I Tried Every Writing Tip in the Book & Lucked Out
Confessions of a Burnt-Out Blogger
I stared at a blinking cursor, trying to squeeze words out of a brain that had run out of ideas. Writing, my once beloved creative outlet, felt like a chore I had to do no matter what. I was not just having a “bad writing day,” it was the end of a bad writing week and I was in a full-blown writer’s burnout.
I had been sitting at my computer for almost two hours and had written just one hundred and two words. Have I overdone it? Did I write too much? Do I just have ideas left? Is this the end of my writing career?
The Battle Within Self-Reflection
I was writing! That’s it, that’s all I write. Even if it’s absolute crap, I will keep writing. I have written so many blogs since December and I am still writing more. I have more ideas, new things I want to talk about, something special that has caught my eye, and I write.
Sometimes I find it hard. Right now I am struggling to write posts. I am busy with my life, it’s Chinese New Year and we have a long holiday, my kids are back from school, and my wife is not at work.
Everyone wants my attention all the time. I sit down to write and I hear
“PAUL!” I swear I want to change my damn name.
“DADDY!”
“Do you want to eat …”
“Come on, give me a hand with this for five minutes”
All these little distractions stop my brain from going again. I have to sit down and focus on what I just wrote about before the disturbance. And while I am doing that, of course, something else comes up.
Ah, domestic bliss …
Seeking Solutions: The Struggle Continues
But I am writing! I have set myself the goal of writing three posts a week while everyone is here to drive me crazy. But I am not reaching that number because I am stuck in limbo!
What can I do? Why am I doing this? Why the hell am I writing? I am a terrible writer! No, that’s not true, I am a terrible writer because I have no ideas at the moment!
Correction! I have a lot of ideas, but they are all garbage, so I can not write because the ideas are trash.
Defying Conventional Wisdom
All advice to get out of this situation is useless at the moment!
Advice like:
Say no! Do not overload yourself with commitments.
Sure thing! Try saying no to your wife and kids on holiday! Yeah, that is going to go well.
Embrace imperfection.
Laughs so loud my cat jumps off the desk and runs for cover. If it was just imperfect, I could deal with it. BUT IT SUCKS! It’s not imperfect, it’s so bad I had to delete it because just looking at it made me feel sick.
Step away from the screen.
I know it’s a cliché, but it helps!
No, it doesn’t! Doing anything else makes me feel worse, and when I sit down to write again, I feel even more stressed because I haven’t done anything, which adds to the pressure to perform.
Be patient, writing is a marathon, not a sprint.
Now listen up, you little … OK, Paul, don’t swear! I’m not a five-book thriller writer.
I’m a blogger and I write articles. If I don’t write, I don’t get paid!
Change of environment.
Work in a different place, like a coffee shop. Oh please! Shut the hell up! Excuse me, but really? Do you want me to take my laptop to a freaking Starbucks? Who does that except a writer in a badly written comedy?
Seek professional help if you’re feeling stressed.
Do you know how many hours I’d have to write to pay for a therapist? Who the hell came up with this brilliant idea?
Write down your thoughts on the subject.
Write down your feelings, thoughts, and experiences in a journal to release pent-up emotions and gain clarity on your writing goals. This does help you to see the problem, write, and start a new thought process.
OH! I just did that! I’ll be damned…
Who knew?
That some of that generic, general, and often cliche advice would work?
I didn’t! Did you?
Yes, I did have a little fun with this post. But the ideas to help you out of a rut are pretty good ideas. Nine out of ten times it isn’t burnout, it’s just a bit of writer’s block.
And we can deal with that, can’t we?
Thanks for reading. Clap, follow, and comment if you want.
Paul