Jadzia Brown

Ah, writer’s block.

The bane of a creative’s existence. Why do we get it? There’s a multitude of possible reasons. From burnout and fear of failure, to stress and external distractions. Being stuck with writer’s block can be frustrating, especially if you’ve got work that needs to be done. On the positive side, you’re not alone! It’s guaranteed that every single writer has gone through this at some point and come out on the other side.

There’s no guaranteed cure for writer’s block. In some cases, it just takes time. But making these small changes help clear some of that creative congestion and get you back on track!

Clear The Clutter

It’s a well known fact that having a cluttered workspace can make it harder to focus and process information, leading to stress and decreased productivity. Your workspace is a reflection of your headspace, so having a desk covered in junk isn’t exactly ideal for having a creative breakthrough.

Whilst cleaning a room can be therapeutic for some, I understand that it can seem a little overwhelming for others. It’s okay to start small. Even just clearing your desk or taking those empty cups to the kitchen can make a world of difference.

A Change Of Scenery

Do you find yourself working in the same spot every single day? If so, you might be in need a change of scenery. If you’re like me, working from home starts to feel a little too cosy sometimes, creating ample opportunity for distractions. When the workspace starts to feel uninspiring, it’s time to get up and get out!

Try heading to a local coffee shop or co-working space. You can get yourself a nice hot drink (Or something chilled if that’s your vibe), settle in and see where things go. Most cafes are totally used to having people working there, so there are usually plenty of desks and plug sockets for your electronics.

Don’t feel like sitting down? That’s fine! You can just grab a notebook (I like to use the notes app on my phone sometimes) and go for a walk. Fresh air really does wonders for your headspace, and the local environment could be great inspiration for your writing.

Try Something New

If you’ve been working on that same project or piece of writing for a while, it might be time to take a break and try something new. Think about it, if you forced yourself to eat the same meal for breakfast, lunch and dinner every single day, you’d get sick of it pretty quickly. It’s the same with writing.

Try to shift gears by working on something else for a while, like a short story or a poem. You could even search for some writing prompts and work from those. It doesn’t even have to be that serious, you could just freewrite and throw some words on a page without thinking about them. You’d be surprised with what you could come up with!

One Step At A Time

If you find yourself getting distracted easily or avoiding the task, it might be because your goals are starting to feel a bit overwhelming. Breaking your task down into small, achievable goals like blocks of 100 words or 10 minute sessions can make you feel a lot more motivated. Not only does it make the tasks seem more doable, but those small wins can help build motivation and momentum.

Personally, if I have several tasks I need to do, I like to switch between them and do little chunks of each. I find that working on something else for a little bit helps reduce unproductive distractions and keeps me in that working headspace.

Build Habits

Humans are creatures of habit. Building good habits, is the key to consistency. If you haven’t sat down to write anything in a while, then of course you’re going to feel fidgety when starting a big project. You’re not used to it! You know you can write, but just like getting back into an old skill, it takes a bit of time to warm up and trigger that muscle memory.

If you can, try to write at the same time everyday. Whether it’s straight after breakfast or in the quiet times of the evening. At first, you’ll probably find yourself getting super distracted or only being able to write a little at a time. That’s okay. Slowly but surely, you’ll start to notice your attention span improving and your writing getting longer.

To quote one of my favourite shows, Bojack Horseman:

“It gets easier. Everyday it gets a little easier. But you gotta do it everyday, that’s the hard part. But it does get easier.”

It Doesn’t Have To Be Perfect – Just Written

With the rise of social media, everyone wants to seem perfect. They want their audience to see the best version of themselves. It’s natural to want your writing to be perfect. But we are also our own harshest critics. It’s our own self-doubt and criticisms that hold us back from writing. It’s the fear that what we write isn’t good enough. Bad writing is inevitable. It’s part of the process. I guarantee that all famous authors have had a piece of work that they consider bad or messy. But that doesn’t make them bad writers.

It’s the whole reason why we have first drafts! That’s the brilliant thing about writing, you can change it and fix it and change it again. You can do this over and over as many times as you want. So get the mess out! Write what you want to write without judgement! Just keep reminding yourself that it doesn’t have to be perfect, it just has to be written.