Writer’s block is the inability to write anything that seems relatively good. Officially, it is also the bane of every writer’s existence. Unofficially, it might be the best thing that can happen to you.
I don’t often get writer’s block this badly. When I do, I usually have the idea that I want to write, but I don’t know where to go with it or how to articulate what it is that I am trying to say. When I sat down to write this article, I had nothing.
Normally, I would end up not writing for about a week until I finally had an amazing idea, but I needed to get some writing done before I got swamped with school work. So, I decided to write about writer’s block for the fun of it and try to get ideas flowing. That’s when I finally realized the biggest threat that you could make against writer’s block was just that: writing.
This probably sounds stupid, and if you’re an avid writer you may have already received this advice, but sitting here at almost 1:00 a.m. on a school night I finally had a revelation. Writing when you have writer’s block does work. The only way to get through writer’s block is to write something. I had never tried it until now.
Write a paragraph about your day. Describe the room you are sitting in. Look up other writing prompts on the internet (there are endless websites out there), but don’t stop writing. I always thought that when I had writer’s block, I needed to take a break and let my mind relax. Taking a break will help, but then I thought that when I sat back down at my laptop again I would write a kickass piece. Your first piece after writer’s block doesn’t have to be amazing. It doesn’t even have to be good!
This article is my way of breaking my writer’s block. I may not have any other ideas to write about at this moment, but this piece is not the worst I’ve ever written. I know it’s also not the best I’ve ever written. But I know something will come to me.
So, can having writer’s block really have a happy end result? Not immediately, no. In the future, you will write that amazing piece you’re hoping for. For now, you just need to keep on writing like I am.
If anything, I hope that if you have writer’s block, you will at least try to pick up a pencil or open your laptop. The only way to beat it is to fight back.
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