Got Nothing? Get Your Writing Mojo Back
When you’re stuck on your writing, when you’ve got nothing in your head that you can put on the page, when you’ve hit the mental brick wall, I’ve got bad news for you: the only way out is through. The longer you let the nothingness fester, the harder it will be to get back to your writing. It’s better to do something, anything, than nothing. Which only contributes to the nothingness.
But that’s good news, too, because once you start writing again, you’ll be out of your agony and, well, writing again. And that’s what you want, after all.
So below are some quick hits you can try that are tried and true ways to get back to the page. I am not writing long explanations about them because remember, I said quick. The idea is to choose one and try it. Close your eyes and run your finger down the screen and do whatever one you land on.
Here we go:
Write. Hahaha, I know. That’s the problem. But choose a prompt or a writing exercise or a line from a poem, set a timer, and write. Just write. Don’t worry about what you’re writing or if it makes sense, just write. You can use prompts with lines or character names from your WIP, as well.
Arrange a writing date with writing friends where you have to write. Set rules: chat for a certain amount of time, then buckle down. Or buckle down first and then chat.
Write in your journal about how awful it is to be blocked. Or anything. Writing begets writing.
Tell yourself, just for now. Just for now, you’ll write the scene a certain way. Just for now, you’ll assume your character’s motivation stems from that childhood car accident. And so on.
Pretend. Pretend you know what happens next. We do have these things called computers on which you can delete, copy, and paste and so on.
Read. Maybe a writing craft book will inspire you. Or a novel or story in the same vein as what you’re reading.
Pick a card, any card, from a tarot deck if you have one handy. If you don’t pick a random topic and do a google search. Write about one of the photos. You might even print some out ahead of time for such occasions.
Make a list. What I Know About My WIP. What I Don’t Know About My WIP. What I Need to Know About My Character. Etc., etc. Lists are magic.
Make a Mind Map, which is a whole-brained list. If you don’t know what it is, look it up.
Take a break. Sometimes you mind just needs a rest. Go do something completely different—walk, garden, enjoy a hobby. You’ll come back refreshed and with a brighter brain.