Recently, I've been hit
with a bad case of writer’s block. No inspiration. Incredibly frustrating. To
help out anyone else who is in the same stagnant boat as me, here are some bits
of advice that help me when my ideas seem to be empty.
Write!
This sounds contradictory, because, well, if you had
something to write, you wouldn’t have writer’s block, would you? Get your
thoughts out of your way, and push aside the idea that you have nothing to say.
Write random thoughts. Write a journal
entry for the day. Write nonsense. This will get you thinking in the right
frame of mind. My art teacher told our class that she always doodles and
experiments with the material she's about to use before going to the actual
piece she wants to do. I think this is very applicable to any creative
practice. Doodle with your words before getting into anything. Following where
your “doodles” lead may take you to a useful idea.
You want to get distracted
with your ideas, but not by your surroundings. Let writing lead you, and follow
it. Whatever your mind wanders to is probably what needs to be written down. Just
don't get distracted by people or technology.
“But I still can’t think of
anything.”
(It’s okay; neither can I.)
When you really can’t think
of anything to write, try one (or more) of these 9 starting points. Notice I
called them starting points. If something you pick to write about reminds you
of something else, use it. Don’t let yourself feel trapped. Writing is about
freedom.
1.) A picture
Honestly, I find
this to be one of the most effective muses for me. Sometimes I’ll use a picture
of my own, or I’ll find something cool and use
it (paintings and other artwork definitely count, too!).
2.) Memory
Narrate what
happened. Why did it happen? What did you learn? You can make it as serious or
comical as you want. You’re a writer—you can even make it as truthful or
exaggerated as you want (although I’d recommend changing names if you choose to
embellish your story).
3.) Response to another piece
of writing
Just pick something—a poem, a story, a song lyric, anything—then
respond with your own piece. This works well with poetry for me, but it can
also be great for essays. In fictional writing, maybe try writing an alternate
ending or a twist on something instead of a response. That can at least get
your writing skills warmed up and awake.
4.) POV of another character
This can be a person in your life, a person you make up, or another fictional
character. You can write from this perspective in any format. Options are
limitless. This will get you outside of the ideas you normally have, expanding
your possibilities, and challenging you.
5.) POV of an object
This is
definitely a more creative approach. Much like using the point of view of
another person, this will challenge you to think differently about situations
and scenes that you may be working on.
6.) Objects in general
Last
summer I went to a writing camp/seminar where every day, the woman leading it
would place an object on the table and say, “write.” She used everything from
plants and rocks to buttons and dried up pasta. Let the object inspire you.
What does it make you think of? There's no need to stay focused on the object.
Just allow it to be your starting point.
7.) Word
Similar to the object method, pick a
random word out of the dictionary and use it. Maybe you challenge yourself to
actually use it in what you're writing, or maybe you use it as a starting
point. Be creative.
8.) Music
Don’t let yourself
get distracted with this one. Just pick a song—doesn't matter if it has
words—and use it. How does it make you feel? You can write simply based off of
the mood of the song, or think of the song as a soundtrack and write the
corresponding scene.
9.) Outside or different
location
If you have a place where you always write, try changing it up.
Nature can be very motivational and relaxing, but something as easy as changing
the room you write in can have an effect on your thoughts.
Professional Advice
Maybe you’re aware of this
if you know me in real life, but if you don’t, two of my favorite people alive
are J.K. Rowling and Ed Sheeran. As a writer, I often come back to the points made in these quotes.
“Be ruthless about protecting writing days,
i.e., do not cave in to endless requests to have "essential" and
"long overdue" meetings on those days. The funny thing is that,
although writing has been my actual job for several years now, I still seem to
have to fight for time in which to do it. Some people do not seem to grasp that
I still have to sit down in peace and write the books, apparently believing
that they pop up like mushrooms without my connivance. I must therefore guard
the time allotted to writing as a Hungarian Horntail guards its firstborn egg.”
–J.K. Rowling
“I think if you view it [writing] as a
dirty tap and you switch the tap on, it’s gonna flow shit water out for a
substantial amount of time, and then clean water’s gonna start flowing. And now
and then you’ll get a bit of shit, but as long as it gets out of you it’s fine.
So with songs, you’re gonna write shit songs in the beginning. You are. My songs
were terrible. (…) But, I got it out of me, and the more and more you write,
the more and more you experience, and then you start flowing clean water, and
songs start getting better and better and better.” –Ed Sheeran (I remembered he said that
in this video, and had to include it in this post.)
Lastly, don’t have any
expectations. If you sit down hoping to write something very specific, you will
more than likely want to stab your eyes out with your pen after trying to craft
the perfect whatever it was that you had in mind. I'd recommend not to even
plan on a certain format—you could end up with a poem, story, flash-fiction
piece, it's unknown. When you sit down for a first draft or a brain storm, let
your thoughts be free instead of bounding them to one idea.
"I write only because
There is a voice within me
That will not be still."
—Sylvia Plath
Have any additional tips for writer's block? Let me know in the comments! What was your favorite starting point or piece of advice?
