Blazer’s Block

We all have encountered or been the person who watches a cursor blink in silent despair, or changes the font twenty times, before giving up and going to bed.

This feeling of having no idea what to write about and feeling frustrated with beginning a writing assignment is known as writer’s block. If you are reading this article you probably know this feeling. We have writer’s block when we can’t get started writing, or when we are stuck halfway through our paper and can’t seem to move forward.

Reasons why we Experience Writer’s Block

• • Fear

    

Writing can be scary for anyone, especially someone who is very introverted. We experience fear because we are afraid of putting our thoughts out into the open and being judged by our readers, ultimately leading to stress. Wanting to be as good as everyone else, striving to be perfect when you write something or holding unrealistic standards can lead to writer’s block.

Someone who is good at writing may experience writer’s block because of high expectations and not wanting to let anyone down. Maybe you are presenting an idea in class, and fear of rejection makes it harder to write.

• • Content

    

Several specific things about a writing assignment can lead to stress but the content of the paper is a major reason why we experience writer’s block. Sometimes it is hard to find information about what we are writing about or we run out of ideas for the assignments. The content could be complicated, hard to write about or we just don’t want to do it because it does not interest us.

• • Burned Out

If you are a writer who has been working constantly, you are more than likely burned out and need to take a break. Writing too much can be bad, especially if you are not getting enough rest. Remember, not resting your mind can cause writer’s block and sleep deficiency is associated with problems in concentration, memory and the immune system.

Overcoming Writer’s Block

• • Ease the Tension

Writer’s block is frustrating and getting around it can be challenging. Sometimes taking a break and doing something fun to take your mind off of a paper for a while can help with writer’s block.

Some creative ways to help with writer’s block includes: listening to music, going for a walk (walking helps to relieve stress and free thoughts), and playing games—whether it’s on a PlayStation, laptop or phone will help you focus on something else.

• • Eliminate Distractions

While some people need to ease the tension by doing something like playing games, other people struggle with avoidance and distractions. Turn your phone on airplane mode to mute distractions, use an app like AppDetox to lock individual apps or turn off all electronic devices. Changing your workspace could help eliminate distractions as well. If you are sitting in your room trying to write a paper, going to a library or somewhere quiet with other people who are also studying helps with distractions. A change in setting could really get ideas flowing.

• • Just Write

Write about something that is fun and changes the subject to something different. There are websites that support writers and give them a chance to write about something different with fun writing prompts. Sometimes the only way to get past writer’s block is to write what you are struggling with and get it down on paper; handwriting things before typing them can help with your ideas and thoughts.

You can’t think yourself out of a writing block; you have to write yourself out of a thinking block- John Rodger