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WRITER’S BLOCK REMEDIES

Sally Contour

There’s nothing like surviving a case of writer’s block to teach gratitude, better work habits, and a deeper understanding of what other sufferers may be going through. If you add in a myriad of computer woes while the block is in full bloom, a writer can be brought to a kneeling position fast!

Sitting in front of a keyboard for hours on end without word one showing up on the screen or paper is dumb. It’s akin to mental constipation. No matter how long we are enthroned, until "it’s" ready to move, all we can hope to achieve is frustration, pain and a ring around our bottoms.

In my 14th year of freelance writing, I can look back and see that I’ve wasted much time waiting for the writing gods to allow my words to again flow. In all honesty, I could have sped the process had I known some of the tricks I now use when this blockage occurs. Read on:

1. Stop writing and start reading. Read the articles or books you hope to write and do read them with a critical mind. There’s nothing like examining someone else’s writing to give me that "I can write better than that" attitude.
2. Knowing that magazines often buy their seasonal material at least six in advance, try writing about the 4th of July in December when the Christmas season is making you crazy. Or how about a Christmas article on June 1st when the thought of the kids getting out of school for the summer is making you freak?
3. Use the stagnant time to organize a "Hint and Information" notebook. My 89¢ notebook has heavyweight, non-glare, sheet protectors in it. It’s easy for me to slip bits of information (snipped from newspapers, pamphlets and magazines) into the top loading sleeves.
4. I use a down day to practice a new bit of info found in my monthly computer magazine. During one such day I learned to make this kind of list.
5. Better than a plunger for clearing brainlock, I write the main idea, "Cars" in the center of an 8.5" X 11" sheet of paper and then, like cartoon voices, I jot little blurbs of what I hope to cover all around the main topic. This method is called clustering and is fully explained in a book by Gabriele Lusser Rico. Seat belts. Wind wings. Tail lights. MPG. Hood ornaments. Tune ups. Colors. Cost. Popular models. Rico’s method pinpoints which areas need researching. I carefully gather and substantiate my information.
6. Chum new water. If your creativity is on the fritz, SELL. Find new editors and Internet sites. Query. Use all of the electronic equipment you’re still paying for. Fax. Email attached pieces. Send hard copies and floppies. Update your bio. Post your accounts. Tally your expenses. Do the grunt work, the business end of the writing game--what we all put off when we’re on a writing roll.
7. If writing on the main topic still won’t happen, then start at the back end. Begin with the sidebar or footnote. Knowing that 75-150 words are max and will cover less than one sheet of page, these tasks seems both doable and valuable.
8. Making copious notes during this stressful time is of the utmost importance. Because I tend to be extremely negative when blocked, I label even my marvelous ideas, "STUPID". When the block eases a bit, I’m always amazed to realize I had an important fragment of information last week but did not realize it.
9. Feelings are definitely not facts. Because I feel stymied, I may not be stymied when seated in front of my keyboard. No one asks a brain surgeon if he feels like performing a delicate and dangerous surgery. Trained to operate, the surgeon does his job. There are days when I thoroughly relish what I’m doing and other days when I question my sanity. That’s okay. Feelings are not facts. Taking my emotional temperature on a minute-by-minute basis serves no purpose other than to create more negativity.
10. If all else fails, do something for fun and for free. Send a good article to a non-paying magazine. Help a child write a composition. Read to someone who’s ill. Giving without hope of remuneration is often rewarded with gazillions of good feelings and fresh ideas.
11. Once the constriction has passed, share your cure with others who are having the problem. Giving hope to others from the benefit of our own experiences is what life is all about.
12. Lastly, never lose sight of the fact that writing is a gift and gifts must be nurtured.
    1. Keep learning.
    2. Attend a writing for publication group and stay in touch with other writers between sessions.
    3. Place reading material at your bedside. Even five minutes is five minutes more than if the material was out in the car.

Some writers can sit down five minutes before deadline and write insightful pieces which never require editing or in-depth investigation. These writers are rare. Most of us must rewrite countless times. That’s why aging my articles for a week or a month is such a beneficial tool.

After not reading what I’ve written for a time, I’m able to review it with fresh eyes. Editing becomes easier. New ideas are inserted with ease. I can accomplish in minutes what would have taken hours a month ago.

When I feel my piece is absolutely 100% perfect, I play a game I call, "Prove It" with myself. I prove to myself it’s ready to meet the public. Here are my four (4) rules.

1. I spell check the piece one more time.
2. I use my grammar checker.
3. I print out a hard copy so I can stand up (yes, you gotta get up) and read the printed copy aloud. During these readings my little errors such as typing "out" instead of "our", will surface.
4. If further editing is required, do steps 1, 2 and 3 again. All of them.

Never forget: Your written words precede you. Scrunched paper and typos are only two of the many things that may turn an editor off. From query letters to sending a completed manuscript, an editor views our words FIRST.

There are no mental laxatives on the market that I know of. There are only little tricks passed around from writer to writer that may ease the blockage quicker. Use what’s worked for others and be sure to add to the list and pass it on.

The story WRITER’S BLOCK REMEDIES is Copyright 1998 by Sally Contour.

The collection of works called Fish Eggs For The Soul is Copyright 1998 by Brian Rickman.

Copy edited by Sara Fawbush, editor of The Young Writer's Collection.