What's your secret to overcoming writer's block?

When it comes to overcoming writer's block, there is no one right answer. It often differs from writer to writer. For me personally, I find that taking a break from writing can be helpful. This can mean stepping away from the computer and getting some fresh air or simply doing a different activity. Engaging in other creative pursuits, like drawing or painting, can also get the creative juices flowing again. Another strategy that can be helpful is to set aside a specific time for writing every day. This can help establish a routine and make writing feel like a habit rather than a daunting task. Lastly, I find that talking to other writers can provide a wealth of inspiration and ideas.

Writers tend to romanticize writing and the process of writing. Things like finding inspiration or motivation or any other thing simply don't get the work done as they still leave you with a blank page. I have learnt over time not to be precious about my words or craft. That's just analysis paralysis and you will still be left with a blank page staring back at you. I came across an interesting line in comedian Tina Fey's book where she was talking about what helps her get over this analysis paralysis. She sets deadlines and sticks to them. She learnt to submit scripts because it was the deadline, not because it was her best work or masterpiece. This attitude helps me even when I feel like my writing does not measure up to my talent.

There is no such thing as so-called “writer’s block.” There’s an issue that writers sometimes have that’s mistakenly named as if it were a disability or disease. Write when you feel like writing. When you need something else instead, be kind to yourself — take care of your needs. When you’re back in shape, return to your work and do what you love — write like there’s no tomorrow. Take care of your body and mind. Don’t do things that are harmful. Find some love in your life. Believe in something bigger and better than habits that harm you. Learn to love yourself without conditions. The world is ready and waiting to hear your voice. Don’t keep us waiting too long. There is no such thing as writer’s block but writers may need care at times.

It's simple: when you cannot write, always read. But read anything, don't overthink it. Its important to have someone close you can bounce ideas off, and once you have a clear idea of a topic you can use LLM modela such as Bard and ChatGPT/Bing and develop an outline. Last but not least, let your deadline work for you, because we all know that having one more day to go is the greatest productivity booster ever :)

One thing I've found to be really helpful is a technique called free-write I learnt from a professor of mine. It's almost like journaling, but without thinking about what you're going to write. Take a paper and pen and just begin putting down whatever comes in your mind. Random stream of thoughts, without worrying about being grammatically accurate or making spelling mistakes. Not only does this help you to begin thinking straight, but also helps you out with writer's block.

In my experience, allowing myself to write freely, regardless of quality, smashes writer's block. This has worked for me for decades, in professional/business writing and creative writing. Athletes and dancers have to stretch and warm up -- a writer's brain does, too. So when I get stuck, sometimes I revert to a few minutes of freewriting to allow my brain to limber up again. Sometimes the freewriting is on the topic that I'm supposed to be writing about, and I may or may not end up with usable material, but even if I haven't, I've primed the pump and am able to get back to work. Sometimes the freewriting is just stream of consciousness or a flight of fancy -- a writer's equivalent of doodling. In all cases, it helps me get back on track.

My trick is, I start writing without hesitation. After just a minute, ideas flow like a well-oiled engine. It's about breaking mental barriers. I set a goal, like writing a thousand words, take a short break, and return to revise and expand. This method not only beats writer's block but also sparks creativity. If you're stuck, try this - just start writing. Your creative engine might need that initial push.

Particularmente —y casi lamento como pueda llegar a sonar esto—, no he sufrido nunca lo que podría denominarse como ?un bloqueo?. Imagino, incluso, que la sola tentación a considerarlo lo induce. Anejo a lo anterior diría sin demora que si acaso uno no tiene nada valioso para decir —?sobre todo si nada valioso tiene para decir!— no debería abrir la boca (ni mucho menos tomar su pluma). Para quien cree en la inspiración (porque la vive) sabe que las palabras llegarán apuradas en el momento mejor; mientras tanto, es hacedero y hasta deseable ocuparse en otras lides como la vida misma, salir a orearse, tomar del mundo su flujo melodioso. No hay que perder la paciencia, quien alguna vez escribió siempre podrá escribir. ?ánimo, hermanos!

Writing Daily is important. I use journaling. I do it twice a day with a pen and paper. Writing Daily just for me has helped me exercise my writing muscle and beat the blank page. Another trick is using outlining. Start with your main ideas as titles and sub headers. Use bullet points to convey the main messages. Starting by outlining helps me beat the blank page. A bonus effect is that it will help you write. Another technique is to use the 5 minutes rules. Writer block is your brain ?? seeing the difficulty ahead. Tell your brain that you will just do it for 5 minutes. After those five minutes you will continue naturally.

Changing the environment helps a lot. Clutter, blaring television, screaming kids, nosey family members can all contribute to an overwhelming feeling leading to writer's block. Unplug, take a break, change where you are seated. Try out the bedroom, attic or basement.

The environment you're writing in is crucial. But I believe the environment of text production extends from the screen. It has to be sensorial so messages can touch who is meant to receive it. 1. Moving through the paper. Writing sentences by hand on a sheet of paper, a bloc note, stickies, receipt. Anything can support your words and your thoughts. So, capturing them when they come to you, as unexpected as they may be, is important. 2. Your voice will be heard. Some people hear their voice(or someone else's) in their head, so hearing your writing can help you also find the right pace. The surrounding environment becomes a support also.

I can't remember the last time I've had writer's block and here are the two things that have helped: 1. Write the article in your head/mind before you stare at a blank screen or page. Here's what I mean. If I discover a topic I'd like to write on, I spend a couple of days thinking about it, gathering my thoughts and what I'd like to say about the topic. Simply put, the topic is somewhat active in my subconscious. So when it's time to write, I'm simply transferring my thoughts from my mind to Google docs (or whatever else I write on) 2. Interact with people and read (a lot). It gives you ideas, helps you weave disparate ideas and thoughts into a story.

Changing your space is an underrated anecdote to a creative block. Getting out, observing, being in nature, doing some exercise are all great ways to get your ideas and words flowing.

It is less about changing environment and more about creating rituals, no matter the environment. Yes I write on the table kitchen every Saturday afternoon when the kids are napping. That is part of my rituals. The other part is having a Spotify playlist I always listen to. I also write with earbuds. Long story short the writing start before you sit. You have to put your mind in the right path by creating rituals, no matter the environment.

When I wrote my first paper for my Ph.d., I had spent several months with the topic in my head. Deadline was fast approaching, and I wrote the paper. It was bad. Really bad. One night, I deleted the whole thing. The next morning, I ran for two hours in the forest, clearing my mind of everything, entering a state of flow. When I came back, I sat down immediately, wrote for 6 hours straight, submitted. The paper was accepted without further comments. I can write, but I cannot write well without being in the flow. Fortunately, I know I usually enter flow in the woods. It demands a certain courage to leave the keyboard and spend hours in the woods, but I now know that it usually works.

No matter what people say, you won't be able to write everyday but do take advantage of the days when you are in the flow. Taking a break is always a good option!

Honestly, go on a walk or a hike. That's it. Get into nature in whatever way you can and give your brain a break. Sitting for too long can stunt our creativity and nature has a way of bringing it back.

Yes taking breaks are great. Don't work to rest. Work from rest. You can also try different styles of writing : short form, long form, poems, etc. The aim is to bring variety into your practice. Rest is Power.

When facing writer's block, consider a taking a break which is related to your writing topic. For instance, if you're crafting an article on art, a visit to an art gallery can work wonders. Not only does this break offer an enjoyable diversion, but it also immerses you in the subject matter. The experience sparks inspiration, alleviates stress, and sustains motivation. By taking breaks that align with your writing theme, you infuse fresh perspectives and ideas into your work, while releasing stress at the same time.

feedback is helpful it can sometimes disagree with us or make us see things in a different light. it’s not meant to be taken as a critique but simply different viewpoints and we don’t have to agree with them or take them on board or allow them to shake our confidence. if anything they allow you to look at your work again and be more confident in what you did because you come up with explanations and arguments in favour of your choices.

Being part of writing communities is great. I am part of Discord groups and LinkedIn community groups around writing. We provide drafts and we give each other constructive feedback. Writing alone can be hard. Use the power of safe writers communities to grow together.

Quando trabalhamos de forma solitária, sem qualquer tipo de intera??o ou feedback, torna-se fácil nos perdermos em nossas próprias dúvidas e incertezas. Em vários momentos, me senti sozinho e inseguro, questionando a qualidade e relevancia do que estava produzindo. Para combater essa sensa??o, aprendi a valorizar a importancia do feedback externo. Em muitas ocasi?es, procurei pessoas próximas, seja um amigo de confian?a, um colega de profiss?o, um mentor ou mesmo um treinador especializado, buscando uma avalia??o sincera e construtiva sobre minha escrita. Essa troca é fundamental, pois oferece uma perspectiva fresca e, muitas vezes, insights que eu n?o teria sozinho.

We live in a time where writers block shouldn't even exist anymore. Every time I feel it's hard to come further in my text I just go to ChatGPT4 and have a dialog around the topic, the setup, the content and so forward. We need to rewrite the old guides on how to handle different writing struggles. It's a new time now.

Escrever é solitário, mas o feedback n?o precisa ser! Muitas vezes seus amigos e familiares n?o estar?o nem aí pra sua escrita ent?o, mesmo assim, mostre ela ao mundo. Como fazer isso? Comece a criar conteúdo para o LinkedIn e escreva um novo texto todos os dias sem esperar nada em volta. Te garanto que depois de 30 dias fazendo isso sem se sabotar a sua vida e a de muita gente nunca mais será a mesma!

Everything suggested here is great. However. Let’s get a perspective. Creativity is constant. The baker gets up every morning to bake. Bakers block doesn’t stop them. (Or exist!) We need to sometimes giggle at the idea of “oh yeah, writer’s block.” And declare: Well I’m gonna write anyway! Write about anything. The fact you think you can’t write: write about that. And imagine writers block is a person sat opposite you. Saying don’t write. You can’t. No one wants to read your writing. And all the other unhelpful criticisms. Tell it to shush or do one. Or to speak quietly because you’re busy writing. Sure sometimes what we call writers block is percolation time. But, writing is a muscle. It’s your passion and dream. Don’t forget that!

Read and/or people watch. Not your own work, anything other than. A novel, an article, people watch inside a coffee shop and makeup backstories that tie everyone in there (EVERYONE) together. Sit at a bus depot or airport terminal and stimulate your senses. Describe sounds, sights, scents, characters, clothes, surroundings. They me is change your environment and stimulus, set a timer and target. Pressure is useful when it drives you to be productive.

Se você só escreve literatura, mude! Se você só escreve marketing de conteúdo, mude! Eu só me tornei a escritora que sou hoje depois que passei a escrever poemas, cr?nicas, contos, ensaios, autobiografias, artigos, blogposts, reda??es, monografias, e-mail marketing, legenda para posts, página de vendas e quaisquer outros formatos de escrita que existe. Explorar formatos irá te fortalecer e dar repertórios para que nunca mais se sinta sem saber sobre e como escrever a respeito de qualquer coisa.

Mix and Match until you find it fit! I have encountered writer's block myself, and more than once but every time I have been able to get out of it by finding a new catch to my block. You see, not always do we seek the calm in the monotone things we usually do and by all means love doing them to the fullest but it doesn't mean that we should stop doing that rather try doing what Comes to you. Trying out new things will surely help, experiment with your field of interest, your forte, your niche and you might end up landing the perfect opportunity for you!

It works for me to "bullet point" what I want in the future for my story, but handwriting or drawing or using mental maps and diagrams. After a few handwriten non-sense, my mental block starts to dissapear.

When I'm staring at a blank page or stuck on one section of a project, I have the most success when I move on to a different part that I find easier to write in the moment. Maybe you don't know how to start the intro of an article, but after writing some of the informational paragraphs further down the page, you'll have more background front of mind to work with when you go back to the beginning. Even in creative writing, just skip to another scene you feel more excited to work on and go back later. It always works for me!

It's important to remember that writer's block *is* part of the writing process. We tend to see it as a problem to overcome, but I see it more as the creative mind's way of telling you that it's going through a natural rest period. We can't constantly be producing things, especially if we're looking to create quality content. It's like anything else in life. We need rest so we can be active. During times when writing doesn't flow so easily, turn your attention to something else and allow yourself to set writing aside. Forcing things rarely produces the results you're looking for, so deciding to welcome a break will be more beneficial in the long term.

Be aware of your thoughts. Sometimes you have dozens of ideas racing through your head; you aren't even aware of them, and you don't stop to catch them. You could be writing something for someone else, or dealing with a client's questions, or even responding or reacting to someone on social media. A germ of an idea pops in your head. Be aware of it. Notice it. Capture it. Write something down somewhere (I'm still a pen-and-paper person) so that you can refer back to it later. One specific person's "How do I fix 'X'?" or "How do I do 'Y'?" could be an opportunity for you to educate everybody on those solutions.

Why are writers' blocked? Does a chef get blocked? Have we simply forgotten we are incredible creators? When we practice our art, it simply flows. Isn't it time to let go of societal programming and simply create?