• Read this: http://absolutewrite.com/forums/showthread.php?288931-Guidelines-for-Participation-in-Outwitting-Writer-s-Block

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How I conquer writer's block?

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gjdevlin

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I just don't believe in writer's block.

I just do what the wind does - whistle and go around obstacles.

Hate staring at a blinking cursor?

Pick up a pen and a notepad and write some of your novel in longhand while sitting on the couch. Sometimes, I'll have a baseball game or a hockey game on and I'll just write while watching. I often end p with 500 words which is my "first draft" then I sit at my PC and transcribe the notes but not verbatim because it usually ends up being better.

I go for long walks and mull over the plot points. When I'm still not in the mood, I'll often jot down long hand what I've conjured up on my walk.

Always plan what you want to write before sitting down in front of a cursor. That way you will not be stuck or have your notepad ready.

Always write forward - never go back to edit until the book is finished. It's one of my #1 disciplines I put on myself. I hate two steps forward, one step back days when I'm not making progress.
 

Jan74

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That's great advice, something I need to NOT do....going back over and editing! I'm my own worst enemy I swear!

I do believe in writers block, my wip #1 is stalled I have to leave it alone and go back once I sort myself out. My problem is figuring out "how" to tell my story and researching etc. I realized that what the genre wants or demands isn't necessarily how I write. I stumbled upon a highly successful author and when I read her books it was like finding the light at the end of the tunnel. So I scooped up six of her books from the library and relaxed and read.

My wip is still stalled but the other night a story came into my head so I began writing wip #2. What I need to do is stay focused and follow your wise words to not EDIT!
 

mccardey

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Just a heads-up to say there's a sticky about that.

tl:dr
  • This isn't the place to discuss the existence of writer's block. The basic operating assumption is that it does exist for many writers.
  • This is a place to discuss methods of coping, outwitting, or circumventing writer's block.

I know because I fell foul of it once, myself ;)
 
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andiwrite

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Always plan what you want to write before sitting down in front of a cursor. That way you will not be stuck or have your notepad ready.

Always write forward - never go back to edit until the book is finished. It's one of my #1 disciplines I put on myself. I hate two steps forward, one step back days when I'm not making progress.

I do these two things as well. :)
 

MaeZe

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Not wanting to start a new thread, I'll take this one. :tongue

All I need is something else I want to procrastinate doing. My poor dogs need a bath. Laundry's piled up but I'm not out of clothes yet. It's nice out and might rain tomorrow. So I sat in the backyard and edited edited edited. :D
 

Melody

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I do something else for a while also. Sometimes, all it takes is a break. Then I don't go back to the computer. I write by hand first. That usually helps to 'unblock' my mind.
 

ecerberus

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I do a couple of things.

Change my writing tools - I switch to my computer, or then to my iPad, then to my iPhone - spending some amount of time on each. The break provides the necessary distraction, the change in form helps me inch along.

Otherwise I sit in front of the doc, but I don't actually write. I picture my next scene in my head, mull over the dialogs, and when I finally feel like it I type away.

Other times I write a chapter out of sync - i.e. I write something I know I need to, and find more interesting than where I am right now.


And sometimes I just stop. Don't think about it, don't worry about it, nothing. Give a break and return.
 

havocblaid

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My easiest go around is my kids. When I'm stuck I give them a scenario and see what they think should happen next. A lot of it is craziness but it pulls my mind back to the world of fantasy. And every once in a while one of their off the wall crazy ideas will fit.
 
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