The Devil Known as Writer's Block.

When your imaginary friends stop talking to you...

Hello everyone, welcome back.

Well, I'm sure you've guessed it. This post is about that thing every writer has to face sooner or later; Writer's Block.

Over the years I've fought against this devil more than once. Sometimes I broke through writer's block in under an hour and then there were times where I've been staring at a blank page for months on end (definitely not the best production wise). But this has given me time to figure out different ways that help break through this. Though not every method works for everyone, it doesn't hurt to try them. So I've put together my top ways of working through Writer's Block. Enjoy.

Method One: Get away for a bit.

Taking a walk

Now, this is, from what I've experienced, as one of the most debated methods for breaking writer's block there is. Some people say you should never stop writing, that you should force your way through it and go back and edit later. Others say that leaving the piece for awhile and going out with friends or playing a game or doing anything but write will help you recollect yourself and when you decide to go back to your piece you'll be able to write once more.

This is one that you need to try for yourself. See where you fall on the spectrum. For me, I've had both success and failure with this one. I was stuck on how to start one of my chapters for about a month once. I'd get a paragraph down, think I like it, then hate it, delete it, retype it, delete it, and repeat the process about a hundred times. Finally, I called it quits and went and binge watched all of Once Upon a Time and American Horror Story. After a few days of vegging on my couch, I went back to the manuscript and was able to finish the chapter in a single afternoon. But a few months later I ran into the same problem, tried the same process, and got nothing. No method is a hundred percent guaranteed to work. If they were there wouldn't be more to this list.

Method Two: Talk to somebody.

Chatting with a friend

So this method can easy or difficult depending on who you are as a person. Some people, like myself, have an entire group of people who have been there from day one on the adventure of writing. But then there are others who have no one. Sometimes people don't have the opportunity to have someone backing them the entire way. And sometimes people choose to keep their work private. I have an associate who does ghostwriting and some of the stuff she's had to write for that...well I wouldn't want anyone to know I was writing that either. Let's just say it involved incest, a skinless demon, and lots of rape.

Anywho, talking to someone is a way that you can get a new perspective. Even using someone as a soundboard helps you process your own thoughts. I can say I love talking to people when I get stuck, it really helps me having someone who can give me immediate feedback. If you're comfortable talking to someone chat them up and see if you can break through that pesky block that you're dealing with.

Method Three: Work on Another Project

New story, new chance

Work on another project? Am I crazy? No. No, I am not. Well, nothing's been proven anyways. But I'm serious, when you're having difficulty writing on your current work, try working on something else. Side projects are a blessing. I have multiple I work on and when I can't seem to write anything on my main project, I hop on over to one of them. It's like starting a new adventure.

So you work on your side project for a while and when you feel its been long enough, I generally go by chapters, you go back to your main project. I find when I go back to my main project, I see it with fresh eyes and I can get to work on it. This method is my favorite one and it is always the one I go for each time. I tell everyone to give it a try and you'll see, you won't only have one story but two or more by the time its over.




Well, everyone, those are my top methods of conquering the writer's block devil. Granted, there are hundreds of methods and everyone has their own way of doing things but it doesn't hurt to try new things. Do you have a favorite method? Any weird rituals you do to try and tackle your own devil? Let me know in the comments. I'd love to hear what other people do.

In the meantime, don't forget to keep writing,
Dakota