There’s nothing worse than a blank page. You sit down to write and all you see is emptiness staring back at you. If you experience writer’s block, you’re not alone. We all do at some point.
But what can you do when all the words you want to say escape you? How do you fill the void when the muse is yet to descend on you?
There are plenty of tips and techniques for managing writer’s block. In this article, we’ll explore some of the best ways to get your writing mojo on.
Table of Contents
1. Explore Your Thoughts on the Page
If a blank page fills you with fear and dread, start putting anything that you can think of down. It doesn’t matter whether it makes the final cut, just fill the page with thoughts.
Write whatever comes to your mind. It doesn’t matter whether it belongs at that part of the piece that you’re writing. You can always move words, lines, and phrases around as you edit your writing.
2. Save All of Your Editing Until the End
If you’re re-reading everything that you write as you’re putting it down on the page, you’re not going to get very far.
Wait until you reach the editing phase to make any major changes. Instead, focus your attention on getting your thoughts out onto the page. If you need to write the same line twice or three times, then you can do this.
Editing takes a different type of thought process to write. When you’re writing, you need to be creative. Ideas need to flow. When you’re editing, you should be in critical mode. Ready to analyze and rip your own work to shreds.
Being over-critical and analytical is not conducive to being creative.
3. Start At the End
Work backward. Think about how you want your piece to end. Don’t feel as though you have to start at the beginning. You can start writing on the parts you know. You can always come back to the rest when you have a clearer understanding.
There are no rules about where you start working on your piece, just the same as there are no rules about where your piece starts.
4. Get Away From the Page
If you’re not feeling it, and the muse is yet to descend, take a step away from the empty page and go for a walk.
Walking is a great way to clear your head.
Often, when we’re trying to write, everything else seems to spring into our minds. All of the worries and doubts from your entire lifetime, how there is a drawer that needs to be organized, and how there are a hundred posts on social media that need to be scrolled through.
There are positive ways to procrastinate, and taking a walk is definitely one of those ways. It clears your mind of all of the clutter and opens us up to creative possibilities.
5. Listen to Some Music
If you want to get some inspiration, put on some music. Music has a great way of waking up the spirit and the soul and inspiring us in ways as nothing else can.
You may choose to use a lyric as a jumping-off point, or it might be a sensation that the music has given you.
6. Use Writing Prompts
One way that you can kickstart your first draft is through the use of writing prompts. Even a small nugget of inspiration can often be enough to get the wheels in motion.
A writing prompt can be just a few words that you need to incorporate into your piece. It can be just enough to create a work of art.
Be sure and check the writing prompts on this site, and share any of the results that you come up with.
How Do You Manage Your Writer’s Block?
It is fair to say that we all experience writer’s block from time-to-time. If you’ve had the first-hand experience of writer’s block, how have you overcome it?
Let us know in the comments.
Image by Free-Photos from Pixabay
Nice post. Ah, music does the trick for me. I have playlists for writing that work most days.
What type of music do you write best to Reg?
Valid useful post for all the writers. For me stepping away from the page works best, most of the ideas start flowing when I stare at the sky and the clouds in evenings. Reading other’s work also sometimes inspire me to write.
Cheers 🙂
Great suggestions. I wish I had the patience to look at the sky and actually relax. I need some of your zen writing techniques in my life!!
😁😁
Starting at the end is a new thing for me, as I’ve always been a linear writer. It’s been helping me work out my plot more though. I can’t do music though. I need total silence. But if it’s a choice between someone’s chatter and music to drown it out, I’d pick music.
I know what you mean about the music. I love music, but when I am writing, it needs to be switched off. If it’s playing it needs to be something fairly ambient with no vocals. I’ve had a few occasions where I’ve been inspired by playlists, but I’ve turned off the music once I’m inspired enough to start getting down to the act of writing.
I’ve been reading a lot of writing tips recently (instead of writing – DOH!) and one suggestion that I liked was that, if you’re struggling with a scene, to take the scene out for a walk. Visualise the whole scene as you’re walking, like it’s a movie, then come home and write it. I haven’t quite made this happen yet but I think it’s a nice tip. Also music that reminds me of emotional times in my life helps me too – draws on the passion and the pain!
Great tip! I’m sure that would work pretty well. I’ll be interested to read the results of that technique whenever you try it 🙂
Some good advice here, especially going for a walk. Sometimes the best thing is to take a break and not think about it.