Questions for the community: wrtier's block - what is it, who gets it, and what do we do to overcome it?
Replies
Writers block is caused by not planning ahead. It helps to have the beginning, middle and end of your novel, If you don't plan, there's the danger of going off on tangents which are a waste of time and effort. Inspiration is useless with no sense of direction. You need to know where you're going next.
I lie down on the sofa and play the next scene through my mind. Then I read a poem or two, or a few chapters of a novel before they start to write.
Reading and planning ahead are the best cure for writers block.
If I just want to get myself writing as an exercise (referring back to Victoria's question too) I pick up a book, open at random and blindly stab my finger at a sentence. I then have to write a piece beginning with that sentence. Can do something similar with just a word, either from a book, newspaper or friend. This has led to writing some 'not bad' short stories and at least the feeling of doing 'something' rather than thumb twiddling!
Writers block is caused by not planning ahead. It helps to have the beginning, middle and end of your novel, If you don't plan, there's the danger of going off on tangents which are a waste of time and effort. Inspiration is useless with no sense of direction. You need to know where you're going next.
I lie down on the sofa and play the next scene through my mind. Then I read a poem or two, or a few chapters of a novel before they start to write.
Reading and planning ahead are the best cure for writers block.
If I just want to get myself writing as an exercise (referring back to Victoria's question too) I pick up a book, open at random and blindly stab my finger at a sentence. I then have to write a piece beginning with that sentence. Can do something similar with just a word, either from a book, newspaper or friend. This has led to writing some 'not bad' short stories and at least the feeling of doing 'something' rather than thumb twiddling!