"In the book of life, the answers aren't in the back."
-Charlie Brown.
I am seriously in a
sticky place. Cursed with…WRITERS BLOCK! And oh what a terrible thing it is
too! So many ideas, nowhere to put them, and what’s worse, I haven’t even finished
the grand plot of my story! I can’t even blog it’s so bad…There was absolutely
nothing going on or anything interesting happening, so I will probably write about my writers block, and, when I Google
Search “how to get rid of writers-block” I will probably write about that too.
5 ways to get rid of writer's block
It's inevitable - the block gets us one day. It is as if the
words refuse to flow, thickened somewhere in the brain, not moving, getting
hazy as moment passes...nothing to type. The familiar keyboard doesn't help. If
you do use the keyboard, it is the backspace that gets the most hits! Does it
ring a bell? Yes, we all go through this and you are not alone. We cannot avoid
it - but we can definitely come out of it faster.
Here is how -
Write, write and write - The most easiest way to come out of
writer's block is to write! Forcing yourself to write something no matter how
ugly it is would help getting the juices flow. I feel that the block is nothing
but the fear of writing something terrible, something you would hate to know
are your words. The best way to shoo away that fear is to actually put in those
words out in the open. Good thing is you need not have to show it to someone
else. You can be the only reader! Once the worst is over, you can only get
better!
Go back to your favourite author - One of our most common
inspirations are our favourite authors. They have inspired, coaxed, demanded
and threatened us to write and write better. Sometimes, writer's block is a
plea for a break and it would be great idea to go back to our masters and get
rejuvenated! We have discovered our talents in their words and I am in no doubt
that when you have finished reading them, you would ache to come back to your
desk and type away the rest!
"Word-a-day" - I remember inventing this game in my
initial days as a writer. I would often be at a loss of what to write due to
various reasons (that should come in a separate blog :)) and I would think of
ways to make myself write. "Word-a-day" is simple and effective. I
would look at my surroundings and pick up any object among them randomly and
say, "Ok...this is my topic. I need to write 250 words about this".
Lo! I would force the words to come and as days would pass, I would start
deliberating picking some things over others because they would interest me! As
I said, it is very simple game to play. All you need is a determination that
you would write those 250 words without giving up! The rest is easy.
Turn in to a critic - If you cannot write than start reviewing your
older work. Some find it very embarrassing to read their work later, but that's
one of the highs I get in my life! Reading and commenting on my
articles/writings makes me much more aware of what kind of writer I am. It
simultaneously also infuses in me the excitement to write something better.
When you are short of words and are reviewing your own work, don't forget to
keep pen and paper handy. I bet there would be moments when you would feel,
"ah...this line is what makes it attractive", "oh...this could
be phrased better!"...and so on. The important thing is it is making you
think about words and hence, your brain is trying to form sentences again!
Do not give up and go on a long break - Going on a long break is
the greatest danger during these times. I did it once and I regret it till
date. You need to realize that writer's block is temporary and is not a proof
that you are a bad writer. This thought scares the writer away in to oblivion
and all that is left is lost clients, projects. When you get the inspiration
again to write, all you are left with is starting everything from scratch. No
need to add, it is not a pretty picture! So, do whatever you can, but do not be
away from your writing desk for a long time.
Finally, any career would have its ups and downs and freelance writing is no
different. In fact, the decision to freelance in much braver than any secure
company job and it demands much more patience and work from you. You have taken
that decision which means you are brave. Do not let a tiny obstacle like
writer's block stop you! All the best!
I am pretty sure
that my main problem is that I am a perfectionist. And I have so many ideas. It
got me thinking. What does it take to make a good story? I came up with a
couple things that I think make stories great.
1. Adventure
2. Mystery
3. Good Story Telling ability
4. Characters with good back-stories and such things that make them who they are.
5. Interesting places, people, things, basically cool nouns. Haha
6. Suspense!
7. Point of view. Whether it switched from different people or different “Camera Angles.”
8. Bad guy/group. (Obviously!)
9. Good ending. And by good ending, I don’t mean “everyone lives happily ever after.” It could be an ending where the whole world explodes; it just has to be done right.
10. And I am sure there are a WHOLE BUNCH of other things that I don’t have here. I forgot where I put my list, so this will have to work.
Since buying my laptop, I have neglected my huge stack of
notebooks. It’s sad really, I sit down to write in them, and go completely
blank. Mostly because I haven’t seen them in forever and probably because I am stretched
the story plot to its breaking point...Maybe it’s time I move on and begin
different stories. It seems as though I start at least two new stories a month…
At this point I am
not sure what to do. I take ideas from the real-life scenarios and mold them
into my own twisted image! I am jesting!
It’s actually easier for me to write fantasy than it is writing fiction with real-life happenings. Like for
instance, “A giant dragon flew through the window and grabbed Ferdinand with its
huge greedy talons.” It didn't take much thought to write that…But anything
else, ugh!!
I am working on it
though! Working on it!
~Natsu
