Ever Get Writers Block?
A number of published authors I’ve talked to say it doesn’t exist. I think that answer crushes a lot of people. You think things like “that’s why he’ll be successful and I won’t” and the like. That doesn’t do anybody any good.
I mention it because of my latest podcast scene. I usually write the rough draft in a day, this one took me 4! Well, that’s not exactly true, I wrote it today. The other 3 days were spent figuring out what I wanted to say. This is the root of writers block.
You have to figure out what is holding you back, and tackle that problem. The hard part is working through it. This is why a lot of people work on other projects when they come down with writers block. I don’t like that approach much, because I never want to go back to it later.
This time, the culprit was length. I try to keep these podcasts down to so many episodes (we don’t want to go over 10 for any one story). Basically, I wanted to rush it. I took notes for days trying to figure that out.
When I get it, I use charts where you put something in the middle of a page and work your ideas outward like a web. It helps me figure out what is well thought out and working, and what isn’t. Anyone use different methods?
Tags: writing technique, Writings
October 13th, 2009 at 12:11 pm
i get creative block too… i usually just take a break from what i am doing.
i thin the more i dwell and worry about the “block”, it just gets worse!
October 13th, 2009 at 1:17 pm
I am guilty of only writing when I’m inspired. For the last few years, I’ve pretty much only written fiction in November, because I was supposed to be working on my dissertation so I couldn’t do “fun” writing until I was done with the “work” writing. Now, I’m trudging through edits on my novel, but I’ve had this swimming in my head for so long, when I do make time to write the stuff is ready to come out to the page.
I guess I do a lot of my writing in my head (driving,at work, while watching TV), so the ideas are there, and generally fully formed, before I sit down to write them.
Also, NaNo does help you get over writer’s block. Even when I don’t really know what I want to say, or how to say it, I just start typing, because that’s what you do during NaNo, and the words start to make sense. Or at least they form something I can make sense of later, when I edit.
But I agree: writer’s block happens, it’s real. Some are just better at ignoring it than others.
October 13th, 2009 at 3:40 pm
Good point, Cabin. Makes more sense as a creativity block I suppose. I don’t get it much on the programming side, because I have such clear goals I suppose. Or maybe because I leave the design and artsy stuff to my wife. *innocently whistles*
Criss, that’s an interesting way to look at it. I try to write every day, if only a few words. I haven’t had a case of writers block in many, many months. Maybe I was just due for a little hardship.