Writing Tips & Guidance

Writer's Block: Fight Block, Find Inspiration

You've chosen to write for some reason or another, and you've probably figured out by now that it is hard work. For this reason, you must know that "writer's block" is nothing but an excuse. You have to push through the feeling, or you'll never finish anything. Trust me, I would know (lol). Sure, you can subscribe to it if you have no ambition to become a writer and write for creative leisure. True writers must address that "writer's block" is simply an aspect included in the difficulties of writing. It is a real thing, to be sure, but something a writer must overcome. Writing with whimsy and muse will not a story make.

Writer's block can pounce at any moment, though many writers find themselves stumped in the middle of their story or prior to starting. There are things one can do to address certain types before they appear but some have to be tacked as they appear.

Avoiding & Beating Writer's Block

- OUTLINE. Sure, a story might start with the help of the muses, but you will inevitably burn out. Write where it takes you then outline the rest and keep going. Now, outlining is a little complicated. It's a roadmap but you need to be a little bit of a hippie about it. Everything in an outline needs to be "subject to change" if the story decides to go another route. You must be flexible. The outline is something you can reference if you're lost, but that doesn't mean the story won't pull you in another direction. If it doesn't work out because the story is full of shit about that left turn, then back-track and follow the outline more closely. Just......outlining is so important.

- Have a designated writing space, probably in an office space, a corner of your room, or a wobbly table by a window in your house. This space should have access to a window, but you should be able to close it if you wish. Natural light and fresh air can be stimulating, but not the best environmental inspiration if you're writing a scene in a dank prison when it's bright outside or an arid desert when it's raining.

- Make notes of secondary writing spaces you can loiter in and write. The local cafe that's open late, one of 18 nearby Starbucks, a bench at the park, the public library, a hookah lounge, the rooftop lounging area of your more successful friend's high-rise, whatever. You should have a mental list of several places that appeal to you, some good for every season and type of weather. If all of them are outside, then you're shit out of luck for around half the year if you need a change of pace. Sometimes a change of scenery can really help.

- Download a writing productivity program. I'll talk about them more, but my suggestions are ZenWriter and FocusWriter. Students can get ZenWriter for free and anyone can get FocusWriter for free.

- Always have a central place to keep notes. Some people carry around a notebook that they use for everything. I use Google Docs, which I can access from any of my electronic devices and anyone else's if need be. Not all of my writing is done there, but every possible note is kept there so nothing is lost.

- Keep old drafts. Especially if you abandon a piece or jump around a lot. Always make a new draft when you make changes or revisions, or when you move the piece from program to program. Some writers print their old, abandoned pieces and tuck them away in a drawer for later inspiration or laughs. I just keep a file folder of old things and assign each document a draft number. This method also means you have extra-extra-extra backups of your story in case a file is corrupted or a program fucks it up. An additional precaution would be to save the files twice, once as a document for the program you use and once as a PDF. PDFs are the gold standard of files, since they can be opened regardless of age and do not change according to wacky program confusion (like old Word Doc files).