The feeling of empty box or writing frustration is a common situation that makes both experienced and aspiring writers lose productivity. One of the worst things the writer experiences is spending hours with an empty paper without the ability to write any single word. Unfortunately, textbook formulas like “find the idea → write a plan → create the first draft” typically don’t work. Such a condition may cause a lot of discomfort and frustrating situations. That’s why we want to share with you some recipes and techniques that you can combine or try solely to identify the one that works best for you.
Experiment with various tools.
Luckily, writers nowadays have a lot of services and applications at hand. Equip your computer or tablet with working tools that will help you improve your writing.
- AI tools. Make a list of AI generators that work best for title, writing prompts, and idea generation. Even ChatGPT can give you some ideas that can boost your creativity flow.
- Writing services. If you are a student, you can use one of the 5 best college essay writing services worth your attention and get immediate help with your writing from expert academic writers.
- Mind-mapping tools. Choose mind-mapping websites or applications with the most user-friendly interface (e.g. Mindmeister, Canva, etc.). For the first time it may be quite complicated to use such apps, but in future you will feel the benefits for idea generation.
- Writing editors. Even if you prefer Microsoft Word, give a try to other editors like FocusWriter to minimize distractions and focus on your writing only.
- Speech-to-text tools. Sometimes speaking aloud may help you generate unique content and find new ideas quicker than typing and writing. Use Google Docs or another voice recognition software that transforms voice to text while oral brainstorming.
- Music playlists. Ambient, lo-fi, country, which type of music drive your writing mood? Save your favorite music that boosts creativity and writing productivity to your Spotify account or other music service you use.
- Writing communities. Wattpad, NaNoWriMo, and various writing subreddits have gathered strong writer’s groups where you can discuss everything from generating ideas to technical details in writing.
- Distraction-free apps. As a bonus, Chrome extensions and applications that block social media websites and other apps that distract you from writing can boost your productivity. Just set the time for such block and write.
Clarify the task.
Whether you are a student who is assigned a certain essay type or a writer who needs to write a piece of text for your client, it may be quite complicated to understand what you are expected to write. If such a situation is the main reason for your writer’s block, don’t be shy and clarify the task as soon as possible. Read the task several times and write down phrases or ideas you can’t understand. Contact your teacher, educational concealer, client, or writing advisor for assistance. Create a list of questions to be prepared and get the answers to confusing moments.
Stay flexible.
Can’t find the right words to write an introduction? Start from the middle of your writing. Or can’t cover the next idea you have put as a point in your writing plan? Move to another idea. Don’t focus on a particular topic for a long time, especially when you see that you can’t move further with new words.
Try to think about the topic from various sides and keep a motto “write, write, and write.” Even if you think that your phrases are not perfect enough, go further and continue writing as you think. When you finish a paragraph or the full text you will be able to cut or rewrite fragments that don’t match the main idea. Such an approach will give you an amount of ready text that you can adapt to your initial goals.
And what if you were asked to write about boring topic? In fact, you still have a way out. You can contact your instructor or client and discuss how much flexibility you have. You may choose a topic aspect and turn it into a topic of your personal interest.
Develop a writing routine.
Writing is more about self-organization than inspiration. You may be waiting for a muse for a week or even month. But what if you need to finish your essay, novel, or an article in a few days? You won’t succeed without no time-management.
- Determine your writing goals and deadlines. If you need to write several texts in a short time, set a bite-size achievable goal that you can accomplish in the required timeframe (e.g. writing 30 minutes a day/ 400 words per day, etc.).
- Collect writing rituals. You can take a warming-up exercise on a random topic or practice freewriting to empty your thoughts from recent worries and get ready for your main writing goal.
- Discover working writing techniques. Such things like mind mapping, outlining, switching writing mediums, summarizing, focused writing, and other techniques can stimulate your creativity. Write down options that you can try when you are feeling blank.
- Incorporate self-care activities. Always take time to properly relax and rest in your daily routine. Make sure that you make quality breaks without screen time and involve yourself in activities like sports, stretching, cleaning, meditation, etc.
- Practice regular reading. Depending on the type of writing you need to produce, you can read articles in your niche to start up to date with new developments, read books or poetry of your favorite authors or genres for more inspiration, track writing blogs to get fresh perspectives and writing techniques, etc.
Accept imperfection.
If you are extremely worried about the quality of your writing or originality of ideas, you need to remember that nothing is perfect. You are writing the first draft that you can edit and rewrite numerous times. Leave the polishing stage to the finish and use text editors like Grammarly to make this process more easy.
Tip: You can cover your display with a cloth or decrease the brightness so that you won’t see the words you write if you can’t get over the obsession of ideal text.
Also, we are all human, and some circumstances can frustrate us from doing required tasks. If you have experienced a negative event in your life or a stressful situation, take some time for a short break before you get to writing. If you are not okay, ask someone to help you. Consider sleeping better, keeping yourself hydrated, and breaking your writing tasks into manageable parts.
Wrapping Up
Don’t think that writer’s block is something awful and unmanageable. If you don’t suffer from depression or other psychological issues, you can get over the writer’s block with a certain approach to such a problem. Understanding that such a situation may occur regularly to any writer, no matter of their background. All you need is to find the most working techniques that work for you and continue experimenting with new methods. Believe in yourself and continue mastering your writing skills to do all your best.