Conquering Writer's Block

The Wise Words of: Immlaaarr

First up, we have the lovely writer Immy! Everyone give her a hand! She was the first to volunteer to write for this project. She truly is lovely. (:

PS: Immy, you're not a loser! :P

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 Written by: Immlaaarr

Advice from a Loser:

Hello there, my name is Immy Pattinson (Immlaaarr) and you've probably clicked on this chapter hoping for insightful comments from a writer about how to defeat writer's block. Well, good luck; I'm not a knight in shining armour, I'm a loser in aluminium foil - more commonly known as 'an author'.

I'm sorry, by the way, for what I'm about to tell you: unfortunately I don't have all the answers. I can't tell you exactly how to deal with this mental block you've got going on, and I definitely can't tell you what to write - that's your job.

I will, however, give you some ideas of how to cope with writer's block. Everyone is different and unique; there's no telling what will trigger memories and help you write. While you figure out what is best for you, here are some things you've got to remember. I don't know how useful I'll be but I hope I help in some way.

1. Know Your Enemy - your enemy is your imagination, which writers and artists commonly call 'The Muse'. It's stubborn, it's bitchy, and it's definitely inconsistent. One day, it can be your best friend and spew out ideas in every direction. The next day, it's packed a bag and left for the Bahamas, leaving you with half a chapter of writing that needs to be finished.

2. Keep Calm and Carry a Wand - you've got to stay calm and don't panic, or everything will just completely stress you out. As for the wand; everyone needs some inspiration, that little bit of magic that makes you sit bolt upright and think 'I need my laptop, my notepad, the wall, someone's arm - I must write this down!'

3. It'll Get Better - writer's block isn't forever, it's usually for a day or two, or a couple of weeks. At the most, I had it for six weeks, my entire summer break. It was horrible, but once school started up again I found it much easier to write.

So now we've started to get into the overall scheme of things, let's think about why you get writer's block in the first place? I find it's usually because:

- I don't know where the story is going. 

- I had a vague idea of the plotline but it's just fizzled out. 

- I've gone too fast and the main storyline is practically over by the middle. 

- It feels like writing this book is a chore.

There are many more reasons but those are my worst. I hate them all, it's the reason I sometimes sit down to write and I just stare at the page before banging my face into to desk and collapsing in front of the TV to watch a romantic-comedy and eat until I feel better. It's never good. Ever.

SO FIGHT IT. 

Do not let your Muse get the better of you! The trick is to never be predictable. The same trick will not work twice on your Muse, unless you separate them with more tricks. You have an imaginary toolbox to tackle this crafty bundle of writing ideas - you just have to learn how to use it.

To demonstrate my own tricks, I will be using an example from one of my books that I once got stuck on. Basically, Leslie has told Kayla that she is pregnant, and the chapter ended there. I thought to myself 'Right! Brand new chapter to write her reaction, this'll be easy!' 

HA. No it wasn't. So here we go, tricking my Muse into giving me the ideas that I really needed to make it a good chapter.

Trick One: Question everything.  

Just sit there, asking yourself questions. Read through the last bit that was written and question yourself! If 'The Muse' was a person, this is how I reckon the conversation would have happened:

Immy: So how would I feel if that happened to me? 

Muse: I don't know. 

Immy: Course you know. You're the master. 

Muse: ...Well, I suppose you'd be surprised. 

Immy: Yeah, that's true. I'd definitely be surprised. 

Muse: And relieved, because you thought she was sick, and it turns out she's healthy. 

Immy: Oh yeah, I guess so. 

Muse: But you'd be so angry, I mean I'd be so angry if it happened to me. 

Immy: Why, exactly? 

Muse: Because it's not yours, you're both women. So who the hell is the father? God, I can see an argument between the two girls happening, but obviously it'd end in happy tears because of the definite love between them.

AND BOOM. We have a scene to write.

Trick Two: Spider-diagrams and flow-charts.  

I'm not even joking - they work. Read the last bit you wrote, and then choose one area to focus on.

Pregnancy -> Questioning of father -> Argument because of this -> Reassurance of love for each other -> Tearful ending of the argument -> Explaining to friends.

AND BOOM. We have a scene to write.

Trick Three: Take a hike.  

When you're unable to write in your room, get out of the house. Go for a walk, a long one if possible. Take a dog, or a cat, or even a plant, and just talk to it about your book. Obviously don't go somewhere that's highly populated, or you're going to look like an idiot. I genuinely had this happen to me once:

Immy: I don't know what to do. I hate writer's block. It's so stupid. I hate this stupid life. And this world. I goddamn hate this world. 

Dog: ... 

Immy: What do you care? You're a dog. You don't care. You listen to me. 

Dog: ... 

Immy: I'm stuck here, in a field with stupid cows, with a stupid dog and stupid plants and I'm talking to myself about my stupid book. 

Dog: ... 

Immy: Meh. I think I'm going to cry. 

Dog: ... 

*Jogging person jogs by* 

Immy: I wish I could jog without looking like a moron. HEY. THEY COULD GO JOGGING TOGETHER. That's how she tells all her friends! I could write a really funny moment as well, where she's jogging and tells Helen and then Helen runs into someone.

AND BOOM. We have a scene to write.

There are many more ideas that you can create - but like I said, everyone is unique and it really does help if you know what works for you. They're three of many tricks that work for me. So get building that toolbox, and try to crack into your Muse.

Just remember your Muse is not a human with human emotions. It's your mind. It will not give you mercy if you beg or cry; so don't bother. Just battle on, and then eat chocolate to reward yourself for some hard work.

One last note - give yourself some time off every so often. Too much work is bad for you, you'll stress yourself out and I bet you when you're stressed you'll find it more difficult to write.

Much love to you all, stay brilliant and I'll talk to you all soon.

~Immy ^^ 

<3