As an English major and someone who enjoys writing short stories for fun, I often find myself at the inevitable block that no longer allows me to keep on writing. As much as it frustrates me, I have a few different ways that I deal with it, and hopefully they can help you too. Whether it be writing a paper or a short story, here are some hopeful remedies to your writer’s block.
- Music
When I write papers, I listen to a lot of classical music or soft ballads. When I’m writing stories, I tend to listen to a writing playlist that has songs with story-like elements. Sometimes, when I feel like my writing is going stagnant, I switch it up. I’ll switch from classical songs to more upbeat songs and vice versa for when I’m writing stories. The change can sometimes be enough to shock me into writing a lot better than I was before.
- Walks & Drives
I apply this in daily life when I’m getting too tired to do any work in my daily life. I’ve often found that going on a drive or a walk can help me clear my head. I think it has something to do with changing your environment and getting out of where you’re having the writer’s block. After a good walk or drive, I always come back with a more refreshed mindset, and the ideas just start flowing again.
- Socializing
Although I’m an extrovert, I feel like when I work, I need to be alone, or I simply won’t get anything done. However, when my ideas are stale, I find it best to go and talk to my friends or family. Sometimes the wildest ideas will spawn just because I heard someone say something, or, when I relay to them my idea for writing, they’ll help me look at it in a different way. It’s never good to be alone with your own thoughts for too long, so go and talk to some people.
- Something Fun
I have some go-to shows and books that are just fun for me to read and watch. Sometimes, I tend to take writing so seriously that I forget that often times, it’s supposed to be fun. To resuscitate that sense of life into my writing, I’ll go to these go-to fun things that will help me unwind. One of my favorite things to watch while writing are comedy specials, specifically by Trevor Noah and Hasan Minhaj, because while they make me laugh, they’re rife with good metaphors and witty takes that can sometimes really help me write.
- Nap
Everything always looks better after a nap. My sleep is so infrequent, but I recognize how important it is when it comes to doing work. I often find that the root cause of my writer’s block is the fact that I haven’t had enough rest and a good 2 hour nap will usually refresh me enough to the point that I can wake up and get back to work with a fresher perspective because I’m not so focused on being tired. Use this at your own risk, though, because I have been known to fall asleep and not wake up.