Breaking through Writer's Block

Being an author of 4 books (currently working on my 5th), most might think I don't have an issue with writer's block when in all actuality, everyone has writer's block at some point and time. How long writer's block last is where we start pulling out our hair. The break between my 2nd and 3rd novels was 4 years and yet I started writing both my 4th and 5th books at the same time!

We can all agree the want to is there but sometimes the message gets lost in transition from our brains to the pad (or computer) so I wanted to offer a few tips I use that may help you break free of writer's block.

**Note: Even though these tips are geared toward story/book writing, I believe these tips can help with poetry writing also**

~~Most authors I've talked to on the subject or writer's block suggests that changing your writing scene/atmosphere helps. If you write at home in your bedroom, move to the living room or better yet, sit in a shaded area outside. If you live near a park or beach (I love going down to the water to write), go to these places as well. Sometimes we need to change the scene around us in order to stir up our creative juices.

~~While out in your new atmosphere, take a notepad and pen and write what you see as you see it (i.e. if you were at the park you might write, 'trees, birds, park bench, playground, etc). Put each word on a separate line and after you have about 10 words, go back and be more descriptive with each word. Is the wind causing the leaves on the tree to fall off its branches? What are the birds doing? What color is the park bench and is anyone sitting on it? Are children playing on the playground? Sometimes we overthink what we wish to write about so the best thing to do is to cause the brain to think about something else. Just like the saying, 'as soon as you stop looking for something you will find it'. Well, as soon as you stop TRYING to think about something, you will clear your mind to allow it to flow to the front. This technique can also be useful in developing new ideas or topics to write about.

~~Another thing I found that helps is reading. As writers, we develop in our craft by reading but when we are writing, we don't read as much thinking that reading someone else's work will either stagger our progress or we may unintentionally end up writing like the other author and lose our own voice. But this is only true if you allow it to be. I find the best way to avoid falling in these traps is reading outside the genre I'm writing at the time. If I'm writing a book on love and relationships, I read a suspense novel or thriller. Again, you're giving your mind a break and allowing it to absorb new information you can use for your own work.

~~Character development. If you're stuck on how to develop your storyline, concentrate on the characters. Does your main character have the right personality type to fit the story you're trying to tell? If so, did they always have this personality trait or did something in their past cause them to be this way and if not, do they need to experience something within the story to change their personality or do you need to change the character all together? Remember, the characters in our writing are composed of bits of ourselves, friends, family, co-workers, strangers, etc. Some people have a past they're not happy with and wish to forget while others may still be living in the past because that time was better than their present. Don't forget that your characters are real people and real people have history. That history made them who they are today and who and what they do today is shaping who they will become in the future. Something happened to make your characters the way they are, good or bad and if you take time to develop their story, it will give you a variety of options in where to take the main storyline of your writing.

~~One of the best tips I've come across I read in the Writer's Digest magazine (oh, and if you don't subscribe to writers magazines-print or online-(i.e. Writer's Digest, Poets and Writers, The Writers Magazine) you're doing yourself a HUGE disservice. They help ALOT). Okay, back to the best tip I've come across thus far that can help you get your writing mojo back.
1. Write each chapter as a short story. In writing a novel, I tend to get caught up on telling the whole story and how each chapter contributes to that story in my first draft but that's something that can be done later when I'm editing. Each chapter is a story of it's own. It has it's own beginning, middle and end (even if the end is a cliff hanger to have the reader wanting to read on to the next chapter). Tell the story of that chapter first and if it doesn't fit the storyline of the novel later, just take it out and/or use it to start another story.
2. Think of the reader when writing. Ask yourself, why is this chapter important? What (or whose) story do I want to tell in this chapter? Why is this (or their) story important? What do I want the reader to get from this chapter? Asking questions like these will not only allow you to write with your readers in mind but it will help eliminate bland writing-writing just to fill space.

Again, these are just a few pointers I've picked up over the years. Also, joining writing clubs/guilds, taking a creative writing or poetry class at a local college or university or online and attending writing conferences can help you become a better writer than you ever would've imagined so take advantage of those as well!

Feel free to add your own helpful tips and be sure to stop by my website to check out my previous works at http://www.ekfsimpson.com/.

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