"Writer's block is a condition, primarily associated with writing as a profession, in which an author loses the ability to produce new work. The condition varies widely in intensity. It can be trivial, a temporary difficulty in dealing with the task at hand. At the other extreme, some "blocked" writers have been unable to work for years on end, and some have even abandoned their careers. It can manifest as the affected writer viewing their work as inferior or unsuitable, when in fact it could be the opposite." - Wikipedia
Common Writers Block Causes:
✦ Lack of Inspiration
✦ Lack of Motivation
✦ Distraction
More Serious Writers Block Causes:
✦ Stress (Relationship issues, Work issues, Life issues)
✦ Physical Illness and Depression
✦ Pressure
✦ A sense of Failure (Criticism?)
What Writers Block does:
True Writers block, is usually brought about by a number of different things. But the end result is STRESS. Whether mental or physical, stress is generally your problem.
"Neuroscientists have proven that when an individual is stressed or threatened, a part of the brain stem called the Reticular Activating System (RAS) will shift control from the cerebral cortex to the limbic system. When the limbic system is in the ascendant, behaviour is instinctual, based on the fight-or-flight response, or the result of deeply ingrained training. Without significant input from the cerebral cortex, the individual is temporarily deprived of the ability to perform nuanced analysis and creative thought. Moreover, the individual is rarely aware of this shift and often attributes the resulting inability to perform her or his usual creative thinking as a lack of willpower, character or ability. What is typically thought of as writer’s block or other forms of writing resistance is the result the cerebral cortex being temporarily unavailable. Common forms of writing resistance can be categorized within the three instinctual responses the limbic system relies on: freezing (momentary paralysis), followed by the choice of fighting or fleeing." - Rosanne Bane 'The Writers Brain'
Solutions:
1. Work on something else.
If I want to continue moving forward in the creation of my Novel/Novella, but I'm stuck at that rather large wall called "Writers Block" I move to a different aspect of my story. Ask yourself this: Is there a small part of your project you could finish not only quickly, but would move things forward?
A lot of the time I find myself getting stuck on one aspect of the story. (BIOS Oh dear lord, I hate them.) You end up concentrating on it so hard, because you know you need to get it done before you can move on to the more exciting parts of your story. You end up stressing yourself out about it, and then find yourself simply shutting down when faced with that problematic area. Do you sit there, look at it for a good twenty minutes, and then wander off to do something completely unrelated? This is the "fight or flight" symptom mentioned above. What you need to do is calm down. De-stress yourself. Take a shower, make some tea and then come back to it and work on a different aspect of the story, a different scene, so on.
Go on. Write the middle. Write the end. Write your favourite part.
2. Finding it hard to get inspiration? Try Visual prompts. Going outside, going to different locations, Movies, Books, or Images and artworks like Deviant art, or Flickr.
3. Talk to a friend. A good way to get over writers block, is
to bounce ideas off of other people. You'll be shocked just how much these people can inspire you. In no time, you'll come back to start writing, and find the wall is nowhere to be seen.
4. De-stress yourself. Finances, Loved ones, Work, and live in general is tough. Make sure to take time for yourself. Take a long nice bath/shower. Relax and remember to breathe. Being creative is a lot easier when your not concentrating on everything else, and past problems.
5. When I find I just can't write..I write. It doesn't have to be about anything specific, It doesn't have to be good, or even make sense.(Editing, and revising can wait.) The main point is I wrote. maybe ten minutes, maybe an hour. Sometimes, you will see that block standing in your way has shifted, and you can just shimmy past in with these writing exercises. (You could always start with a single word, or visual prompt too.) This is called "Free-writing"
6.Listen to new music
Try something instrumental and rhythmic that you’ve never heard before. The right beat can put you in a great mood and even assist your writing. So stop playing with iTunes, Youtube, LastFM, etc. Just put on a song, and listen to it until your done. I usually pick "theme" songs for specific characters or scenarios, and listen the crap out of them until my RP posts are done, or my specific scene is done. Music helps relax and focus you.
7. When all else fails, I draw a map. Perhaps a world map, perhaps a city block, perhaps an apartment room. You know, wherever my characters would be spending a great deal of time. By just drawing these things you can find you are bursting with ideas. "No this should be here, this should go in here. If I include this, how does it reflect his personality " So on, until you find what you were stuck on, doesn't even exist anymore and you can just power on through.
8. "Write five words - Literally. Put five completely random words on a piece of paper. Write five more words. Try a sentence. Could be about anything. A block ends when you start making words on a page" - Merlin mann
Problem? something to add? PM me or post your comment below. I'm glad to hear any opinions.
