Writer's Block

Is there really such a thing as writer’s block?

You bet.

But there’s also such a thing as moving beyond it.

Just this morning I was thinking about what I should write for this post and it suddenly came to me that writer’s block is something that all writer’s face. It isn’t easy to come up with new ideas day after day; especially when that day is filled with other concerns.

Working beyond writer’s block is as easy as setting words to paper. It doesn’t even matter if the words make sense or if they are somehow connected with the sentence before it. What matters is that the words come out.

Some of my best stuff has come out of just playing with words and allowing them to play with me. I look out the window; see the fall leaves on the ground mixed with white earth, snow-filled drifts of joy. I will need to rake them when the snow completely melts so as not to have to clean up icky mulch in corners that I’d rather avoid if I forget.

I see a bird as it flies past my window; see the trees blowing ever so slightly in the November wind. Another bird flies overhead; black and gliding. I live on the top floor of a two story house and can see the tops of roofs, tiles of yellow, orange and gray. I see the fence that needs mending, new slats have already been offered and the differing colors distinguish new from old. Leaves continue to flutter, and as I write this post I realize that life has more to offer me than writer’s block.

Much more.

Today, take a look outside your world and see what life has to offer you.

When Life Throws you Lemons...

...throw them back!

I woke up this morning intent on doing some reading to better improve my life; instead I got a babysitting opportunity. I'd planned on sitting back and relaxing today, doing what I wanted to do instead of what was usually expected of me.

And a lemon hit me right in the face.

Instead of throwing it back, getting rid of it, and just accepting what was, I held on to it and sucked all of its royal juices out. Boy was I mad! Didn't I deserve a little time to myself? Didn't I deserve a little respite from the work of life?

Some hours later I've decided to throw the lemon back and get to work. Sure, I can still read with some interruptions, and I can still write, but I need to make room for last minute changes. You know the kind.

You were going out to lunch with friends but your car broke down. You were intent on finishing your novel--today--but your youngest got sick. You were more than ready for that new assignment given to you by the PTA but, instead, you are working on getting the plumbing restored.

My advice? Make sure that you're one of those folks that doesn't hold onto lemons. If you have to make lemonade out of it, go for it. If you'd just rather throw them all back, feel free to do so.

Take it from me. There's something to be said for starting again--fresh.

Start Small

There's nothing worse than getting overwhelmed about writing--okay, maybe your car breaking down is worse or the plumbing backing up, but hopefully you get my drift.

  

What you want to do is to start small. I'm talking short stories here instead of novels, short articles over a nonfiction book, even a blog over an entirely mastered website.

  

Starting small does many things. It helps you to keep things in perspective. You want to write but you also have a job and and career at home that keeps you hopping. It helps you to finish a project on a daily or weekly basis, and it allows for growth.

  

Because you can't expect to be a best seller right away, you should also use this time to perfect your craft. Say you're pretty good at dialogue but your setting stinks. Maybe your great at details but your writing is all over the place and needs to be honed in and organized. Whatever you're good at, start small and focus on the writing you do well. The following day, focus on an area of writing that you need help with.

  

Fifteen minute writes allow you to record just what you want. Even if the stuff you begin with is crazy, you will find that as you continue to write more great stuff will pop up. And this great stuff can be used in the short pieces you will later write.

  

Starting small is like taking one bite out of a piece of chocolate cake. You know the entire piece, the entire cake, is sitting there waiting to be eaten, but you don't want to get sick, so you take one bite at a time.