5 Ways to Overcome Writer’s Block

Everyone has their two cents on how to fight writer’s block, so let me chime in with mine. I’m no expert, and I’m not about to claim that these suggestions are fail-proof. Still, I find them helpful for my own writing life, and, if they may be helpful to yours, wonderful!

So, without further ado, here are 5 Ways to Overcome Writer’s Block:

1. Be cool about it and read the signs

This is easier said than done. But when has stressing about something made it better? I ask this as a professional over-thinker myself. 

It’s like the more you think about it the more pronounced it becomes. Makes me think of someone telling me one time they were shopping around for a new car, picked a model they really loved, and suddenly everyone and their mother was driving one around town. Before that specific car had made it onto their radar, they had been completely oblivious to how popular it was. Likewise, the more you think about struggling with writer’s block the bigger a problem it’s going to seem.

There’s a fair number of people out there who believe it’s not a problem at all because they believe writer’s block doesn’t exist, in the first place. They think it’s a myth made up to offer an excuse for quitting when you’ve hit a tricky bit of plot or realize your story isn’t as substantial as it needs to be. 

I, personally, believe it exists, and it exists to be a signpost of a sort. If I’m drawing up short on not knowing where to take my story next or feel I have nothing to write about, that signals to me that there’s different work I need to be doing. Maybe the work is research-based so I can better develop a piece of my world-building. Maybe it means asking some tough questions about the feasibility of the plot from a foundational level.

In a different vein, the work could be of the internal, self-care variety. If exterior life events are requiring or demanding a lot of my focus, I might not feel like I have the capacity to sit down and write. That can be as small as a hitch in the morning routine or it could be more serious family concerns that have a greater emotional impact.

I wouldn’t say you have to have a clear mind in order to write because, oftentimes, writing helps us reach the clarity we desire. You can absolutely bring all the emotions, big and small, to a day’s writing and use them effectively. Yet, an over-burdened mind is not always going to lend itself to productivity.

So, let’s say you’re trying to be cool about feeling stuck with your story, but it’s a gosh darn difficult thing to do. Journal about it and identify what plots elements need more developmental attention. Or perhaps your thoughts keep straying to something that happened recently that’s got you so occupied it’s preventing you from seeing your story clearly. Well, who said you can’t take some time to write about that event? You’re not quitting on a project, if you push the pause button and attend to other ideas or needs, which leads me into my next suggestion...

2. Have you tried…eating a snack?

If you don’t need a snack, what about a nap? Maybe a walk around the neighborhood? A FaceTime call with that buddy who cheers you up with their sarcasm and silliness? 

This suggestion is rather short and sweet in that it is concerned with the things we do to take care of ourselves that seem small but are actually quite important. They hardly need an explanation as to why they’re important, but allow me to say a little something.

You know what all of these little acts of self-care have in common? They can get you away from your writing space, whether that’s for fifteen minutes or two days. Don’t avoid your writing, but don’t think you have to stay glued to your chair until you produce all the words.

We are not creatures designed to sit for hours on end in front of a screen. We are meant to interact with one another and soak in the world and move our bodies. We also need to rest and fuel ourselves. There’s a balance that needs to be struck, and each person must decide upon it for themselves. Just how long can you sit and write before your brain needs a break? Before your tummy makes demands? Before you’re longing for conversation with a friend? 

Refill and refuel yourself. Your creative project will thank you for it.

3. Paper and pen can’t be beat

Sometimes, when all my physical needs have been met and all is well, I still sit down at my desk with my computer and struggle to make the words appear. It’s in those moments I like to reach for my notebook and a writing utensil. Most often it’s a red pen.

You, too, should try picking up ink or graphite of your preference and letting it mark-up a physical, blank page. Sometimes this is what we need to get our brains re-energized and leaning into our creativity.

There are studies out there suggesting that the act of physically writing spurs on greater brain activity, as opposed to typing. There are benefits impacting long-term memory and mental organization of thoughts. It’s suggested that creative processes are positively impacted by going this route. A simple Google search will point you towards ample discussions and findings of such things, if you want to understand this approach more.

There are many days when I don’t even bother starting with the laptop open and just go directly to a notebook. My computer can pose more as a machine of distraction and delay instead of the productive tool I need it to be, but the blank page has only one thing to offer, which is great for keeping me focused. I cannot have a dozen tabs open or click over to peek at Goodreads or get lost down a Wikipedia rabbit hole if I haven’t set myself up to do so. 

One of the things I love about physically writing and then transferring over to a digital document is that, not only have I saved myself from staring at a screen more than I need to, I’m making time for a first edit before the draft is finished. In a way, it’s the two birds, one stone situation. I’ve reached my word goal, and then I’m giving it a little polish as I insert it into the central document with the rest of the scenes.

So, if you’re not inspired by a blinking cursor on your screen, perhaps you should consider what can be done with a physical, blank page. You can always crumple it up and throw it at the wall, need be.

4. Hang out with a character

Here’s the thing about being the author—you get to know all the last ins and outs of your characters like no one else. Really. No one else. Because you know what? You cannot cram every last fun fact or anecdote about them into the story. That’d be entirely too many digressions and too much extraneous information.

You should still know it all, though, and you could take this time to write it out. 

This exercise could be as silly or serious as you want it to be. Try picturing their nightstand (if not already purposely described in your story). What do they keep on-hand? A specific book they’ve been reading before bed? Little knick-knacks that bring them joy? Is there a chapstick that’s fallen behind the nightstand that they’ve been losing their mind trying to find? What’s there and why is it there? What do all these things reveal about them? Or is there nothing at all? Why might that be?

You could take this exercise to a bigger scope and write a whole scene that isn’t planned to appear in the story. Maybe you want to write them into the world we live in and have them order a coffee at your favorite café. What is their go-to coffee order? Maybe it’s not even coffee. Where would they enjoy their beverage? Inside the café? Outside? Would they rather take it on a walk? You get to decide which questions you’re asking and what the answers are.

Don’t let this appear counter-productive to you, okay? Just because you’re writing descriptions or a scene that may or may not find its way into your story later on doesn’t mean you’re not a.) learning something more about your character or b.) warming your brain up to get back to what you were originially hoping to be working on.

The more you write, the more practice you get, too. Don’t discount the time that’s helping you better your craft.

5. Seek out other mediums

We all have favorite movies, TV shows, books, music, you name it. Pick one of those things and enjoy it, again. Yes, it means you’re taking time away from writing, but it’s meant to reap inspiration.

For example, I really love Lord Huron’s album Strange Trails. It’s one that I can listen to in its entirety, then, when it starts over after the last song, I’m like, “Great! Let’s go again!” and it never gets old. I’m no music critic. I’m not going to try and seek explanations for why the sounds of that album tickle my brain in all the right ways. But I am going to lean into it. Strange Trails is already telling a story of its own, but I want to listen to the lyrics, feel all the things the songs draw out, and piece together the narrative that emerges within me, inspired by this album. 

What’s a song or a whole collection of tunes that gets that response out of you?

Or let’s go the movie route. 

If you know me at all, you know I’m often preoccupied with historical, imperial Russia, and the animated Anastasia (1997) is one of my comfort films. The threads of inspiration I’m pulling from that include (but are not limited to):

-the setting, specifically Catherine Palace

-Bartok’s comedic timing

-Dimitri’s arc and his falling in love with Anya

-the concept of finding one’s home

So, I might take a stab at bringing those elements to life in an original creation of my own. Obviously, I’m not copying, so I wouldn’t have an animal sidekick who’s a funny, little bat. But maybe my main character has a best friend who’s going to be the comedic relief. And maybe, with my MC, I explore—with different parameters of setting and stakes and personality—the idea of home and what it means to lose it only to find it again. There’s a hundred and one ways to take both those things.

For you, what’s your movie? What are the themes or character traits you want to play around with?

You can even be inspired by a movie that you didn’t like. Did the ending suck? Did the plot miss the twist that you thought would have been super cool to see? That can be inspiration, too, and it could get you writing a little somethin’, even when you feel stuck. 

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As you’re trying out these suggestions or tackling writer’s block with your own tools, just remember this: not knowing what to write next or feeling like you have no words to write, doesn’t mean you can’t keep going. 

Writer’s block is not a sign you should quit. Writer’s block is a sign that says there is work yet to be done—and you just gotta figure out how you’re gonna go about it.