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Whether we are writing for our own website development project, blog articles, press releases, or any other form of creative writing task, we sometimes find ourselves painted into a corner with writer's block. There are actually a few different types of writer's block that I'll brush up on below, keeping them separate for easier diagnosis and identification purposes.
Problem A: Blank Brain Writer's Block
This type of writer's block is when you just can't seem to visualize an idea, no matter how hard you try. A side effect of blank brain writer's block is starting a sentence and then erasing it or staring blankly at the screen whilst whispering to yourself in an attempt to somehow motivate yourself. You literally have no clue at all what to write about.
Solutions:
Problem B: Brain Overload Writer's Block
I think we've all encountered this one more times than we can count. We get multiple ideas all at the same time and find it difficult to focus on just one. A constant mental battle back and forth with no apparent winner for a follow through.
Solution:
Problem C: Scattered Brain Writer's Block
Okay, so you've got an outline for your article, you've got the statistics, resources, and other elements, but you keep drawing a blank when it comes to putting them all together and organizing them.
Solution:
Problem D: Brain Dead Writer's Block
This is when your paranoia takes over and gives your psyche a run for its money. You keep second guessing everything you do fearing that nobody will like what you wrote. Basically, you are shooting yourself in the foot and demotivating yourself for no reason at all. It's all in your head.
Solution:
Problem E: Baffled Brain Writer's Block
So, you have finally gotten all of the elements in your article laid out in black and white and now it's time for revisions. While going back over your work, you're noticing a few holes in-between elements that aren't quite fitting the way you had imagined they would initially and it's frustrating you.
Solutions:
Problem A: Blank Brain Writer's Block
This type of writer's block is when you just can't seem to visualize an idea, no matter how hard you try. A side effect of blank brain writer's block is starting a sentence and then erasing it or staring blankly at the screen whilst whispering to yourself in an attempt to somehow motivate yourself. You literally have no clue at all what to write about.
Solutions:
- Execution of an idea is the hardest part, so focus more on the fact that ideas are a dime a dozen and you can find some foundation in everyday life to get you kick started. Get out for an hour or two, breath some fresh air, relax, wander around town aimlessly and soak in your surroundings. Take a small writing pad and pen with you for notes. Maybe take some pictures, as well.
- Brain exercises tend to do wonders. Think of a part of your life where something groundbreaking happened and try to imagine that it went differently. Now put your fingers on the keyboard and let your imagination take over. Revisit a few different aspects of your past and repeat the imagination process. After a few times of doing this, it should get your brain in forward motion again, making it easier to write that original article that you wanted to in the first place.
Bonus: You can still publish your imagination writings somewhere else. No need to waste any unique content.
Problem B: Brain Overload Writer's Block
I think we've all encountered this one more times than we can count. We get multiple ideas all at the same time and find it difficult to focus on just one. A constant mental battle back and forth with no apparent winner for a follow through.
Solution:
- First, go ahead and write each idea down on your note pad. Then, move the note pad aside now that you got them all out of your head. Don't worry, they are on the note pad now so you won't forget them later. Now, make sure you scrape your brain clean so you can start over from scratch with something fresh you can focus on by itself.
- Optionally, you could revisit the list now instead of later and do a process of elimination till you are down to just one idea to focus on.
Problem C: Scattered Brain Writer's Block
Okay, so you've got an outline for your article, you've got the statistics, resources, and other elements, but you keep drawing a blank when it comes to putting them all together and organizing them.
Solution:
- Many times this can be caused by being bored. It's times to spice things up and step off the beaten path of what's familiar or common to you. Get creative and add some flare to the article. Break up all the seriousness of it that's caused your eyes to become droopy and tickle a funny bone or two as you bring it all together. Just a touch of personal creativity can re-motivate you to complete your writing project.
Problem D: Brain Dead Writer's Block
This is when your paranoia takes over and gives your psyche a run for its money. You keep second guessing everything you do fearing that nobody will like what you wrote. Basically, you are shooting yourself in the foot and demotivating yourself for no reason at all. It's all in your head.
Solution:
- The ideas flowing out of your fingertips and translating into text are not anywhere close to being as bad as you think. Don't forget that you can always do a rewrite or make edits prior to publishing. Don't let an unfounded fear stop your chi. Remember, out of every ten people that like something, there will always be one or two that don't. Never let the minority vote affect the majority rule. You've got followers out there just waiting to read your next brain tingling scripture. Focus on providing it for the people that will love it and forget about what others think.
Problem E: Baffled Brain Writer's Block
So, you have finally gotten all of the elements in your article laid out in black and white and now it's time for revisions. While going back over your work, you're noticing a few holes in-between elements that aren't quite fitting the way you had imagined they would initially and it's frustrating you.
Solutions:
- Now, I'm just going to take a wild stab at this one, but I would imagine that this probably isn't writers block at all. Typically, it's more of a natural process that the brain goes through as it diagnoses an equation. Sometimes, patches of content-blocks are like puzzle pieces and they just need a few snippets of filler to bind them together. Take your time, breath, relax, and if needed, step away for thirty minutes to an hour and come back to it with a fresh and clear mind. Many times, the puzzle pieces will start to snap into place easily after that.
- If needed, don't be afraid to rewrite a content block to make it fit better. For some people, a rewrite with new words is easier than trying to unscramble the old ones.
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