Creative Juices - Fight Writer's Block

Creative Juices - 10 Ways of Avoiding Writer’s block (or recovering from it)

Whatever kind of writer you want to be, whether it's a journalist, a novelist or just a fantastic blog writer, you need to have an abundance of ideas to use. While there are a few naturally gifted people out there who never run out of ideas, for some of us it's not that easy. We have to search for our ideas, saving them up for future usage. Here are a few great ways to do this and a few general tips to keep you writing in the long term:

1. Keep a notepad to hand at all times (AND USE IT)

Make it small, easy to access and jot down anything from settings, moods, interesting names and places, to common clichés to avoid. You can gather plot ideas, bad, good or amusing situations and just generally anything that may be of any use. Some of the greatest writers took their ideas from the world around them.

I once watched a documentary where it was speculated that Robert Louis Stevenson got the idea for Dr Jekyll from listening to people talk in bars. He had often heard of well-known rich criminal who put on a pleasant front by day but who committed brutal robberies at night purely for the heck of it. Robert Louis Stevenson also suffered from recurrent health problems particularly with his lungs and experienced nightmares which were also known to have greatly influenced his writing.

It was said by his nurse:

One night he had a dream, and on wakening had the idea for two or three scenes that would appear in the story. "In the small hours of one morning," says Mrs. Stevenson, "I was awakened by cries of horror from Louis. Thinking he had a nightmare, I awakened him. He said angrily, 'Why did you wake me? I was dreaming a fine bogey tale.' I had awakened him at the first transformation scene."

2. Keep card-index files

These could be specifically for plot ideas or for funny names of strange job titles etc. This way that idea you had six months ago but forgot about might prove useful.

3. Change the rules.

Have you ever watched those shows explaining the rules behind `Horror Flicks'. One of the rules commonly known is that people are often killed in spooky log cabins or camping sites but never seem to be attacked caravans. Recently the movie `The Hills Have Eyes'  broke this convention setting the scenes within a caravan despite the horror convention.

`Know the rules but know when to break them.'

Sometimes you'll want to stick to the rules and there's nothing wrong with that. After all the reason they became commonplace is because they work. But sometimes it's more interesting to break the mould and to set new trends. Think about it.


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JUST FOR FUN

Here are the horror survival rules taken from The Ultimate SF and Fantasy Trivia Book that was free with an old issue of SFX magazine.

`When buying a new property check the deeds, is your new home built on:
a) an old Indian burial ground?; b) one of the nine gateways to hell?

It's always worth asking, at the very least you could get a couple of grand knocked off the asking price.

When holidaying stay in a caravan. Demonic forces love log cabins but for some reason stay well clear of caravans.'

Walking around in just your underwear attracts psycho killers like wasps to jam. Put some clothes on!

Wardrobes with slatted doors do not make a secure hiding place.

If you're searching for the source of a mysterious noise and it turns out to just be a cat, get the hell out of there immediately!

Check the back seat of your car before getting in.

Just killed the psychopathic killer who was chasing you? Are you sure? Are you really sure? Why not shoot him in the head just in case? Then chop his head off with an axe. Then set fire to him. Better to be safe...'

Lol.

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4. Don't stress yourself.

While some of us thrive under pressure others go to pieces. So if stressing out prevents you from thinking up any new ideas take a step back and relax. Take a soothing bath or go for a walk. Just be careful, sometimes it takes very little to distract you from getting down to work. Similarly if you are getting ill it means you may need to take a break even from writing, no matter how frustrating that can be. Work on getting well again before you push yourself to do too much. Your work will be all the better for it.

5. Write as well as plan.

Some people sit down and just start writing. Others like to plan every minute detail before starting at all. Either way is fine but sometimes writers spend too much time planning and not enough actually writing. I've been very guilty of this one myself. If you've spent several months and months just thinking up a great plot but not written anything maybe it's time to get down to it. Incidentally, leaving a particular project for a long period of time makes it all that much harder when you do want to get back to it. I always make a point of writing something at least once a week even if it's just a rant or a random scene. Practising will improve your writing even if you're just scribbling odd sentences and words here and there. Whether you're on the bus, you have an extra minute at work or you set up a myspace blog any practise at playing with words will keep your writing fresh.

6. Avoid too many distractions.

I'll admit I tend to get distracted far too easily when I start to write. I'll sit down and all of a sudden I'll have this overwhelming urge to see what's on TV or to check my email or to get something to eat. This is often just a way of avoiding writing. Sometimes it's better to avoid buying too many new books and dvds until you get some work done. Or you could trying using this as a reward system and not allowing yourself to get that nice, new book you've been after until you've finished so and so amount of pages.

Having said that my next point...

7. Learn from others.

Having discussed the dangers of distractions books, dvds and television do have their ways to help writers. You can find all manner or ideas and techniques by examining other people's work. If you have a favourite fiction author and you want to be a fiction writer, analyse what it is that makes you keep reading their books. Do they have a particular style or plot that keeps you going back to them or is it just that you happen to like the way the characters are presented. If you watch a film you really like and you've watched a hundred times over, sit down with the notepad and think about how the story is presented. Is humour used? Are there threads at the beginning that lead onto the conclusion? What is it about the story that keeps you enthralled? Films can be just as good resources as novels for learning new plot and character techniques.

8. Accept when it doesn't work.

Sometimes you'll try and try on a project, you'll have fifty pages written out and all you'll suddenly realise that it just isn't working out.

Don't despair...

Nothings a total loss. For one thing you've had the practise from working on it and you can learn what to avoid next time. Another thing to remember is that sometimes you can keep it and re-work it for a future project or change the direction of the story. Look at it again: Can you salvage something from it? Does it really need throwing out or does it just need a new perspective or format? Sometimes its better to stash away failed projects than to just get rid of them outright.

9. Different Genres and Perspectives

There are many types of genres in the writing world, from novels, scripts, poems to articles. If it isn't working out as a novel maybe it would be better as a script. Similarly try new genres within your writing. If you usually write first person look at second or third person. Examine the benefits and limitations of each method and work out which one you feel will work best. Everyone has a favourite way to write that works for them but it doesn't hurt to experiment.

10. Enjoy It

Like any hobby or occupation writing can be a lot of fun or it can be a massive chore. Sometimes the thought of writing that complaint letter you have to send to the phone company or filling out that form at work can fill you with dread. Most people will at some point have to write something they really don't want to write. But on the positive side, you can also go home and write whatever you want to write. If you're bored, fed up or just generally pissed off, get to a pen or get to your piece and start writing. It doesn't have to be spelled right, it doesn't have to make sense just write as a release. Sometimes you'll be surprised at what you can write on the spur of the moment. Above all writing isn't just something to do for publishing. No matter how much you want your stuff published remember to spend some time writing just for enjoyment too. Editing can come later. Enjoy yourself.