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Writer’s Block – Miracle Cures?
By Deb Gallardo
The jury is still out on what writer’s block is, if it exists (only those never before afflicted with being blocked would dare to espouse this), what causes it, how to treat it, and if there is a cure. Some writers never get over it on their own, but others have. Sometimes these “cured” writers think that just because they recovered either spontaneously or because they went through some arcane concatenation of activities that this will work for others.
My opinion is that there is more we do not know about the depths of the human brain than what we do know, although I can’t prove that theory. When you consider that in the great timeline of human existence that it hasn’t been all that long since the principle of gravity was discovered by Newton, it’s not exactly surprising we don’t know everything about everything, including our own brains. We still can’t cure the common cold! Why would we think we can cure writer’s block? But we all try to, and here is one person’s suggestions.
Miracle Cures? Try These!
by Leslie What
- Don’t try to be good, i.e., dare to be bad.
- Write about someone you hate and send it to a confession magazine.
- Do the Elmore Leonard thing and only write the interesting stuff.
- Join a writing group to give yourself a deadline.
- Call it writing time when you mail queries, revise, file, make backups.
- Make a date to write at a coffee shop with another writer.
- Switch from computer to pen or pencil.
- Borrow a laptop and write in the backyard.
- Take a walk around the block and use the time to let your subconscious mind work while your conscious mind relaxes.
- Try a free-writing brainstorm.
- Listen to music.
- Try exercise or yoga.
- Write in a journal knowing you are not trying to write for others.
- Look into Feng Shui and full-spectrum lighting.
- Break large writing goals into more manageable tasks.
- Write under another name to reduce expectations you have for yourself.
http://www.writing-world.com/basics/block.shtml
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2 Comments »
June 3rd, 2008 at 12:57 pm
About a week ago I had the idea of writing about Sex and the City the movie on my Chic Alert blog. Well I knew that everyone would be doing the same so I wanted to take a different angle. Problem was I didn’t know what that was. I just couldn’t start writing, I hit writer’s block. I sat there for quite some time but just couldn’t write a word. I then decided to google on writer’s block and don’t ask me how but from jumping from one website to another, from one link to the next I ended up here and read your post “Writer’s Block – Miracle Cures?” and that’s exactly what I needed!
I was looking for a quick fix here and in my mind I had the words “writer’s block” so when I read your idea “Take a walk around the block,” that’s exactly what I did, I tried to think on how I could walk around it
What I mean here is that rather than take a physical walk around the neighborhood, somehow by reading the miracle cures I had taken my mind off the subject matter of my story (that is in my mind I took a walk around the “writer’s block”) and when I got back to it I quite easily and quickly finished what I thought was a good story about the Sex and the City movie 
Visit http://www.ChicAlert.com and tell me what you think 
Sally Greens last blog post..Fashion Icon, Yves Saint Laurent Dead
June 3rd, 2008 at 2:15 pm
Sally,
Thank you so much for your inspiring comments! I love that you “got” the “take a walk around the block,” the way you did. Don’t you just love words? I do.
And your Sex and the City post was excellent. You were thorough, true to your own voice and covered it all so that your enthusiasm for your subject came through. No doubt at all that you’re a SATC fan. Good job!
Thanks for stopping by and commenting. Come back often.
Happy writing!
Deb