THE TRUTH ABOUT WRITER’S BLOCK AND THE DINOSAUR COW

I hope that grabbed your attention; we have important things to discuss. I promise it’s relevant and not just clickbait. The percentage of relevancy versus clickbait I will not divulge.

First of all, hello and welcome to the simulation! =D Let’s begin today’s discussion with:

What is writer’s block?

Wikipedia describes this to be the condition in which an author loses the ability to produce new work or experiences a creative slowdown.

So basically, you’re sitting in front of a dreaded white screen that’s as blank as an Arctic snowbank and you got zero ideas on what to do next. Perhaps the little monkey with the cymbal plays a one-man band song for you. Do not encourage him, he sucks, he’s nothing like his father.

Ok, so we have a definition of what, but isn’t there more to this problem? I like to approach problem solving through a bit of an analytical process. Albert Einstein thought that spending enough time in identifying the problem was monumental in solving it.

So let’s ask ourselves a few more questions to understand the problem of writer’s block.

Why does writer’s block happen?

This could be for several reasons:

1. What pressures are you putting on yourself?

• Is writing a hobby or ‘for fun/enjoyment’ thing?

• Is this a work article that has a specific deadline, and you want to impress your boss?

• Is this a fanfic you need updated by Thursday or else your followers will find and kill you?

• Is this the sequel to a novel you’re writing and your publisher’s deadlines are looming?

• Is this something you’re writing on the side to break into publishing and become an author?

2. What external pressures are being put on you?

• Family, friends, and relationship maintenance.

• Dependants, and those you take care of.

• Responsibilities, work, and other commitments.

• Burnout and/or creative exhaustion.

• Lack of practice.

3. Life. This could be anything from medical conditions to unexpected curveballs. We can make our routines and start our day thinking it will go one way, but life happens, and it’s infinitely creative. This can sometimes interfere with the things we want to accomplish.

How does writer’s block affect our life?

If you are reading this you, like me, have probably faced writer’s block multiple times or at least once in your life. Whether you’re sitting down to write that paper for a school assignment, trying to write a cover letter for a job, or trying to start your story, sometimes we have a big wad of nothing in our brain. We search for the perfect words, but it’s just static up there.

This affects a few things, especially if it happens often:

• It can shake up our confidence and make the problem even harder to overcome.

• We could fall behind schedule, and in extremely severe cases, can even miss deadlines because we couldn’t figure out what to write.

• It can affect our emotions. Depending on the stakes, our mood can vary from mild annoyance to outright depression.

That’s a heavy list, and I don’t want to scare you! Just because we face writer’s block does not mean these things will happen. However, I believe it’s good to know the possibilities so you can properly measure your experience and see where you’re at. Writer’s block and creative block has taken me to some rock bottoms before.

So given this analysis, do we agree that writer’s block is real?

My answer to this is yes and no.

Wow. Much genius. Very thinking.

Let me go off on a small tangent here. During season seven of The Simpsons, in 1995, they aired the annual Treehouse of Horror episode. One bit was a story where the town advertising statues came to life and started destroying everything and eating people. My particular favourite was when Mr. Peanut grabbed a car, cracked it open like a peanut, and ate the people inside (a classic). Anyway, at the end of the episode, the townspeople were in an uproar with statues wreaking havoc left and right. Then Lisa, with the help of Paul Anka, sings a little jingle to the town. The major premise of the song being “just don’t look, just don’t look.”

It’s a catchy little song you can see on YouTube here:

The key point is, the monsters only gained life and had power because everybody was paying attention to them. When the townspeople looked away, all the monsters fell. They were powerless.

What is writer’s block if not a fifty-foot monster trying to destroy you?

My disclaimer here is that while it is easy to say “just don’t believe in it” to problems, the actual practice is much more difficult. However, we should explore the idea that sometimes we give power to things that control us (especially mentally). Do not give it any more power than it already has.

This takes mental discipline and practice. Don’t expect a ‘wake up on the right side of the bed’ moment every day or that ‘taking some deep breaths and shrugging it off’ will work every time. It takes practice and mental work to get to a point where you truly believe there is no ‘block’. Even then there will be some days when it sneaks up on you just to see if you’re still willing to put up a fight.

Just because it’s difficult does not make it impossible. We can overcome this, we can do this. I made the following list of tools to help you. These are some things that have helped me over the years. There is no order of importance. Read through it and try them, see if these practices will help you emerge on the other side.

Eleven things you can do on the days you feel ‘less inspired’ or facing ‘writer’s block’:

1. Read:

• Read your favourite book or a new book. Read a poem, comicbook, or a short story. Anything! Reading someone else’s writing is a way to feel inspired. Particularly, reading the writing that you enjoy is a great way to feel inspired. Try to get to an emotional place that can drive you forward.

2. Do something else:

• Watch a TV show or a movie. Talk with your friends and family. Play with your kids or pets. Meditate. Workout. Do something entirely unrelated to writing, so you move into a different headspace.

3. Watch booktube or read some writing advice articles and/or books:

• There are so many wonderful blogs, channels, websites, and information sources out there on writing and other creative topics. Sometimes it really helps me to watch a video on “writing inspiration” or “how to create a character” to get my brain thinking and coming up with ideas. It helps to have a guiding voice give you a little push of encouragement.

4. Do a different creative thing:

• Make a card for your friend. Learn how to knit. Try out that new recipe you bookmarked. Play guitar. When you have the creative itch but you cannot get words on a page, try to channel that creativity into a different task. You will then have accomplished something, perhaps even learned something, and it will clear your mind from negative thoughts on writing.

5. Ideastorm:

• I talked a little about this in my previous blog post, on writing “The Ship Maker”. Ideastorming is so much fun! Come up with book titles, character names, world build, or even retell an old tale in a modern way. There are so many ways to come up with new ideas; this is another way to get those creative juices flowing.

6. Do a writing exercise:

• Prompts are really great for this! Honestly, if you google “writing exercises” I am sure you will find something that will make those keys clack. Here I’ll give you one right now: Pick an object in front of you, or make it up if you’re sitting in an empty void (aren’t we all, though?). Now, character A and character B are fighting over that object, character A wants to sell it because it’s super valuable, but character B says it has too much sentimental value to give up... what happens next?

• Ask yourself questions: Why does character A want to sell it? Why is character B so attached to it? What is the relationship between characters A and B? What would character A do if they bashed in character B’s brains, but then puked all over the object by accident and now they’re too grossed out about what they did? I could go on with the questions, but you get the idea.

7. Take a break:

• If you’ve been writing consistently for a while and you’re having a slowdown, then it’s okay to take a breather. If you’ve had an extensive break from writing and you’re just getting back into it and find yourself uninspired after two days, it’s also okay to take a break.

• Try writing a few times a week, not everyone is built or has the means to write every day. Build up to a consistency you can maintain. I don’t believe in rigid routines, I believe in elastic ones.

• If you feel agitated and hopeless as you face the blank page and every sense within you is telling you to run away instead of writing, take a break and clear your mind of it. Refer to other items on this list for what to do on your break or whatever else you want!

8. Remember your purpose:

• Why do you write? Think, or even better, write about why you enjoy and love writing. Picture me as the mediator in a small cozy office. You’re sitting in the red chair and writing (personified) is sitting in the blue chair. We are in a couple’s therapy session and I need you to look into each other’s eyes and talk about why you fell in love in the first place. This is your romcom, baby.

9. Drink water and/or eat something:

• Sometimes we truly are angry, sad, crabby, and hopeless. And sometimes we really did just need to have a good meal and drink water. Take care of your body, it carries you.

10. Write literally anything - DINOSAUR COW

• Finally, we are at the reveal of our headline. The dinosaur cow, or Dinosaurum Bovinus, is an imaginary creature that lives in my mind. We can find it munching on the leaves of Interius Criticus - a wild weed of a plant that acts like a parasite and expands into every crevice of my mind. Interius Criticus causes symptoms such as heartburn, bloating, itching, anxiety, and sometimes depression. The dinosaur cow is my last line of defense, it is the wild untameable imagination that I let loose when Interius Criticus entraps me.

• Translation of the above babble: Do not allow your inner critic to steer the ship. Just write something, anything! It could even be a word as STUPID as dinosaur cow. Keep writing about it, what does it eat? Where does it live? Is there a story here? Wait... I just wrote 100 words! Huzzah! Is your inner critic frothing at the mouth, ready to rip that dumbass idea to shreds? Yes. Is she chained to a boulder at the bottom of the ocean right now? Also yes. She will break out, but by then you’ve already written several sentences and have the pep and confidence you need to keep going despite her mouth breathing over your shoulder.

• Additional babble: It doesn’t matter what you are writing, be it nonfiction, a story, or a script - you have at the very least 1-2 general ideas about your specific topic. Write the words associated with it and then string a coherent sentence together. It doesn’t need to be a great sentence, but it’s a place to start. Then, there you go, you have written something, and that is much better than the empty page that was in front of you before.

11. Make friends:

• Find people you know that are interested in writing or stories. Go to forums and discussion groups. They don’t always have to be authors or other writers, but can even be a good friend who will listen. One word of caution to every writer and creative, be wary of others and judge for yourself whether you can trust them with all your great ideas (you can always just talk about writing or the creative process if you wish to keep your story ideas to yourself).

• Putting yourself around like-minded people or even just speaking your thoughts out loud can sometimes propel you forward. There is inspiration in inspiring others and motivating one another. Another good habit is to listen to others. It’s fine to speak your mind, but there is also great value in learning and listening to those around you.

I have three more items that I feel both belong on the above list, but also are important categories of their own:

1. Be kind to yourself:

• Do not shame yourself if you’re going through a mental block. It’s okay, it happens to everyone. You are good enough and you need to believe that. I want to hear your story, there are people out there that need to know what you have to say!

2. Do not give up:

• You can do this. It’s going to be hard, but you’ve done other hard things in your life. Of course you can do this. The spirit of your story has chosen you to speak for it, so don’t give up on it!

3. Learn and grow:

• Your journey will not be an easy one, for none of the great ones are. Pretty sure a wizard said that. There will be great days and there will be terrible ones. There will be mediocre days you can barely remember. Just make sure you keep going, practice good habits, try to improve, and don’t get complacent. Just because you’re talented does not mean it will carry you the whole way. If you believe you have no talent, don’t think that deliberate practice won’t help you improve. Skill is a craft and talent is just a bonus.

Now you have reached the end of this long ass post! Congrats. I hope the tools I’ve mentioned can be of help to you. Let me know what works for you and what doesn’t. If you have your own ideas on what has helped and benefited you, or how you deal with writer’s block, please comment and let me know. We can learn from one another!

Just remember to be kind, don’t give up, and keep growing, because the world needs to hear that really amazing thing you have to say!

That’s all folx!

Love,

FP