THE LEGEND OF WRITERS BLOCK
Michael Brian Lee
We help leaders and teams adapt and navigate change. ?? 98% of us have lost access to our creativity - let's reconnect you. ?? Creative Breakthrough Catalyst ??? 2xTEDx & Keynote Speaker
Help, dear reader. I am stuck! I sat down to write about Writer’s Block. And I can’t think of anything!!
OK I’m just kidding. I’m standing up and being ironic. Sorry.
So let me tell you, dear reader, of the legend of Writers Block. Like a five-story Paul Bunyan statue, Mr Block has loomed over the creative landscape for centuries, although psychoanalyst Edmund Bergler only gave him a name around seventy years ago. He has harassed, at one point or another, almost every creative thinker who every existed, except Stephen King. He is more like a King spook. Not a kind man. His gait is silent and his axe is invisible. Yet he has ruined so many perfect days, so many astounding ideas. Mr Block lives in the shadows of shadows, ready to slip out screaming any moment. When he emerges, he oozes. You never see him coming, not even if you do. But he’s there. He haunts worse in his absence, like a slasher villain disappearing late in act two. Once he arrives you still can’t see him. Nobody knows what he looks like. But you feel him. He’s so present. So frustrating. So real.
CAUSES
According to Wikipedia the causes of Writers Block are:
1. creative problems originating within a work itself
2. running out ofinspiration
3. distracted by other events
4. adverse circumstances in a writer’s life or career
5. a sense of failure
6. compelled to work in ways against their natural inclination (a deadline or unsuitable genre)
SOLUTIONS
Let’s do some objection handling here.
- Creative problems originating in a work
AKA the normal process of working on an idea? Did Edison have “inventor’s block” when it took him 10,000 efforts to make a commercially viable light bulb? Did Spielberg have “student block” after being rejected from USC film school for the third time? Did Mandela have “prison block” when he came out to lead South Africa after 27 years on Robben Island?
2. Out of inspiration
Well then “go out after it with a club” as Jack London said. Or get it when sitting down at 9 AM every day, like Faulkner. Inspiration means breathe. So breathe. Not getting things right is a normal part of the creative process. Again.
3. Distraction
This is an issue just for writers and artists? If it’s not important, stop being distracted by it. Turn off notifications and cut the fibre. If it IS important, take care of it. Worry without action achieves nothing. The other way around is more accurate.
4. Adverse circumstances
Sure, that’s a disruption. Going bankrupt? Losing your life’s work in a hurricane? Death of close family? In times like this, creative thinking might be needed for application elsewhere than paper or canvas. That’s perfectly logical. Listen to yourself!
5. A sense of failure
Oh come on. Here’s Einstein’s tiny violin playing for you. You want to blame that block on God?
6. Against inclination
Being compelled to write (or deliver whatever) against type is not a block. It may just be imprudent. Hemingway didn’t try science fiction. Steve Jobs didn’t write symphonies. And deadlines do crush creative thinking — it’s science.
THE POINT
I taught a workshop on “Overcoming Writers Block” for the Writers Guild of South Africa (WGSA) earlier this year. About halfway through everyone started to get the message. Do you get it yet?
Mr Block is a legend means he doesn’t exist. He’s a hoax, fallacy, fantasy, tall tale. Yeti, Nessie, Bigfoot, Writers Block.
A Creative Block is not an accident. We’re not victims. Blocks are looped states of mind we subconsciously choose to adopt. Fear drives them and fuels their perpetual motion. It doesn’t only happen to writers, or artists, and it has nothing to do with some mystical fog that just drifts over people. Writers Block is the granddaddy of all creativity lies. The lie that all other myths build up to and end in.
Not original enough? Writer’s Block!
never mind that originality doesn’t exist…
Can’t get the job done by deadline time? Writer’s Block!
never mind that deadline rushes discourage creativity…
Not enough material to work with? Writer’s Block!
never mind that scarcity is better than abundance for creative thinking…
Jeff Goins wrote it straight in his block not long back: “Writer’s Block is an excuse… A condition that exists only in your head.”
Here’s a bit of science on this point. Roseanne Bane points out that “Under stress, a human brain will “shift control from the cerebral cortex to the limbic system.”Meaning, from overall management to “fight or flight.”By limiting input from the cortex, we hinder our own ability to think creatively, or at all really. Moreover: “The person is often unaware of the change, which may lead them to believe they are creatively “blocked”.
TO SUM UP
Writers Block is a psycho-spiritual condition we bring on ourselves by:
- Becoming stressed
- Becoming distracted
- Being lazy
- Feeling flat
- Giving up
In other words the solution to Writers Block is simple. Here’s the step-by-step guide:
- Stress: Stop it
- Distraction: Stop it
- Laziness: Stop it
- Flatness: Stop it
- Giving up: Stop it
Yes, just stop it. Like the famous Bob Newhart video.Is that clear enough?
Goins adds one cause to the fear equation: fatigue. An exhausted mind will also struggle to be creative. So give it rest.
Creativity is flexibility and Creative Blocks make us inflexible. Two steps: Stop being blocked, and Start taking action.
DO YOU HAVE EXPERIENCES WITH WRITER’S BLOCK?
SHARE THEM IN COMMENTS!
Interested in being more Innovative? Or helping others be more Innovative? Get my free ebook INNOVATION FAST HACKS here.
WRITTEN BY
Michael Lee
I’m a Creativity and Innovation expert, trainer, speaker, writer, thinker — and also a working filmmaker living in South Africa — www.createyourcreativity.tv
More From Medium
More from Michael Lee
How to Escape a Lion: Why Children are More Creative than Adults
Sep 24 · 5 min read
71
Top on Medium
What Really Happens When You Become an Overnight Millionaire?
Sep 30 · 13 min read
15.8K
Top on Medium
Stop Choosing to Be Less Than You Are
Sep 23 · 6 min read
21K
Discover Medium
Welcome to a place where words matter. On Medium, smart voices and original ideas take center stage - with no ads in sight. Watch
Make Medium yours
Follow all the topics you care about, and we’ll deliver the best stories for you to your homepage and inbox.Explore
Explore your membership
Thank you for being a member of Medium. You get unlimited access to insightful stories from amazing thinkers and storytellers. Browse
Take Back Your Life: A Game-Changer for Business Owners | Acquisitions to Fix, Grow, Scale, or Exit | Helping You Do More, Work Less, Live with Purpose.
5 年Indeed. In the same way burn out is in other jobs. It is possibly a result in lack of purposeful life flow. Ie making the important things in your life the important things so one is recharged physically, emotionally and mentally. #domoreworkless