The Curse Known As Writers Block

Don’t you hate it when people tell you writer’s block doesn’t exist? Because frankly it makes me want to scream. If those people have never experienced the complete mental block when you sit down to write, then good for them, but don’t invalidate somebody else’s struggles. So if you’ve ever met someone who’s said something like that to you, then ignore them, because it is a thing and you shouldn’t feel bad for experiencing it. 

I can’t tell you the amount of times this has happened to me. Most of us have been through it, even those of us who aren't writers and are just trying to write an essay. It’s something we torture ourselves with.

You can be so determined to get something down on the page, then you either end up writing a massive amount of horse crap and deleting it all. Or you continually stare at the screen as if expecting it to write something for you and then you get pissed off when it doesn't.

Come on. Admit it. You've done that one before.

If you ever feel like you have writers block and no solution is coming to mind, then here are my tips for getting through it:

 

 

 

1. Refreshments

·        The important thing to remember while you're pulling your hair from its roots is to look after yourself. You're no good to anyone, let alone your writing if you don’t.

·        Make sure you have some sort of station around you where you can get refreshments. Whether that's your kitchen or a coffee shop or even an asda.

·        Whatever your go to drink is, mine is a good old cup of tea, because let's face it, tea is life. I know the minute I have a cup of tea by me I can relax more and get down to work.

·        Figure out what your "motivational" drink is and make sure it’s on hand during your writing process.

 

2. Work space

·        There is nothing worse than sitting in a crowded room, full of people talking or screaming or just you know, generally breathing in your direction. At least for me that’s the worst thing.

·        It's important to find the best place for you to work. Mine is in my armchair at home. If somebody’s in the room and I can’t have complete silence I put my headphones on and block out the world with some music while I write.

·        A writer once told me he does most of his writing on the train as it’s impossible to do it at home with his kids. If that works for you, then great, but it needs to be somewhere you’re entirely comfortable and a place you feel you can block out the rest of the world while you write.

 

3. Breaks

·        I cannot stress this point enough. Breaks are essential to life. Ever heard the human brain can only concentrate for 20 minutes? Whether or not you believe this, I think to some extent this is true. It doesn’t have to be 20 minutes, it could be 60, or 90, but eventually your brain will be getting distracted.

·        There's no point sitting at your desk, slamming your head against the table for 10 hours because you can't think of anything to write. That's not going help anyone, and let's face it, you'll go to bed with a massive headache.

·        Even if you give yourself a half an hour break every few hours, this is guaranteed to help you feel a million times better. Your motivation gets restored and you return to your work with a clearer mind.

·        Sometimes even a power nap can help and if you're like me and can't sleep in the day, then even just lying in bed and closing your eyes for half an hour can work wonders…just…set an alarm to be sure you don’t fall asleep for the next 12 hours.

 

4. Ideas

·        This is the problem most people will have. Sometimes an idea for a story or poem will pop into your mind and you’ll write furiously for hours. And sometimes nothing comes to you at all.

·        So here’s what you do to get your creative juices flowing. First: create a characters backstory. Ask yourself 20 seemingly unimportant questions and answer them as your character. You may just discover something interesting about them.

·        Second: words

·        Look at your surroundings. Pick an object, or a person, or a colour, anything.

·        Write a paragraph about it. 99% of the time it will be utter rubbish, but that 1% could be the start of a great story.

·        And if not, then at least you will have been exercising that creative brain of yours. Not everything you write has to be publishing standard. That's what editing’s for!

 

5. Distance

·        Sometimes the problem isn't just getting something on the page but perhaps you’re struggling adding to a story or poem you've already been writing. Sometimes what you add a day after that burst of inspiration can seem like crap compared. If what you’re writing doesn’t seem to work then stop. Stop trying to add to it, because it just might not be your day.

·        Distance yourself from that piece and move onto something else. I'd say a good week or two before you even consider returning to it, because a fresh and clear mind is always a better one.

·        There’s no point adding to a good story with a crap ending. Wait until the inspiration comes to you and then milk it for all its worth before it disappears again.

·        You're in the business of writing now. You’ve got to learn when to fight and write and when you need to let it go.

 

6. Stick to your roots

·        Sometimes, when the ideas just aren't flowing, it can help by going back to your roots. Instead of trying to write a novel set in the nineteenth century, focus on something more contemporary. Where are you from? I'm sure that place has an accent you can exaggerate.

·        For me, as I am from Wirral, we are often associated with people from Liverpool. I like to call some of us the "wannabe scousers" the really over the top girls with the fake tan so fake they can blend into my garden fence. This is something I love to play with. I pick people I knew in the past, who were like this and I really exaggerate their personality.

·        This has helped me to write some of the best stories I've ever written and I've enjoyed it so much more because I know it so well. I've lived with people like this my whole life, so it’s more familiar to me than anything else.

·        So remember, stick to your roots, because there are things you know about your town, and the people in it, that other writers will probably never know.

 

Yours lovingly,

Jennie Byrne

 

www.underthefable.com

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My Writing Process

This week I thought I'd do something a little different. Many of you may be writers yourselves, or you may just be curious of a writers process. Well, this week, I'll be giving you a bit of an insight into mine!

WRITING SPACE:

I don’t exactly have a particular space I only go to write. My writing space is basically my space for just about everything, but just look at it:

This is the single, most comfortable armchair I’ve ever sat in, in my entire life. It is just brilliant and so cosy. I just sit back and relax while I go about my writing. This is probably one of the most important things when it comes to writing. Finding that spot you’re most comfortable in.

Some people need a room to themselves where they’re away from any distractions or noise, which, if you live with others or still with your parents, is most likely going to be your bedroom.

For me however, I’ve become so accustomed to the TV noise and my parents talking that it barely affects me anymore. I feel most comfortable and ready to write when I’m sitting in my armchair in my living room. The room can be full of noise or completely silent and I’ll be able to get the job done.

The problem occurs when my parents are watching something I’m interested in, this is where I get hugely distracted and end up spending an hour and a half watching the TV without realising. In this case, I usually put my headphones on and blast some music. This sends me right back into writing mode and I completely forget about the world around me.

Technically there is another place I write quite frequently. And if you don’t mind finding out a little too much about me I’ll tell you.

The bath. Yes, the bath.

I don’t know what it is about being in the bath that makes me suddenly so inspired to write but for some reason it does and you know what, I just go with it, because any time inspiration hits you, you should milk it for all it’s worth. It doesn’t come along very often.

NOTES:

Are you like me? Do you have five thousand word documents open at once while you write?

One thing I’ve been doing recently is hooking my monitor up to my laptop (and yes that’s Rocky wallpaper – I’ll get to that in a minute). I move all my notes onto the monitor screen so I can see everything at once without flicking through document after document to find the bit of information I need.

It is a good idea to have a system like this. Even if you just have something that you put sticky notes on (shout out to my friend Jess). It will make your life a hundred times easier while writing.

IDEAS THAT OCCUR WHEN I’M NOWHERE NEAR MY LAPTOP:

This used to present a problem for me, because I never had a decent enough phone to write and store things. At first I used to write my ideas in a text message and save it to my draft folder. Then I’d later write it up on my laptop.

Problem: By the time I was anywhere near my laptop, I’d completely forget I ever had an idea, and therefore my phone would collect around 30 draft text messages before I realised and would have to type them all up one by one.

These days though, I have a much better phone, which allows me to write a document and save it directly to the folder I want it in on Dropbox as a word document. There’s no messing about, no writing things up later, it is simple and so quick to do.

FUEL:

Most people generally go down the coffee or energy drink or alcohol route when they spend extensive amounts of time writing.

Me? I’m a little different. Tea is my fix.

Tea is a necessity. Tea is life. I cannot physically or mentally function without a cup of tea and this is why I constantly have a giant mug beside me while I write. This does usually mean a break every ten minutes to make a new cup, but it’s good to have breaks.

Whatever your fix is, make sure you have it on hand when writing. It will make your life incredibly easier.

P.s. Just don’t go down the Coleridge route. Opium (more commonly known as heroin) is going a little too far.

INSPIRATION:

On those days where nothing is going your way, or you feel like giving up writing altogether, I like to remind myself of my favourite quote to help me keep going.

This picture (as you saw earlier) is my desktop wallpaper, so it’s always there to remind me push through whatever writers block or troubles or worries I have at the time. I’m seriously considering getting this tattooed on my arm.

It’s always good to have a pick-me-up close by when you’re feeling down in the dumps. Every time I read this quote I immediately feel better and strive to push through the hard times.

I hope you enjoyed this post. As I said, it is a little different from what I've posted in the past. If you would like more posts like this, then don't hesitate to let me know.

Yours weekly,

Jennie Byrne

@mustbejlb (on Instagram and Twitter)

www.underthefable.com

Please comment below, all feedback and suggestions are welcome.