Writing a Story and Breaking Writer’s Block
There are many things to consider when one decides to write a story. All of these things can seem overwhelming too. Where should I start? What direction do I take? What do I create? Why will the reader care about this story? Should they care about this story?
By no means are any of the above the most important questions to ask. I’ll admit, they were just the first to come to mind. However, every one of the problems listed above have a few things in common with one another.
First, every one of those questions has a string of complex answers. None of the above will have a solution that is a one size fits all situation. In this same vein, sometimes, as will be discussed a little further down, these types of questions, and the form of contemplation are not worth exploring at least initially.
Second, and most importantly, letting oneself get bogged down in these questions creates a very oppressive form of writers block. For those unfamiliar with the term, writers block is essentially being unable to write for a whole host of reasons. It can also apply to a person being unable to know how to proceed with their writing. And since there are so many different ways that writers block can manifest, it is wise to avoid as many of the factors that cause it as possible.
As a published author in my own right, I have decided to share some of the information that has helped me write and escape the confines of my own blocks. I hope this to be helpful for writers of all levels.
First and foremost, and this cannot be stressed enough, the most important part of writing a story is to write. I know, it is a crazy concept correct? But the most noticeable side effect of writers block is the inability to write so I cannot stress this important strategy enough. For those who have trouble writing down their ideas because they fear of lack of coherency, my advice is to use the powerful tools given by computers and spell checkers. Put whatever words come to mind in the word document, google doc or whatever equivalent you are making use of. SAVE OFTEN! Few things are as destructive to writing compared to a couple hours of work completely lost.
Next, should you feel lost, and need more inspiration, the wonderful, and all mighty power of the internet is near limitless fuel for imagination. Literacy and technology intersect at every corner within this realm. There are novels of every genre to consume for examples of what works and what does not in a story, and past that, we have incredibly detailed wiki website for just about every story on the face of the planet.
The next thing I will discuss deserves a paragraph in its own right. There are Wiki pages for stories, and then there is Tvtropes. This website has so many tools at the fingertips of writers, that words cannot even properly express how helpful this page has been in my own writing process. Need help constructing characters? Pages for that on here. Need to ensure that an idea you have has not been done hundreds of times already? Plenty of pages for that too! Seriously, no matter how many times I repeat it, I cannot stress enough how important this very specific website has been in my own writing process, especially in the vein of writers block.
One final aspect that is equally important to writing, and goes into the same vein as above, make sure to read as well as write. Literacy is required for writing. It is called literature for that very reason. I was once told that “for every hour you write, you should read two” and it is true. Remember that reading on the internet, or listening to music is as much consuming literacy as reading a book. With that in mind, the number of ideas hat exist to help with the writing process is limitless.
But for those who need one final push, there is one final strategy that can make use of all the concepts outlined above. A handy stopwatch can help a writer to commit to putting their ideas down on the page. Whether through a phone, or a literal alarm timer, doing work in short spurts can help ease the load and overwhelming feelings that are associated with writing. This final step can help those struggling to crush their writers block run over the mountain to find the downhill slope on the other side.