How To Stop Writer's Block

Whether you write just for fun or are trying to write your own novel, writer's block can affect anyone. I’m sure you know the feeling when you set up your writing station, for me it’s a lit candle and a drink as well as some music. You are completely prepared to write a masterpiece. Then…nothing. The blinking cursor seems to mock you as you stare at a blank page. It’s incredibly stressful and frustrating. Luckily for you, I’ve compiled some of the methods or random things that have helped me fight against the dreaded monster of writer's block. Hopefully some of these might help you and feel free to share your own advice in the comments below. 

Visual Inspiration

Sometimes just scrolling through Pinterest is enough to get the writer gears turning in your brain. I actually think it’s great to scroll through and go down a rabbit hole without searching for any inspiration in particular. Often it’s the most random, pointless images that can inspire something. Pinterest is especially useful for fantasy writers. If there’s a niche of fantasy you are interested in, just search it and scroll away. Mermaids in space? Pinterest has an image of it.  

Another great way to find inspiration is through photography. I recommend finding some photographers you like and focusing on their stuff. Maybe even follow them on Instagram so you have a continuous feed of inspiration. If you don’t know where to start I suggest looking at Gregory Crewsdon’s work.

Read a Good Book 

If you feel like nothing good is coming to mind I think it’s best to look back on what you have enjoyed as a reader. A lot of the time what we read influences how we write. Maybe it’s the tone of voice of a character or a setting that an author has created that you love. These can be useful building blocks in your own writing. Obviously don’t just rip off someone else's work. Instead, take a small detail and remould it into your own thing. If you don’t have time to reread a whole book, don’t fret. Stuck on an opening chapter? Read an opening chapter. Stuck in the middle? Flick through and read an excerpt from the middle. If you like reading it, you’ll probably like writing it. The inspiration is right there waiting for you.

Don’t Write Anything

This may sound counter productive but when the blinking cursor of doom is getting to you it’s best to step away. Sometimes the creative juice just isn’t flowing and trying to force it might leave you more stressed and stuck than before. Find distractions; go for a walk, watch a film, eavesdrop on strangers. When you go about your day not looking to find something to write about, it might just jump out at you. I’ve definitely been inspired by random things or people I’ve come across in day to day life.

Make a Playlist 

This is something I do before I start writing a project. I’ll take a lot of time doing it too. Just having the right soundtrack in the background can really help to get you into the right headspace to write. It’s also helpful when you're stuck in the middle of your project. Take a break and add some more songs, it fills up time when you could just be stuck and also makes you think deeper about what you’re writing.

Exercises and Prompts 

Your writing brain is a muscle and it needs exercising. Giving the muscle a little flex and pushing it into something new is often a great cure to writer’s block. The internet is a great source of exercises, just give it a google. There are plenty of random settings or character generators. You may find it easier finding prompts or exercises that are similar to your current project but a lot of the time writing away from it is helpful.

Write and Write Bad. 

Just write. Have a page that might be the worst thing you have ever written. So bad that you’re basically ashamed of it. It doesn’t matter, the point is you have written something. You can work with something. There have been occasions where I’ve come back to a ‘bad’ page a day later and deleted the whole thing and rewritten it in a different way. I’ve been quite proud of what I’ve been able to produce by doing this.

A lot of the time the struggle comes from the horrifying blank page but if you write badly that's at least something to work from. You also learn what doesn’t work, meaning your final product is likely to be more refined. It seems really hard but sometimes the best solution to writer's block is just to shove a load of rubbish on a page and then pick through till you find some gold.