So, how do you...

Lol, I think we have a whole thread on writer's block somewhere.

I get around it by not getting in to my head that I only write when I sit at a computer. Most of the best ideas I have come when messing around with life, so I try and look at it all together, as part of the writing process. At least that way I avoid the guilt of not writing.

Mostly.

First off, I hope your wife's grandmother will be all right.

I've gone through real life crises before, and sometimes I'm able to escape into writing and sometimes I can't. If you're devoting all your energy to the crisis, it can be difficult to relax enough to create anything.

Suggestion: don't pressure yourself to produce. Ever hear of "morning pages"? Sit down with paper and pen and just write whatever comes to mind. Journal a bit, let yourself vent, and promise yourself not to show anyone what you're doodling. Sometimes you have to get all the distractions out of your system before you feel safe enough to be creative.

When you decide to write something proper, pick something light and again, low pressure. Sneak up on it. Play. Remember that first draft doesn't have to be perfect. Just get some words on the page, then some more, and so on. Eventually you'll get back in the groove.

Good luck!

Moving this to Outwitting Writer's Block forum... take a peek at some of the threads there, you might find ideas or solutions that help you get through this, or at the very least let you know you're not alone.

-Derek

I've posted this so many times I'm sure many who frequent here are getting tired of seeing me. But this is something I've found works 100% of the time with me.

No matter how well intentioned in explaining the motivation behind writer's block, it still doesn't really me get past it. Telling me to 'do something else' or 'just write' doesn't work and ends with me in frustrated tears.

I do believe writer's block is really more fear and being unsure where to go next in a scene. At least it is for me.

Here is a little trick I have found that gets me past that 'stuck here and what do I do now' point. Incidentally, when people first hear of this, they poo-poo it. "Can't possibly work. I'm BLOCKED I TELL YOU!"

Then, one night, in desperation, they try it. 100% have come back to tell me it worked.

1) Take the last couple of pages you wrote, print them out.
2) Now, take a leap of faith and delete them. (you still have them printed out so you haven't really lost it! You've also backed up in several different places, right?)
3) Start where you have printed off, and retype it back into your document word by word. Don't cheat and just paste it back in! You have to retype it exactly as it was written before and printed out. Don't edit as you go. Just retype word for word exactly. The trick is to concentrate on the retyping, not editing.
4) Once you're at the end of the current words, you may find that you want to keep writing and the words will continue to flow.

When I do this little trick? It has worked. If in that small percentage of chances it doesn't, I know there's something else that's keeping me from writing but so far...yep, has worked like a charm

If you find it doesn't, well, what have you really lost? Just the time to do it and the ink and paper you printed on.

To save on supplies, I don't print it out. I split my wordprocessing screen with my novel-in-progress on one side and a blank doc on the other. I cut and paste the two 'cut' pages into the blank doc, delete them from my novel (making sure I have saved it elsewhere in the event of computer/electrical failure). Then in my novel-in-progress document, I retype, since it's right there on the other half of my screen.

The theory is still the same. By the time I've finished retyping, my brain is freed from that glitch that held it fast and I just keep typing.

I find that writing helps me get through tough times, too. But when I'm really down, I find that I can't write, either. So what I do is write a zero draft. I just sit and write whatever comes to mind for, say, ten minutes. Then, I try to draw inspiration from that ten minutes of writing. If nothing works, I make myself a cup of Earl Grey tea with honey and milk, sit my behind in front of a computer, and search for pictures or for other people dealing with writer's block. I try to write to my pen pals. Find a new pen pal. Do some sort of physical hand-writing in a notebook instead of typing at a computer. That helps a lot. Maybe it'll help you, too.

Maybe write about your experience at the hospital just to get it out of the way? Sometimes putting down the clutter first will ease up the worry and tension. I did that with my grandmother and the poem ended up getting published in Red River Review, so you never know what might come of it.

Or you can go back and work on some of your old stuff as an exercise.

Here are a few things that work for me:
-Try different mediums and venues. If you normally write at home on a laptop, take a notebook to a cafe.
-Write crap first thing in the morning; if necessary, just transcribe the garbage floating around in your subconscious.
-Start typing a novel you love. Earlier this year I was stuck so I started typing the Great Gatsby. I was unstuck a couple days later.


I hope your wife's grandmother will be okay.

Write about the next thing you see and just develop it. Just to get your fingers/mind working.

Or grab an unfinished story and go from there until you're loosened up.

The "just write" tactic never seems to work for me. I have a couple of private tricks that seem to work, though:
1. I smoke a cigar. Not for everyone, and highly unrecommended!
2. I read non-fiction books about subject I like to write about, with a spec-fic filter in my mind. If nothing else it jogs my mind and stimulates the creative juices.
3. I read other fiction books in my genre of choice.

Even if you're not writing that doesn't mean you can't be "working" on your craft. Often times I notice the block works itself out, disappears on its own.

Like Izatright said, you can still work on your craft without writing. Sorry to hear of your situation, I've had a few moments this past year trying to deal with some heavy issues in life and I lost all drive and inspiration to write. I tried the whole "just write," "skip a scene or three," the slew of suggestions for overcoming writer's block. But writer's block has a variety of causes, and emotional stress is one of the hardest ones I've had to deal with.

I'll be honest: I didn't get any writing done at all during those times. I just couldn't. No motivation, too much on my mind, and how could I focus or escape from reality? I even started questioning my desire to make this love for writing something of a career! Well, I discovered that I was just creating even more stress for myself by thinking so negatively about it, and I let it go. For about a month, I didn't think about my writing at all (though I did keep up my personal journal). And life's problems eventually got a little better, and my mind started to take short walks with the muse again. I got back in the writing groove again, and all is well.

All I can say, unless you have a deadline or some financial obligation to write, take care of yourself first. Try getting your feelings out with some poetry, if you like that type of thing. We all have our own way of dealing with things, but stress can't just mentally be pushed aside and forgotten. The ideas will come to you and it'll be better than ever. Just live life. Us creative types can't help but daydream Hope things get better for you and you get a spark of an idea soon!

When I have a writer's block, I take a break from writing and try to read other novels that are around my genre. I also try changing the characters' personalities in my mind and see if that will help to get my story going.

Sometimes you just need to eat a bowl of cereal and read a good book.

My suggestion is to sit down anyway at your writing station at the same time each day. Beyond that, I think that the stressful situation broke your connection to your characters, and when you reconnect with your characters, the block will disappear. Talk to the characters.

I tend to go back and Edit. Going back through what I've written so far helps me a lot. First, it forces me to write, even though I had writers block when attempting to go forward. I write/rewrite the problems I never realized before, which starts things off. When I see something wrong, I just have to fix it, and suddenly I'm writing. I also tend to be inspired, which sounds a bit silly, but it honestly works. I remember exactly where I want to go from reading what was already written.
I don't get writers block that much anymore since I stopped forcing writing. I know this isn't always a plausible solution for a lot of people who have limited time to write or have deadlines, but since I didn't make myself write, I find that I write the same amount, because I enjoy it and don't feel pressure, but my writing is also better.
If nothing else works, just force yourself to write. If you don't want to do this with your novel, start something new. It doesn't have to mean anything, it can be nonsense. No pressure involved. Hopefully it will help get the creative juices flowing.
Good luck with your writing and I hope everything works out for your wife's grandma.

At long last...

I am new to this site and in scrolling through the various places to read and categories of posts, this one having to do with writer's block, something near and not dear to my heart, caught my attention right away.

Bryan, I have the opposite problem that you have: I tend to only be able to write when I am in the middle of an emotional crisis. Then the ideas crystalize eloquently. But when life is going along swimmingly......

Anyway, it all amounts to the same thing. I particularly like a site that SethMBaker in a thread on your post recommended: http://www.happenchance.net/16-ways-to-increase-creativity-and-generate-ideas/

This is actually one of the posts on that site, but it helped me. Thanks, Seth, and good luck, Bryan.

Dario said:

My suggestion is to sit down anyway at your writing station at the same time each day. Beyond that, I think that the stressful situation broke your connection to your characters, and when you reconnect with your characters, the block will disappear. Talk to the characters.

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Discipline is key. Try to sit down at the PC or desk at least once a day (if you can't do it at the same time) and make time for writing the same way you make time for a daily shower (if you do so) or a daily jog, or something else you do routinely, come hell or high water.

And keep a little (written) journal in which you keep track: 15 min. on Monday; 30 min. on Tuesday. People who write stuff down tend to get stuff done. (Not an absolute rule, but it works for many.)

I am in the middle of editing a novel and getting a little tired of it, though I think it's rather good. I keep a small paper journal (a calendar thing I got from a doctor's appt.) and keep track in there of how much I write each day. I usually am very disciplined and don't need this small crutch, but with this edit, I do. I write 1+ for working on it an hour or more, and my goal each day is 4+. (One day I was .25+ but at least I worked on it for fifteen minutes.)

Try to get into the mindset that writing is something I must do - like brushing my teeth - and after a while it becomes a habit and hopefully, it then becomes a pleasurable habit.