Sometimes, I just don’t feel like writing. It’s not “fear of the blank screen” as much as just a general feeling of disinterest: No desire, no ideas, no creativity.
So what do I do?
I write anyway.
I feel about writing the way some people feel about exercise – I do it even when I don’t want to until, eventually, I start enjoying it. Because I really do love writing. I just forget sometimes. So I need to start writing again to remind myself that I love it.
There are plenty of times when I write because I need to, not because I feel like it. If I have a deadline looming, for instance, then I write. I set a goal (3000-4000 words), and I don’t let myself stop writing until I get there (no editing, proofing, going back to change words or add to scenes….that comes later). No excuses. I have a job and I have people depending on me to complete that job on time.
I am not immune to writer’s block. But I refuse to let it control me. Even if what I write is terrible and I end up deleting it all and rewriting (that has happened more than once!), at least I’ve put fingers to the keyboard. I have done something. I have pushed past the blah, ignored the “you can’t do this” thoughts and pressed on.
What about you? How do YOU deal with writer’s block?
I find that pulling out one of a handful of my favorite books in either the fiction or non-fiction genre (depending on what I’m writing) will jumpstart my mind a bit and get me going on my project. If it were more my job at this point in time, that would be additional motivation. Since I’m breaking into the writing world, it’s sometimes harder to stay motivated because I don’t have an editor and/or publisher breathing down my neck…makes it a little easier to say, “Ah, forget it. I’ll write tomorrow.”
Reading is a big help for me, too. Thanks for sharing!
Krista – You are too funny! I’ll trade with you, though…I have the opposite problem right now (possibly because I only write non-fiction?) in that I can’t STOP writing! I delay starting my “work” at my scheduled time; the dishes can stay piled in the sink for a couple of days; sleep is non-existent some days in my world. It’s like if I don’t write, if I don’t get out what is being given to me, I cannot function, literally, I cannot focus on any required task until I GET IT OUT OF ME!! I will take your writer’s block and give you my overwhelming energy! I need a break!
DEAL!! I leave dishes piled in the sink, anyway. It’d be great if the excuse was that I was writing!