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The family at the playground had the sweetest dog, but wow was it a jerk. She was super friendly and greeted us with a wildly wagging tail every time. But her opinion of any other dog having fun — not allowed! She would chase and growl and nip at any other pooch that was simply enjoying their time at the park. Her owners didn’t know what to do about her bad attitude. They, unfortunately, came to accept her behavior and even affectionately referred to her as the “fun police”.
Writer’s block is a lot like the fun police
Fortunately, you don’t have to accept it. We’ve all sat down at the keyboard or piece of paper with plans to create an amazing piece of writing. We’re excited about how great it’s gonna feel when the words start to flow like a fast-moving mountain stream.
But then, with fingers positioned on the keyboard, nothing happens. We stare at the screen, look at our hands, and expect movement. But there is none. Why the hell is this so hard we wonder. The fun police have arrived and we’re frozen. This isn’t uncommon and happens to the best of writers. When it happens to me I know what’s going on and where I’ve screwed up. In this article, I’ll outline three areas I’ve focused on to decrease the chance of writer’s block. They are:
- Putting more effort into outlining
- Taking more time to consume content
- Avoiding distractions
Let’s get started by discussing point #1 — putting more effort into outlining.
The world’s greatest writers are known for their incredible outlining
They don’t just sit down and expect a New York Times bestseller to drop out of the sky and onto their keyboard. They spend huge amounts of time planning and outlining their projects. When it finally comes time to write, their outline acts as a map. It prods them in the direction they want to go and helps keep them on track. After completing an outline, essentially all that is left is filling in the details. Sure, the writing still takes effort. But it becomes much easier when you have that outline.
My writing coach dared me to challenge the concept of outlining
The first topic he taught our class was how to outline. He taught us how to brainstorm topics, subtopics, working titles, and “one- ideas”. He then instructed how to put them all together in the very important outline. It was only after we mastered outlining that we started working on our writing.
Outlining became a critical step in our writing process. It was then that he challenged us to try writing without one. He knew what would happen. Writing became awkward and aimless without the outline. The challenge to write without an outline reinforced its necessity. Any obstacle to writing invites writer’s block. Removing the obstacle makes writing that much easier. There’s another concept that prevents writer’s block. I’ll cover it under point #2 — taking more time to consume content.
Content creation requires content consumption
Consuming content puts fuel in your tank. The more you consume, the more you’ll have to write about. And it doesn’t much matter what it is that you’re consuming. Books, audio, video, courses, articles — they’re all good. Consume content that you agree with and don’t shy away from content with which you disagree. Some of my most inspired times of writing have come after firmly disagreeing with something I’ve read. The emotions it stirred put a fire in my belly and I was excited to get it down in words. I’m not only reading more — I’ve also been determined to take more notes.
An Evernote Premium subscription has been a great investment
It’s allowed me to snap a picture of a page that’s caught my attention. Evernote makes it easy to find that page, either through tags or text. It’s also easy to save videos that are interesting and may provide fodder for future writing. I can store a lot of content that will help my writing in the future and it’s really easy to search through to find exactly what I’m looking for. Can Evernote get distracting? Sure, sometimes. That brings me to my third and final point — avoiding distractions.
As much as possible stay focused
It’s too easy to get distracted if there are potential distractions all around us. Before it even happens, remove anything around you that could be a distraction. I’m terrible at this. I’ll get totally random thoughts while I’m writing and head over to Google. Each time I get distracted it’s not a thirty-second distraction. It ends up being more like five to ten minutes. Sometimes more. An article that should take me an hour to write ends up taking two or three. I’ve got to keep those web browser windows closed and would encourage you to as well. Also, turn off your phone and close the door. Here’s a tip that takes avoiding distractions a step further.
Put your desk in the corner of the room and face the wall
If you’re blessed enough to have a window in your office, don’t set your desk up with a view to the outside. Everything going on outside will be way too distracting. Put your desk in the corner of the room and seat yourself facing the wall. Make the surroundings as bland and boring as possible. Then you’ll be able to focus. But not just because there are no distractions — it’s also because the new view will not be enjoyable and you’ll want to finish your writing as quickly as possible. But what if you tried all this and still the page is blank. What then?
Why not try what worked for the greatest copywriter of all time?
Eugene Schwartz was without question the greatest copywriter in our modern era. So what did he do to avoid writer’s block? Schwartz set a timer for thirty-three minutes and thirty-three seconds and started writing. What he wrote didn’t matter. He just wrote. Schwartz made the pen, or typewriter, or whatever he was using, move. The words could have been “blah blah blah….” It didn’t matter. Schwartz strongly believed that putting words down was enough to move him from any state of writer’s block. Try it sometime when the words aren’t flowing for you.
Binaural beats have also helped me stayed focused while writing
I’ll don my headphones and play some soft, focus music I find on Youtube. It may be binaural beats but doesn’t need to be. Almost any sort of background music will work. I find it helps block out external sounds and distractions. Not only is the music nice but the writing process becomes more enjoyable for me. I’ve actually come to look forward to writing time.
In summary, writer’s block can be avoided
When I’m struggling to write, I know it comes down to one of the three discussion points I wrote about in this article. #1 — I’ve failed to plan ahead and create an outline. #2 — I haven’t been consuming enough content. My input has been too low to produce any output. Or #3 — I’m not focused. I’m distracted by my surroundings or by things going on in my life. It’s always one of those three that’s the culprit.
Sitting down to write shouldn’t be scary
Who wants to worry about the “fun police” showing up and taking away all of the joy in writing. Not me. The family at the park with the adorable, yet mean dog, eventually kept their pup on a short leash. We too can keep the “fun police” on a short leash by being prepared and knowing how to overcome writer’s block.
Thanks for taking the time to read this article. I enjoyed writing it and I hope you enjoyed reading it. If you’re wondering what a good goal is for how much writing you should do, well you’re in luck. I wrote a blurb on why writing two articles a week is a big accomplishment. You can read it here. Cheers.
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