Overcoming Writer's Block
Some tips and tricks to become inspired!
By Kelvin Lin, reporter
Some tips and tricks to become inspired!
By Kelvin Lin, reporter
Everyone’s experienced the dreaded writer’s block sometime in their life. It doesn’t matter if you’re a world renowned author, or just a kid writing an article for the school newspaper, we all know how it feels to sit in front of a computer, with our cold and clammy hands in our laps, wondering about what to write about. I’m experiencing this all-too common phenomena even as I write this article! It might seem like a daunting task to dig ourselves out of this rut, so to the benefit of all of those who might read this article, I’ve scoured the internet for some tips and tricks on how to overcome this mental roadblock.
1. Take a Break!
My first tip for overcoming writer’s block is to take a relaxing break from whatever you’re working on. Have you ever realized that our greatest and most innovative ideas come to us when we're doing the most mundane and mindless of tasks? Apparently there’s a scientific reason for this. When we perform simple tasks e.g showering, walking, or driving home, our dopamine levels rise and we become relaxed. Dopamine is spread out to different parts of our brain which then become more active, which contribute to what we know as “shower thoughts.” The dopamine helps us become distracted by these simple tasks, which in turn relaxes our brains and our bodies, which further helps us come up with creative ideas and stories, which we can transfer from our brains, to the pen, and to the paper.
2. Stop judging yourself
My second tip for overcoming writer’s block is to stop judging yourself and your writing! As the saying goes, “You are your own worst critic” and it couldn’t be more true within the context of this scenario. I understand the feeling of reading an amazing piece of writing and telling yourself that you’ll never be as good of a writer as whoever’s piece you happen to be reading. Stop that right now! This self doubt will get you nowhere. Rather than let the quality of somebody else’s work bog you down and discourage you from writing, use this feeling as a tool. Take note of what a particular author does well, and study their techniques or ideas to enhance your own writing abilities (Don't Plagiarize Though!) Everyone has to start somewhere, and you’ll get to where you want to be sooner or later!
3. Make an outline about what you want to write
I know, I know. More work? Gross! As someone who hates planning and outlining and anything of the sort, I know this feeling all too well. Just hear me out, though. Maybe, just maybe, it might just help cure some writer’s block. To take some of the repulsiveness out of making an outline, think of an outline like a map and an itinerary for a trip to a zoo you’ve never been to before. I’m sure it’s much easier to find where you want to go and when to go where with these helpful materials compared to wandering rather aimlessly around the park and showing up three hours late to that cool animal show that you really wanted to see.
4. Just start writing
Sometimes the best way to overcome writer’s block is to just write! Freewriting is a technique that some writers use that can help with their writer’s block. This technique is pretty fun; you just write about whatever and however you want! Jot down the first thing that comes to your mind and don’t worry about conforming to the rules of the formal English language or the logic of the universe. Just write. After you're done with this activity, go through your improvised masterpiece and examine it carefully for anything of use. It could be a useful phrase or word that you thought of while doing this activity or you could find nothing of use at all. Don’t be annoyed if you don’t find anything. Apparently, most people need to practice freewriting a few times before it's even effective, so just keep at it!
I hope these tips and tricks will come in handy with your present/future writer’s block! Don’t be discouraged if you can’t think of anything to write about. Inspiration will come to you eventually and hopefully sooner, rather than later, with the help of these tips!
1. Take a Break!
My first tip for overcoming writer’s block is to take a relaxing break from whatever you’re working on. Have you ever realized that our greatest and most innovative ideas come to us when we're doing the most mundane and mindless of tasks? Apparently there’s a scientific reason for this. When we perform simple tasks e.g showering, walking, or driving home, our dopamine levels rise and we become relaxed. Dopamine is spread out to different parts of our brain which then become more active, which contribute to what we know as “shower thoughts.” The dopamine helps us become distracted by these simple tasks, which in turn relaxes our brains and our bodies, which further helps us come up with creative ideas and stories, which we can transfer from our brains, to the pen, and to the paper.
2. Stop judging yourself
My second tip for overcoming writer’s block is to stop judging yourself and your writing! As the saying goes, “You are your own worst critic” and it couldn’t be more true within the context of this scenario. I understand the feeling of reading an amazing piece of writing and telling yourself that you’ll never be as good of a writer as whoever’s piece you happen to be reading. Stop that right now! This self doubt will get you nowhere. Rather than let the quality of somebody else’s work bog you down and discourage you from writing, use this feeling as a tool. Take note of what a particular author does well, and study their techniques or ideas to enhance your own writing abilities (Don't Plagiarize Though!) Everyone has to start somewhere, and you’ll get to where you want to be sooner or later!
3. Make an outline about what you want to write
I know, I know. More work? Gross! As someone who hates planning and outlining and anything of the sort, I know this feeling all too well. Just hear me out, though. Maybe, just maybe, it might just help cure some writer’s block. To take some of the repulsiveness out of making an outline, think of an outline like a map and an itinerary for a trip to a zoo you’ve never been to before. I’m sure it’s much easier to find where you want to go and when to go where with these helpful materials compared to wandering rather aimlessly around the park and showing up three hours late to that cool animal show that you really wanted to see.
4. Just start writing
Sometimes the best way to overcome writer’s block is to just write! Freewriting is a technique that some writers use that can help with their writer’s block. This technique is pretty fun; you just write about whatever and however you want! Jot down the first thing that comes to your mind and don’t worry about conforming to the rules of the formal English language or the logic of the universe. Just write. After you're done with this activity, go through your improvised masterpiece and examine it carefully for anything of use. It could be a useful phrase or word that you thought of while doing this activity or you could find nothing of use at all. Don’t be annoyed if you don’t find anything. Apparently, most people need to practice freewriting a few times before it's even effective, so just keep at it!
I hope these tips and tricks will come in handy with your present/future writer’s block! Don’t be discouraged if you can’t think of anything to write about. Inspiration will come to you eventually and hopefully sooner, rather than later, with the help of these tips!
Works Cited
Goins, Jeff. “How to Overcome Writer's Block: 14 Tricks That Work.” Goins, Writer, 6 Apr. 2018, goinswriter.com/how-to-overcome-writers-block/.
“How to Overcome Writer's Block (20 Tips That Really Work).” Reedsy, blog.reedsy.com/writers-block/.
Nordquist, Richard. “Discovering Ideas Through Freewriting.” ThoughtCo, www.thoughtco.com/what-is-freewriting-1692850.
Widrich, Leo. “Why We Have Our Best Ideas in the Shower: The Science of Creativity.” Buffer Resources, Buffer Resources, 30 June 2020, buffer.com/resources/shower-thoughts-science-of-creativity/#:~:text=Why do we have great ideas in the shower then?&text=Typical triggers for events, that,all there is to it.
“How to Overcome Writer's Block (20 Tips That Really Work).” Reedsy, blog.reedsy.com/writers-block/.
Nordquist, Richard. “Discovering Ideas Through Freewriting.” ThoughtCo, www.thoughtco.com/what-is-freewriting-1692850.
Widrich, Leo. “Why We Have Our Best Ideas in the Shower: The Science of Creativity.” Buffer Resources, Buffer Resources, 30 June 2020, buffer.com/resources/shower-thoughts-science-of-creativity/#:~:text=Why do we have great ideas in the shower then?&text=Typical triggers for events, that,all there is to it.