E.M.Etheridge Author

I must be a part of over a dozen different writers’ groups on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and TicTok. Every time I decide to distract myself with the drudgeries of the social media world – as if it would somehow make my problems better when it doesn’t- I can almost always count on seeing one post: “Help! I have writer’s block and I can’t get out” 

It’s like clockwork. It’s the number one thing that people post about, and the number one thing that people comment on because everyone seems to have a system, and some just want to throw out gibberish and sit back laughing while the poor blocked writer spins around in a circle three times chanting the names of their MC as many times as they can to create inspiration. Funny, but mean. 

Many people have fallen victim of reading comment after comment, hoping that one technique will be the give-all save to their crappy writing day. I myself have fallen victim to this before, so let me give you a hint: 

The answers aren’t in the comment section. 

Shock! 

Go ahead, and wipe up the coffee you just spewed all over your screen. I’ll wait. 

Don’t mistake lack of motivation for writer’s block. You just have to do it. The more you sit and think about it, the less likely you are to get things done. You build a plan, and you stick to it. The more you let it haunt you the more stressed you get about it and the less likely you are to achieve anything and then it just becomes a vicious cycle. 

Even if it sucks you just have to do it. 

You just have to write words. They can be the worst, most suckiest words you’ve ever written. (Kind of like the sentence I just wrote) But if you’re writing, you’re writing. Sometimes the act of doing what it is you love will bread inspiration, even if it sucks. So put the cell phone down. Turn the TV off. Pet your sweet fur baby. Then sit your happy, caffeinated butt in a chair with your choice of writing utensil and do the work. Start with a word. Hell, I’ll even supply one: “The”. 

There! One word down! Now set a goal to hit at least 250. 

Here are a few ideas to get you started: 

            Write about your day. 

            Sounds cheesy, right? Just try it. Sometimes that writing-related stress and anxiety stem from something else going on in your life. Journaling is a technique used by most writers nowadays just to keep their word count up. It doesn’t always have to be about your WIP. I write this blog when I’m feeling stuck just to keep words flowing. Venting is great and therapeutic. Unless you post all of your sassy straightforward thoughts like I do, your journal stays completely secure in your journal or that special little place on your desktop. Emotional blocks are blocks too. 

            Pick up a book. 

            This is an exercise that I learned from one of my favorite writing classes. The challenge is to go to your local bookstore or library (#savelibraries) and pick up one book you’ve never touched before. Don’t even read the summary. You need to remain clueless for this exercise to work. Flip it open and copy one line or paragraph into your journal, and then finish the story without reading anymore. Usually, you want to do this with a line of description, where the author is setting the scene. It will pump your creative juices and you get to finish the scene for them based on the line or paragraph that you read. 

            Find a Picture 

            They say a picture says a thousand words, so why not capitalize on that during writer’s block? Seriously you can do some great critical thinking by picking a picture from Pinterest, Unsplash or Pixels and writing a story about it. You can even look at pictures of your favorite celebrity if you want and walk a day in their shoes based on the picture and your imagination. It’s a good way to get yourself to write, and condition yourself to think creatively even when you feel blocked. It doesn’t always have to be about your WIP. That’s where writers really get stuck. 

Write whatever you want. Go ahead, I’ll wait again. I’ve got nothing better to do. 

Now that you’ve hit that how do you feel? Is it the worst thing you’ve ever written? Was it painful? Good! Growth comes from pain and failure. Now you know what not to write, and you’ve exercised those writing muscles. 

If these 250 words went well for you, you may have continued. The old imagination has probably kicked in. You probably released that breath of anxiety that you’ve been holding in your throat, and thinking “Damn, why didn’t I do this before”. Sometimes you just have to write yourself out of the writer’s block. 

If you are a writer, or becoming a writer, words are your greatest asset. The more you use them, the more inspired you will be to create with them, but be warned, words are like any chisel or paintbrush they gather dust and fray, rust or break over time. If you don’t use them and keep them polished, you can’t create them. 

So, write my dear caffeinated reader. Write poorly. Write purposefully. Write just to get back in the habit of writing.