How to Cure Writers Block

The first step in trying to cure writers block is to actually define the term. Many writers look at writers block as this vague and ambiguous term, that is as difficult to pin down a meaning of as the word love. Whenever a writer has a difficult time writing, he or she says, "I have writers block," even though one writer's case might be completely different from that of another. Here is my take on this difficult ailment: it doesn't exist. In my opinion, writers block can almost always be defined by some other issue with a clear solution.

For example, when I was first attempting to cure writers block in my own life, I had several deep-rooted fears that were causing me difficulty when I put pen to paper. I was afraid that I wasn't good enough and so I believed deep down that if I actually put time into the process of writing and came up as short as I thought I would, I would be completely embarrassed. This fear of failure was complemented with a fear of success, because I was worried that if I was actually good at writing, I would have to limit all of my other pursuits like acting and directing. I had put myself in a "damned if you do, damned if you don't situation." I didn't have writers block, I had fear. I worked through my fears using some of the exercises I've laid out in my book, The Post-College Guide to Happiness, and eventually, I had knocked my fear down to the point that I could write without "writers block."

Other writers put a lot of pressure on themselves to write whenever the moment comes because they have such a small window after their 9 to 5 jobs. It is this stress, plus a lack of energy from the soul-sucking job that tend to be their undoing. To cure writers block in that case would be a matter of increasing activities that relieve stress like yoga, controlled breathing and meditation and to work at a time before work has drained you, such as early in the morning. Some writers are out of shape and need to increase their energy through exercise, eating well and sleeping seven or more hours a night to cure writers block in their lives. Other writers surround themselves with distractions like television, the Internet and their multi-purposed phones. Unsurprisingly, if they turned off such electronic stimuli and focused on their work, they wouldn't be asking "How do I cure writers block?" They'd be asking, "Could you please pass the paper?"

Here is a simple three-step process for how to cure writers block: 
1. Evaluate your life, possibly even employing an outside perspective, to determine what it is that's keeping you from writing. Common causes of this condition include fear, a lack of energy, stress, distractions or a combination of all of them. 
2. Create a plan for ridding yourself of these problems. Distractions are easy to get rid of. Fear of failure is a little more difficult. All of these issues can be conquered, it's just a matter of time. 
3. Write. If you encounter writers block again, go back to step one and repeat the process again. 

There are so many stories left to be written in this world. Don't let this mystical condition of writers block take you down a notch. Find the cause, conquer it and get your writing voice heard! 

Done with How to Cure Writers Block? Go back to Creative Writing Tips