Take Meds or a Nice Hot Shower for Writers Block?

Because staring at a blank screen for days might be terminal

You take a sip of hot coffee.

Your fingers hover over the keyboard you dusted yesterday.

The house is quiet, the dog’s been out, and you’re oh so ready to crank out 2,000 words.

You stare at your blank screen, and the blank screen stares back; it’s taunting you. Not this again! You rub your forehead, chew on a pencil, read emails, scroll through Facebook, and then eat a cookie.

But nothing inspires a word, let alone 2,000.

Does that make you a washed-up, lazy procrastinator, or does it mean you’ve got a serious case of writer’s block?

We writers discuss this “state of mind” as if we have a terminal disease, but I’m not convinced it should be labelled.

I tossed the words in Google to see how many of us are trying to find a solution. About 276,000,000 results (0.68 seconds). Not as high as weight loss or Trump, but it’s a lot.

Wikipedia defines it as a condition, not a disease. I suppose that’s good news.

But what is it, really?

Procrastination, laziness or do you suck at being productive?

Perhaps it’s cabin fever from being locked down for two years. Too much stress in your life or hey, maybe you’re just losing your touch, did you think of that?

Nah, it’s none of that.

Look, we’re creatives. We use the right side of our brains to make something from nothing.

That’s a big deal.

Then we have to use the left side of our brains to edit, re-edit, research our sources, come up with compelling titles and subtitles, choose incredible images, use formatting tools and follow through on marketing to find eyeballs.

We become adept at switching off our creative brains to engage our business brains at a moment’s notice.

Our minds spin in a million directions, and new ideas tumble in the air like popcorn in an air popper. Some of those delicious kernels will hit the floor and get tossed out, but that’s no biggie.

We jump down one rabbit hole after another, trying to learn and keep up with new software tools. We chat with fellow writers and develop our websites. We take writing courses. Learn about new platforms, manage social media sites, and dig into freelance writing options.

Could it be that it’s hard, lonely work, and you need a break?

No, that’s too simple.

Or is it?

Writer's block is just a couple of words that mean you need to cool your jets and do something else. Maybe for a day, a week, even a month if necessary.

Do anything, except try to write.

Vacuum — have sex — smoke a joint.

Not necessarily in that order.

Watch a show — do a puzzle — play ball with the dog.

Chat with a friend — take a course — go shopping.

Dance — workout — call your Mom.

Do the dishes — take a shower or bake a cake.

Chat up your neighbour and, yes, the usual; go for a walk.

But don’t sit in front of your computer staring at a blank screen while you hold your head chanting the words “I don’t know what to write!”

First, it’s not very attractive.

Second, you’re wasting your precious time.

You can’t force creativity; it never works.

You’ll push your fabulous ideas further away and psych yourself out.

A Break is the Cure

The creative side of your brain becomes more active when you chill. That’s why we do some of our best thinking in the shower when we’re warm, relaxed and doing a mundane task on autopilot.

While you’re doing something the uses the left side of your brain, your creative side has a chance to dance and play.

Ideas will pop out of nowhere once you stop worrying about having writer's block. When they do, run to a notepad or your phone and jot it down immediately. Or you can pull a Tim Denning and write notes with a special marker on the shower wall.

No… I wasn’t there, he told us. 😉

But don’t sit with your fingers poised over the keyboard waiting for brilliance to strike. Instead, let the ideas flow naturally for a while. If you run back to your computer too soon, you’ll end up stuck again.

You’ll know when you’re ready.

Sometimes I throw a tantrum and announce that writing is stupid and I’m quitting! Three days later, I’m running back to my desk with a cup of coffee and a girl chubby, ready to go again.

My ideas come to me in the form of shitty headlines.

It’s kinda weird.

I have no idea how the article will turn out, but I go with it when I feel the urge. When I’m done, I usually rewrite or tweak the headline to sync it better with the story that poured out.

I stop immediately when a headline comes to me (sometimes while I’m writing another article). I go straight to Medium, start a new draft and drop in the title, sometimes a subtitle, or even some notes.

The key is leaving it alone.

If I’m chatting with a friend or family, I’m listening with purpose. If an idea strikes, I slide it in my drafts. If I’m watching a podcast or taking a course, I’ll hit pause and jot ideas down while in the moment.

They aren’t perfect; they get rewritten and sometimes never make it out of the draft folder. But when I need to pump out an article, I’ve got 40 or 50 titles hanging out in my “story” folder waiting for me.

I scan my list, and when something jumps out at me, I tackle it.

Everything flows, and voila!

I’m writing again.

The Takeaway

Writer's block is not a disease, even if your symptoms feel fatal.

Don’t spend any time dwelling on those two words; the universe is listening, and you’ll get more of the same.

A writer stuck for ideas is normal — it doesn’t need to be labelled or put on your to-do list as a new problem to solve.

Take a deep breath and get the vacuuming done.

Shake it off, and do something else without beating yourself up.

OK, maybe writer's block is a thing, but don’t believe the lies you tell yourself. Take a break and relax; you’re not a machine; you’re not lazy or a procrastinator.

Whew!

To make a living from writing, you have to use both halves of your brain equally. It’s a tough job, period.

No overthinking or medication required!

Thanks for reading! Here’s another one you’ll enjoy…

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