Don't Believe in Writer's Block
January 24th 2010 12:32
The best way to overcome writer's block? Don't believe in it.
Writer's block is a myth. It's your subconscious making up reasons why you can't write:
You're not good enough, your writing sucks.
You have nothing to say.
Look, XYZ is on TV.
And so on.
If this sounds familiar to you, try this little free-writing exercise:
Open a new document or get a pen and paper. Set an egg timer / your mobile phone / a stop watch to count down five minutes (longer if you want). Start by writing the following: 'I don't believe in writer's block and I don't care if my writing sucks.' Then write down anything that crosses your mind. Don't censor your thoughts, don't analyse them. Just write them down until your time is up. If you don't want to stop then, just continue writing.
There will always be times when your writing is terrible. I've been there many times, I know it's no fun.The point of this exercise is not to write award-worthy prose. The point is to show yourself that you are not blocked and to give yourself the permission to write badly. Don't believe in writer's block and write your way out of an inspirational dry spell.
Writer's block is a myth. It's your subconscious making up reasons why you can't write:
You're not good enough, your writing sucks.
You have nothing to say.
Look, XYZ is on TV.
And so on.
If this sounds familiar to you, try this little free-writing exercise:
Open a new document or get a pen and paper. Set an egg timer / your mobile phone / a stop watch to count down five minutes (longer if you want). Start by writing the following: 'I don't believe in writer's block and I don't care if my writing sucks.' Then write down anything that crosses your mind. Don't censor your thoughts, don't analyse them. Just write them down until your time is up. If you don't want to stop then, just continue writing.
There will always be times when your writing is terrible. I've been there many times, I know it's no fun.The point of this exercise is not to write award-worthy prose. The point is to show yourself that you are not blocked and to give yourself the permission to write badly. Don't believe in writer's block and write your way out of an inspirational dry spell.
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Comment by katyzzz
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Comment by Sonya 1
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Cheers
Comment by Dianna G
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Very well said. Sometimes it's not 'writer's block', it's 'story block' and what we really need is a good trip far away from the story we're working on. Or story fatigue.
But we can always write something.
~Dianna
Comment by Sonya 1
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Thanks for another great comment, Dianna.