There is no such thing as writer's block. Let's just get that out in the open.
Writer's block is nothing but an excuse. Why aren't you sitting there putting pen to paper, fingertips to keys? Oh, it must be writer's block. You can't think of an idea of what to write, it must be that pesky writer's block sneaking up again. In reality it's our fears getting the best of us. We think that everything we write has to be golden that there's nothing more shameful than writing something bad. Hemingway put it best, "All first drafts are shit." It's true, no matter what we write, before it's revised, tweaked, slaved over, it's nothing but shit. The purpose of writing, of getting that first draft on paper is to get that idea out of your head and turn it into something tangible. There's going to be a swiss-cheese plot, undeveloped characters, poor dialog, and enough grammar mistakes to embarrass a third grade teacher. But now you have something, and now it's time to shape it and turn it into something good. Put it aside for a week or so, put it in a drawer, in a folder and don't let a single soul read it. Now take it out, read it all the way through, read it out loud if no one is around. You'll see and hear things you didn't notice that first time around. Take notes, write all over the draft, that's the purpose of it. Tear it to pieces so when you go for that second draft you can put it back together, make it better. A more coherent plot, more developed characters, more natural, flowing language. Now do a third draft, a fourth draft. And in between these drafts be working on other stories. Never ever not be working on something. Also, never ever say you have writer's block. It's a cowardly way out of writing.
Now there are times where you won't write. It's not writer's block, it's just natural. You sit down to write and you realize there are dishes to be done, lawns to be mowed, kids and pets to be fed and cared for. Sure, you can get these things done, actually the pets and kids are pretty important, but writing should be next in line. Get a page or two out, maybe a sentence, fix a paragraph in one of those drafts you have lying around. And read, read, read. Never stop reading. You should read twice as much as you write. I read and write while I'm at work because I'm fortunate to have a job that lets me do it on the clock. Read before bed, on your lunch break, while your kids are at the playground.
Turn off the TV, it's doing nothing but melting your brain and taking you further away from what you need to be doing. If you really want to write you should feel out of place when you're not writing. Something should feel off, you should feel driven. You should be picking up books and reading them as fast as you can. I started Julie Orringer's superb short story collection How to Breathe Underwater today at work and already I'm 173 pages into it (my second time reading it). Actually while writing about the book I glanced over and saw the cover. Girls swimming in a river somewhere deep in the woods. It reminded me of growing up in the Pocono Mountains of Pennsylvania and how there were rivers like that everywhere and the only way to get to them was by hiking and kids would always go and swim there. I just got an idea for a story. That's another thing that should happen, ideas should be coming faster than you can write them. I have an entire notebook devoted to nothing but writing down story ideas. Most of them won't get written or will get tossed aside later on if I think it's not good enough, but at least I wrote them down and didn't let myself forget. That same notebook is used to write down words I find in books that I don't know the meaning to so I can write down the meaning and maybe use the word later on. I learned that an ichthyophile is someone with a strong affinity to fish. Obstreperous means noisy and difficult to control. I also learned that a camisole is a woman's undershirt (I'm a guy, I didn't know, I'm sorry).
As a writer your mind should always be open. You should always be taking in information, reading books and magazines. Listening to people's conversations. Even listen to your own conversations. Listen to the stories your friends tell and see if you can get any ideas. Try people watching, going to a place like Starbucks and just watching who comes and goes creating a character out of someone real.
Maybe something interest you like scuba diving or airplanes, or the river and lake systems of the Northeast. Start researching, not only are you researching something that interests you but something you might be able to make a story out of. Keep reference books on your bookshelf (Don't have a bookshelf? Buy/make one and start filling it up). I have Gray's Anatomy, an older one with handwritten drawings, the DSM-IV (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders) three dictionaries, books on drawing, philosophy, art, poetry, psychology, and of course books on the writing craft.
Also, keep a journal. A journal where you write everything, not just your day-to-day stuff, but random things that come into your head, small notes, just fill it with anything and everything. When you feel like you can't write open up the journal and start freewriting, something will come eventually and the best part is no one has to read it, you don't even have to go back and read it, but at least you're writing.
So now you know that writer's block is a lie, a sham. You can read, research, observe, take notes, listen to people, a whole list of things to help you as a writer to make your stories better. Everything can be a story and it's your job to get them on paper and tell them, so what are you waiting for? Get to it!
Writer's block is nothing but an excuse. Why aren't you sitting there putting pen to paper, fingertips to keys? Oh, it must be writer's block. You can't think of an idea of what to write, it must be that pesky writer's block sneaking up again. In reality it's our fears getting the best of us. We think that everything we write has to be golden that there's nothing more shameful than writing something bad. Hemingway put it best, "All first drafts are shit." It's true, no matter what we write, before it's revised, tweaked, slaved over, it's nothing but shit. The purpose of writing, of getting that first draft on paper is to get that idea out of your head and turn it into something tangible. There's going to be a swiss-cheese plot, undeveloped characters, poor dialog, and enough grammar mistakes to embarrass a third grade teacher. But now you have something, and now it's time to shape it and turn it into something good. Put it aside for a week or so, put it in a drawer, in a folder and don't let a single soul read it. Now take it out, read it all the way through, read it out loud if no one is around. You'll see and hear things you didn't notice that first time around. Take notes, write all over the draft, that's the purpose of it. Tear it to pieces so when you go for that second draft you can put it back together, make it better. A more coherent plot, more developed characters, more natural, flowing language. Now do a third draft, a fourth draft. And in between these drafts be working on other stories. Never ever not be working on something. Also, never ever say you have writer's block. It's a cowardly way out of writing.
Now there are times where you won't write. It's not writer's block, it's just natural. You sit down to write and you realize there are dishes to be done, lawns to be mowed, kids and pets to be fed and cared for. Sure, you can get these things done, actually the pets and kids are pretty important, but writing should be next in line. Get a page or two out, maybe a sentence, fix a paragraph in one of those drafts you have lying around. And read, read, read. Never stop reading. You should read twice as much as you write. I read and write while I'm at work because I'm fortunate to have a job that lets me do it on the clock. Read before bed, on your lunch break, while your kids are at the playground.
Turn off the TV, it's doing nothing but melting your brain and taking you further away from what you need to be doing. If you really want to write you should feel out of place when you're not writing. Something should feel off, you should feel driven. You should be picking up books and reading them as fast as you can. I started Julie Orringer's superb short story collection How to Breathe Underwater today at work and already I'm 173 pages into it (my second time reading it). Actually while writing about the book I glanced over and saw the cover. Girls swimming in a river somewhere deep in the woods. It reminded me of growing up in the Pocono Mountains of Pennsylvania and how there were rivers like that everywhere and the only way to get to them was by hiking and kids would always go and swim there. I just got an idea for a story. That's another thing that should happen, ideas should be coming faster than you can write them. I have an entire notebook devoted to nothing but writing down story ideas. Most of them won't get written or will get tossed aside later on if I think it's not good enough, but at least I wrote them down and didn't let myself forget. That same notebook is used to write down words I find in books that I don't know the meaning to so I can write down the meaning and maybe use the word later on. I learned that an ichthyophile is someone with a strong affinity to fish. Obstreperous means noisy and difficult to control. I also learned that a camisole is a woman's undershirt (I'm a guy, I didn't know, I'm sorry).
As a writer your mind should always be open. You should always be taking in information, reading books and magazines. Listening to people's conversations. Even listen to your own conversations. Listen to the stories your friends tell and see if you can get any ideas. Try people watching, going to a place like Starbucks and just watching who comes and goes creating a character out of someone real.
Maybe something interest you like scuba diving or airplanes, or the river and lake systems of the Northeast. Start researching, not only are you researching something that interests you but something you might be able to make a story out of. Keep reference books on your bookshelf (Don't have a bookshelf? Buy/make one and start filling it up). I have Gray's Anatomy, an older one with handwritten drawings, the DSM-IV (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders) three dictionaries, books on drawing, philosophy, art, poetry, psychology, and of course books on the writing craft.
Also, keep a journal. A journal where you write everything, not just your day-to-day stuff, but random things that come into your head, small notes, just fill it with anything and everything. When you feel like you can't write open up the journal and start freewriting, something will come eventually and the best part is no one has to read it, you don't even have to go back and read it, but at least you're writing.
So now you know that writer's block is a lie, a sham. You can read, research, observe, take notes, listen to people, a whole list of things to help you as a writer to make your stories better. Everything can be a story and it's your job to get them on paper and tell them, so what are you waiting for? Get to it!