to describe a simple setting.
I’m talking about Writer’s Block.
Writer’s Block sucks. It’s a scientific fact.
It’s a period of frustration and annoyance and self-defeat and copious disappointment.
I’ve come up with a few simple things to get you around that blockage and back on the trail to that chart-topping bestseller:
- Step away from the keyboard. Seriously, stop trying to write when your brain clearly doesn’t want to. Go outside. Put a puzzle together. Play a video game. Clean the bathroom. Watch TV. Go to a bar. Get SMASHED. Bake cookies. Smoke some herbal supplements. Do some yoga.
- Start a beta read. Go find someone on the internet that needs someone else to give them feedback on a manuscript.
- Read a book. Go find your inspiration on sentence structure and plot management from examples.
All of these things take your away from writing. The common denominator is you taking a break from writing. It is stepping away and letting your brain relax. If you flex a muscle constant, it gets tired. Go, take a nap. Then get back to the grind.
Beatrice B. Morgan 