Break Through Writer's Block

People experience writer’s block working on anything from dissertations to articles, presentations or performance reviews. The ideas are in your head. Finishing is at the top of your to-do list, but the words just can’t find their way out. That speed bump in your writing process doesn’t have to become an arduous mountain to climb. Here are six ways to jumpstart your writing process and overcome writer's block.

1. Start in the middle, not at the beginning.

The toughest line is often the first one. You have the core message you want your reader to chew on, but you can’t get the introduction right to start things off. You draft 15 different opening sentences and delete them all. Minutes become hours and deadlines are missed while you are still thinking about starting.

Don’t start at the beginning. Write down your main point first, wherever it may land in your article. That burning idea, clever message, poignant reflective sentence or even the conclusion - start there. Work outward from what comes easily. When you have the bulk of the writing done, then go back and craft a fitting intro.

Here’s a parallel. A chef designing a menu won’t get hung up thinking about the appetizer and never get to the rest of the meal. Plan the main course first. The appetizer compliments the main course and wakes up those taste buds. The same approach can work for your writing. Work on the intro last, then serve it up first Master Chef style as the amuse bouche to the main course of your work.

2. Put pen to paper before you hit the keyboard.

Do you find yourself staring at a blank computer screen, then all of a sudden 90 minutes goes by and you are knee deep in social media, but in deeper trouble for your writing deadline? Step away from the keyboard and pick up a pen first. Some freeform brainstorming with pen to paper can unlock the words and ideas that are stuck. The mind-body connection of the brain to hand can get you rolling.

3. Sketch it in color.

If the words are not flowing, let colors and images take center stage. Grab the crayons, markers or colored pencils and put aside your inner critic who might say, “You can’t even draw a stick figure.” Just let go and draw pictures of what your article would look like. Sketch the themes that come to mind. Seeing your ideas take shape in something other than black and white pixels on screen can spark creativity and avoid frustration.

4. 1+2+3 = Presentation.

Combine tips #1, #2 and #3 the next time you are working on a presentation. Grab a stack of blank paper or scrap paper from the junk mail you would recycle anyway. One page per slide. Put pen to paper, use your colors. Draw your charts and diagrams. Get your key bullets out of your head. You don’t need to start with the intro slide. Get your core message down first. If you know you need a data source, specific image or reference, jot it down as a placeholder.

When you have most of the content on paper, order the pages in a sequence that makes sense. Then go back to the computer and follow your own roadmap to get the presentation done in half the time with one-quarter of the headbanging angst. You might actually enjoy creating the presentation.

5. Let music move you.

Instrumental music can serve as a distraction from the frustration of not being able to write, while actually sharpening your focus to do the writing. It sounds paradoxical but try it. What gets you in a creative mood? Or if you were selecting an arrangement of music to accompany your article, how would it sound to your reader? Beethoven’s Fifth? Miles Davis’ “Kind of Blue”? Or to really blow your reader’s doors off, try Eddie Van Halen’s “Eruption.”

Music moves the soul. It can also move you through writer’s block by communicating without words.

6. When in doubt, talk it out.

Oftentimes you can talk about your article very easily, but it’s just hard to get it down on paper. So just speak it into existence. Use your phone's voice recorder and talk out what you want to say. You could write this way gazing at the sky or staring at some beautiful artwork. When you’re done just copy, paste and edit to your heart’s content. I actually wrote tip #6 this way, by recording myself talking and just dropped it into this article without much editing.

Play with these 6 options to break through your writer’s block and find what works for you.

Happy writing!