OH $*@#!!! How do you get rid of writer's block?

Question

uh...as the question asks. It's terrible... I hate this. Usually i can get rid of it, by reading books about writing or something...but it isn't working this time. UH i feel as if my book is awful and stupid all of the sudden. I know most authors feel like this at times...HELP ME

Answer 1

Hi, Lee.

Here's what I do. Hope this helps.

My theory is that writer's block means you're not ready to write. So the key is to really be prepared to write by the time you sit down at the keyboard, knowing in general terms what you want to say rather than be making it up on the spot.

Outlining is really important. More to the point, having a really strong feeling for where your story is going. Typically, I don't write the story proper until I have a really good ending, because that dictates how your plot and character develop.

At the same time, how do you fill up all the space between your end and beginning. Another aspect of writer's block is getting hung up on the minutiae of your characters, dialog, etc. My outlines are typically 50-75 pages

To fight that, I keep a notebook with me. Not one to record deep thoughts, but rather snippets of dialog. Clothing that characters wear. Funny turns of phrase. Then I transcribe my notes. Eventually I try to work those notes into the framework of my novel.

Only after I have a really good feeling for my narrative and the characters that populate it do I actually sit down to write the cotton-picking thing.

I know it sounds laborious, but it really allows you to sit down and enjoy the process of writing, rather than writing yourself into a corner about halfway through the book.

So my outlines take 3 months. My first draft takes another 4 months. Then the following 3-4 drafts take another year.

Answer 2

Write something else. I feel a little like you-- I've been working on something for a while and am so close to the end on my second rewrite and it's very skghsoigh, for lack of a better term. So I watched some television and saw a historical romance movie I had never seen before and realized that I had another idea in my head that dealt with romance, a topic hardly touched upon in the thing I'm rewriting.
So keep all of your things but put it aside for a while. Maybe you can write, just not that right now. Try to do something completely opposite of what you're currently working on and see what happens. Good luck! We all need it once in a while ( :

Answer 3

i know this will sound weird but usually what i do is grab a dictionary and randomly choose 10-15 words that i've never heard of. then i try and write a poem or anything creative using those words in some kind of way. I also watch a movie. I mean a movie I either haven't seen in a while or one that will "stir" up some emotions. I can only write when I "feel" it. I could be watching a comedy movie and all of a sudden this idea will hit me and I have to go jot it down. sometimes you just have to find something that will force you to be creative or something that will wake up your emotions and put you in the mood to write. good luck!!!

Answer 4

patience is the key to the "city". i know how you feel because i going through the same thing myself. if you are over the age of 21: drink some liquid courage and either ideas will be popping at you or they will come to you soon rather than later down the road ahead. music: i do my best work when i listening to music while i write. i know since my 1st book is about to be publish while i'm working on the 2nd part of my book. lastly: time. the writer's block maybe a blessing in disguise as because of my writer's block, i gain more material to make my book a force to be reckin' w/. so i hope my advice helped you a little and i wish you the best

Answer 5

Two things you can try. The first is butt-in-chair. You set a timer for an hour and you sit there and sweat it out. If you write nothing in the first hour, you reset the timer.

The other one is actually easier. Ask your characters what the problem is. Seriously. Interview your characters. At least one will know what the problem is.

Oh, be careful with that one. I was ten chapters into a book once and I asked my main character what the problem was. He was bored. So was I. By mutual consent I shelved the book. I can't even remember what it was about now.

Answer 6

When I get writers block I look inside and look at what has happened in my life to cause something like this. Or possibly you've been writing too much, perhaps you need a break? Take your time and don't stress out about things like writing, you write best when it comes from your heart. Or maybe you can sit down and write, write what ever comes up in mind. Wether it's stupid, silly, sad, a bunch of random things, whatever. Maybe getting out all of those emotions will help you find something that you can write about.

Good luck!! And don't stress too much, everything will work out!!

Answer 7

in the barnes and noble store at the bella terra they sell these magnetic tags that have words on them. it says that it could get rid of writer's block. i don't know if it can, never tried them before. alternative option: forget about your writer's block, stop writing for a short period of time and listen to music, go out, and read books that are NOT about writing. try something else. i'm not so sure if my suggestions helped but that's what i think. good luck!

Answer 8

If I get stuck, I listen to music that has the same feeling as whatever I'm writing..if that doesn't work, I read the Gore Vidal quote I keep taped by my computer, he said..

"When I hear about writer's block, this one and that one! F*#k Off! Stop writing, for Christ's sake: You're not meant to be doing this, plenty more where you came from."

That usually scares me or pisses me off enough to come up with something, and I go from there.

Answer 9

The easiest way to get rid of writer's block is to start writing and complaining about how hard it is and how terrible it is etc. The more you moan and groan, the more you write, the more you unblock yourself. It works every time. Just be sure to vent and complain, give it all you've got and you'll be amazed!

The act of writing down your feelings unblocks you!

Answer 10

Just start writing. Don't think, just write. Let it flow naturally, even if what comes out is nonsense. It will have you "unblocked" in no time.