Writing requires some sort of creativity, no matter the subject. Writer’s block is frustrating for any writer. Sometimes it’s difficult to get the creative juices flowing.
It doesn’t matter if you’re a student working on a paper for a class, an aspiring novelist, a freelancer, or a blogger. If you’ve found yourself in one of these positions, you’ve probably experienced writer’s block at least once. Below are a few tips on how to help tackle the block and accomplish something.
Do Some Research
Sometimes researching the topic helps you come up with an idea or helps elaborate more on an existing idea. Good resources are Google (duh), but more specifically: Google Scholar, Google Books, and Google News. Wikipedia is a great research tool that’s fun to get lost in. Social media sites like Facebook, Twitter, and Reddit are ripe with not only information on an array of topics, but social discussions, viewpoints, and opinions from real people that you can interact with.
Eat Good Food
Who doesn’t love food? Making sure you’ve eaten a good meal gets your blood sugar up. Talk about literally getting your juices moving.
Nomnomnom
Not only will food help you think better, healthy eating habits will help combat stress that sometimes accompanies a writer’s block. Fruit, vegetables, coffee, chocolate are all foods containing nutrients to help your brain. Just make sure to avoid too much sugar.
Exercise
This is another suggestion that literally gets your juices flowing. Go for a run. Do some pushups. Jump on your bed. It doesn’t matter, as long as you get your blood flowing. When you exercise, your body releases endorphins and brings oxygen to your brain.
Time Limits
Time is of the essence. Set a time limit on how long you will brainstorm ideas for the project each day. Once the time is up put everything away and don’t look at it for 24 hours. Repeat until you come up with something great.
Get Distracted
Time limits for focus not working? Allow yourself to get distracted. Put everything away related to what you’re writing about. Go to the mall. Binge on Netflix. Work on another project. When you’ve spent enough time away, attack the project again.
Happy Hour
If all else fails, drink.
‘I hate to advocate drugs, alcohol, violence, or insanity to anyone, but they’ve always worked for me.’ — Hunter S. Thompson
Grab a stiff drink, turn on the music, and let the ideas start flowing. Studies suggest a drink or two really can make you more creative. Just be careful to not allow one drink turn into ten. Thompson, Hemingway, King, Fitzgerald. All great writers, all suffered from substance abuse.
Mix It Up
Don’t limit yourself to this list! Try one of these ideas or a combination of a few. Find what works best for you. Just make sure to write your ideas down once they come to you. A Google doc accessible on any mobile device is pretty convenient or if you happen to carry around a pencil and notepad, that works too.
Looking for more great ideas on honing your writing skills? Check out related blog posts here. To learn about success stories from fellow writers, click here .
Media Shower writer Brittany Suszan is well-known for business, technology, and open government.