Writer's Block: What do you do?

1.) I either pretend to go to bed while listening to my iPod (puts my brain in overdrive)
2.) Take a shower (something about the fog and steam jump starts my imagination)
3.) Watch a boring movie (it'll make your mind wander)

I hate writers block. I had it for a whopping 3 years. It finally went away last February and I've been cranking out stuff ever since. Good luck!

I drive around with no where to go, or I run on the treadmill. I have alot of good ideas when I'm doing cardio.

Sit down and write anyway. If you can't write, sit in silence for hours. Through boredom, you'll soon find the words come.

One word at a time. When I can't think of whole sentences to be next, I think of single words and build sentences out of them.

The real problem with me is finding that I don't know what direction to go in with the book. But you don't seem to have that problem, so one word at a time is my advice.

When I have writer's block, nothing works for me but sitting down and trying to write. It's when I'm on a roll that, laying in bed, I'll have a hundred ideas.

There is no such thing as writer's block. It was invented by someone in California who was too lazy to write.

Seriously, do CPA's get blocked? Plumbers? Do they call in sick because they simply cannot snake a pipe today?

Writers write. It's what we do. If you have run out of things to say on one subject, switch to another, but keep writing. Stephen King writes every day of the year except Christmas and his birthday and he's not doing to badly.

Carlene

Stormy Love
The Worst Evil
Mind Echoes - out Jan 2010
www.whiskeycreekpress.com

Call Sign: Love
The Colors of Death
An Extra Pair of Eyes – out Jan 2010
www.writewordsinc.com

FINDER! – out Jan 2010
www.wildchildpublishing.com

Mysterious Gift – TBA
www.cobblestone-press.com

Often, when I have what feels like writer's block, it means that I was wrong about the direction the book had to take. So even though you think you know how it should go, sit down, figure out what you have that works, and what can work around that.

Carlene said:

There is no such thing as writer's block. It was invented by someone in California who was too lazy to write.

Seriously, do CPA's get blocked? Plumbers? Do they call in sick because they simply cannot snake a pipe today?

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I absolutely agree with this post. Some people need to have an "illness" so it will not seem like they are the one to blame for the problem.

I think you need to isolate your "symptom."

Are you having problems generating ideas? Having problems putting the ideas you have down on paper? Having problems concentrating? Think your writing sucks? Have gotten lazy? Etc... It is usually one thing that you are having problems with that you can solve by doing it-- i.e. "writing."

If I were in this situation, I would start either re-typing an outline, or trying to add to scenes you have already written. Some free-writing generally frees me up, and a lot of times what I free-write makes it into the book. For instance, I am freewriting my experiences of seeing the Pacific for the first time-- well, imagine that! One of my characters is seeing the pacific for the first time!

I fall into the "writer's block doesn't exist" camp. If I can't write, it's because of one of three things:

1. Something seriously wrong with the story that must be addressed before I can continue.
2. Something external that's distracting me (i.e., illness, moving, etc)
3. Laziness or lack of discipline on my part.

99% of the time, it's #3. And for that, there is only one solution: Butt in chair. Fingers on keyboard. Make yourself write. It may be word dentistry at first, it may be agonizing, but eventually the words will come. If they don't, there may be something wrong with the story itself (good way to test for that? Try writing something else, even if it's just an exercise or a short story. If that comes easily, but your WIP does not, take a step back and see if there's a fatal flaw in your WIP.)

Bottom line, IMHO, the only way to overcome "writer's block" is to write. It's that simple. It's not easy, but it is that simple.

Sometimes new and developing writers find it difficult to more forward because they let their distance vision get in the way of the near vision. This means fretting about how the whole story is falling out and how what is being written right now just doesn't seem like it's fitting right. It's a form of paralysis due to being overwhelmed by the sheer magnitude of the project.

Something to try...a re-focus. One that is on what is immediately at hand. The current scene and not beyond. Here is what I've lifted from one of my posts in a similar thread in another forum. It's something to try:

Tell us what is going on in the scene you are working on right now. DO NOT tell us what the entire story is about. Don't even tell us about genre or anything other than the immediate scene. Who is in it? What is going to happen? What is the setting? Time of day? What is the tone of the scene? Is it a happy scene? Sad? Tense? How will the scene end?

This is where your focus should be. On this next scene. Sure, you should know something about where it fits in the overall story arc, but let that part defocus so you can see only this one scene. Jot down answers to the questions above and see if that scene doesn't start forming in your mind. If it does, get writing on it, but without looking beyond that scene.

When you get that scene done, move to the next scene and keep your focus there. It helps to re-evaluate the overall story arc between writing scenes, but once that's done, come back in close and just worry about the immediate scene.

I really like thethinker42's post. For me, "writer's block" is just a name for another problem. Oftentimes for me it means something major is wrong with the story and I haven't yet put my finger on it. Sometimes (okay, still pretty often), it happens because I'm feeling insecure about my work. Sometimes I'm tired. Sometimes I feel crappy. Some days I'm just not pushing myself.

But I do believe writer's block is totally beatable. So when it hits, I evaluate my work carefully and psychoanalyze myself if necessary. I target the symptoms; then I attack them and flail away until they're dead.

Carlene said:

There is no such thing as writer's block. It was invented by someone in California who was too lazy to write.

Seriously, do CPA's get blocked? Plumbers? Do they call in sick because they simply cannot snake a pipe today?

Writers write. It's what we do. If you have run out of things to say on one subject, switch to another, but keep writing. Stephen King writes every day of the year except Christmas and his birthday and he's not doing to badly.

Carlene

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I find this kind of inane. It's comparing apples and oranges. Or more like comparing apples to broccoli. They are two completely different things. Writing is a creative activity. The others are basically rote physical activity with set problems and answers to those problems. If a writer is blocked, it could have any number of reasons. Maybe they're distracted by something, maybe there's a problem in the story that they're overlooking, maybe they don't have the plot worked out. I don't see at all how this comparison makes the least bit of sense.

Here's something else. I'm not Stephen King. What works for him does not work for me. I don't have to write every day to be a writer. I can write once a week and still be a writer. Might be a slow one, but I'm still a writer.

Everyone is different. You say go write something else. Well, that doesn't work for me. I need to stay focused on the task at hand and figure out the problem and if I go write other stuff instead, I'll never get anything done. I'd just end up with more random stuff that didn't go anywhere and all of which was probably not as good as what I could have had if I had only waited a few days because it takes me time to get into the mood and voice of a story. To imply that there is one single solution to the problem is as much of a fallacy as the plumber thing because it implies that everyone works the same way and has the same limitations and the same creative process. You might be lucky enough to never have this problem, but others do.

Personally, yes, I do on occasion get stuck on something. That's how I refer to it, btw. I occasionally get stuck, usually because something in the plot or tone of the piece isn't working, and I remain stuck until I can figure out something at least close enough to right to make out a first draft. It might be a couple of days, it might be a full week or two (and no, I don't tend to write during that period because it often just makes it worse for me).

My own personal tricks include working puzzles (lets my mind wander), listening to music that fits the character or the tone of the work, rereading the earlier parts to see if I've gone a wrong direction without noticing and to get my characters back in my mind, and sometimes working out a later scene first to give myself something else to think about, and usually in the process I can fill in the in-betweens.

kaitie said:

I find this kind of inane. It's comparing apples and oranges. Or more like comparing apples to broccoli. They are two completely different things. Writing is a creative activity. The others are basically rote physical activity with set problems and answers to those problems. If a writer is blocked, it could have any number of reasons. Maybe they're distracted by something, maybe there's a problem in the story that they're overlooking, maybe they don't have the plot worked out. I don't see at all how this comparison makes the least bit of sense.

Here's something else. I'm not Stephen King. What works for him does not work for me. I don't have to write every day to be a writer. I can write once a week and still be a writer. Might be a slow one, but I'm still a writer.

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Amen to that.

I've got a sort of writers block going on as we speak. My plots going the right way its up the right scene at the right time but I just can't figure out how to make the scene play out. Sometimes it happens you're mind just doesn't want to function. I either do like kaitie and listen to music (got a playlist especially made for my current wip), go off play a game or talk out the problem with my roommate, bouncing ideas off people are helpful but to say that someone is always creative none stop just doesn't seem possible.

My link that will lead you to other links on the topic.

A few of my peanuts:
Read back a little bit, see if you may have gotten yourself stuck by what you've already done or maybe what you've forgotten.
Remember that this is only the first time you are writing this, more times will follow, so don't stress over the "right way".
Oh! Sometimes skipping through the dictionary is fun. And yes, sometimes I find it oddly productive.
You can even try out writing a basic guide or outline. I don't do outlines, but it helps some people and could be beneficial for you.

Tate said:

Amen to that.

I've got a sort of writers block going on as we speak. My plots going the right way its up the right scene at the right time but I just can't figure out how to make the scene play out. Sometimes it happens you're mind just doesn't want to function. I either do like kaitie and listen to music (got a playlist especially made for my current wip), go off play a game or talk out the problem with my roommate, bouncing ideas off people are helpful but to say that someone is always creative none stop just doesn't seem possible.

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Oh yeah, bouncing ideas off people is probably the most helpful thing of all. Even if someone can't offer a suggestion, or what they offer is completely wrong, I can often figure out the right answer by looking at what doesn't work.

My only problem is that lately I don't want to spoil my readers in advance. I'd rather have them give me a fresh, unbiased look at things.

I take a break doing something else creative. Painting, some sketching. Sometimes related to my WIP and sometimes not. Maybe bake a fancy pastry, etc.

Sometimes going out and doing something I've never done before helps a lot. Just getting a flood of new sensory information helps me be creative again, get ideas for scenes, settings, both for my painting and writing. Don't forget to visit some places that smell bad, not all of your new experiences have to be idyllic.

A lot of my ideas are spewed forth from my subconscious, so switching up that creating process with creating other types of things seems to keep it from stagnating.

I do think writer's block exists, but as a psychological construct that we create. So, if I am afraid of finishing a project because then it becomes "real" and I will have to start sending out queries, that could create a block in my mind.

Most of the time, for me, it's a mix of laziness, excuses, or fear.

I break my self-imposed blocks by listening to music or bouncing ideas off a friend.

I really need to use writing as a curse for not writing, though.

Inane? Hmmm, I'm guessing you never worked as a journalist. There are no writer's blocks in the newsroom. When you're on deadline, you write.

Carlene

I consider it a vacation.

Carlene said:

Inane? Hmmm, I'm guessing you never worked as a journalist. There are no writer's blocks in the newsroom. When you're on deadline, you write.

Carlene

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Bah, journalism is based way to much on getting the facts across, you can be creative but only to a certain extent. Unless you're doing an opinions page or something. Yes, they're both writing but I consider journalism to be in a totally different class than fiction writing.

Missus Akasha said:

What I normally do when I have a writer's block is:

Put on some music.
Drive a pencil through my skull.
Just start typing out gibberish until my fingers hard.
Crawl up in my bed and die.

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Good! That's what you should do.

But none of that isn't working.

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So it's working, then? Ha ha, just kidding.

Keep at it. The only way out is through. Don't stop writing -- but DO stop caring about whether what you write while "blocked" is good or not. Just write, let some crazy ideas out of your head, give yourself permission to play around with words, or with plot, or with characters. Have fun messing around with your story. You don't have to keep any of it (and you probably won't.) But you do have to keep writing.

That's what I do.

Yup, I agree - however it gets you in the habit of writing daily, which is the point. It also trained me to work on more than one project at a time. I started as a journalist and went on to publish hard news, feature articles humorous essays, and short stories in the horror, romance, humor, religious and confession markets. My published books are mystery, romance, romantic suspense, humorous mysteries and next an erotic paranormal romantic suspense novella. My motivation to succeed kept me writing daily - and still does.

Carlene

Oh, and I should add that every cool change in plot that happened between my second and third/final version of my book happened while I was tinkering around with ideas during a "stumped" phase. I don't call it blocked -- I call it stumped, because usually when I don't know what to do next, it's because my mind isn't keeping up with my story.

The moral is, when you don't say, "Well, that's it -- I can't write. Time to do something else," and instead say, "This is hard -- time to have a little fun with it and enjoy it," your creative potential is unleashed. You just might come up with some ideas that take your work from passable to awesome, and allow you to finish a nice novel and query it! Look at a "block" as an opportunity for even greater creativity rather than a handicap.

I’ve suffered from it and I’ll suffer from it in the future. Luckily it doesn’t strike often.

I keep a diary, and when I get writer’s block, my diary writing increases, tenfold and more.

If working on a serious project, my diary writing is brief and sometimes dries up altogether, my writing needs are fulfilled by my project; on the few occasions when I suffer from writer’s block, I write even more, mostly in my diary and elsewhere.

I write poetry, letters to newspapers, short stories, drive my friends mad with long emails, and fill my diary with an analysis of my writer’s block, pages and pages of it until I get so fed up that I’m glad to return to chapter 37 of the real thing.

It’s a good thing to happen occasionally, because I also exercise like mad during those times to exorcise the demons, and it works wonders on my waistline.