Writer’s block can definitely be an infuriating nemesis, especially if you have ever been on a deadline. Yes, we have all been there where you put your pen to paper, or more likely, you sit and stare blankly at your computer screen for minutes, hours, and maybe even days.

How do you break free of this horrible slump and get back to writing?

• Stick to a writing schedule. If you have time set aside to write every single day, this will force you to push past the writer’s block. Make sure that you stick to your schedule as a legitimate appointment, where you will be put on the spot to write for an allotted amount of time. Yes, some of the writing may be absolute nonsense that you want to throw out, but at least you are getting the ball rolling.

• Be kind to yourself. If you have been getting nowhere on your writing project for several days, cut yourself a little bit of slack. Most often, the root of your writer’s block is because you want to write the very best piece of literature – and who doesn’t? – although that may not be your first attempt every time. You need to understand that sometimes your writing will not be as good as you hope, but you can always go back and revise, edit, and revise again until it is up to par!

• Focus on writing as your job. Instead of seeing it as an art where you have to wait for the creative moment to strike you, consider writing to be your job, and stick to it. When you see writing as a job, you will be motivated to continue to put the words on the paper, edit with an objective eye, and potentially change a portion of the story if it just doesn’t make sense.

• Give yourself some downtime. Many writers can attest to the fact that your mind gets a serious workout when you are writing all day long. You may feel sleepy, grumpy, and irritable, so it is definitely a must to take some time off before your next project. Even if it is just an afternoon, give your mind a little bit of time to decompress so that you can think of fresh ideas for your next project.

Writer’s block can definitely ruin your day, but it doesn’t have to when you use these handy tips to keep the words flowing on your next project!

For a great selection of Bunn coffee filters, check out Bethany Ramos‘ website, The Coffee Bump

A Humble Little Post About how to Kiss Your Writer’s Block Goodbye
(And Maybe Punch it in the Crotch on the way out)

I’ll always remember it. Late in the spring of ’82 when I was young and the world was spread before me like something that spreads before you when you’re young.

So I walked into the O.R. and said, “Scalpel.” The lady (I think it was probably a nurse, but who can say when everyone’s wearing a mask – it could have been some desperado in a pink outfit) handed me a scalpel. “I’m making the first incision,” I said. Then I started with the bone saw. “Oooh, look,” was my next comment. “It’s his brain.”

I poked it, and laughed HI-lariously when the fellow kicked a nearby bedpan. Another poke and he shouted “Fruity tooty love your booty!”

At this point several armed officers escorted me out of the room. But in spite of the fact that I was in prison for a while (turns out there are rules about doing brain surgery when you are not, in fact, a doctor of any kind), I’ll always have those great memories. The guy I operated on probably won’t, but that’s a risk I was willing to take.

“Wait, wait, WAIT! What the heck does this have to do with being a writer and avoiding writer’s block?” I hear you say.

To which I answer: everything, suckah.

Here’s the big secret about writer’s block: writer’s block usually doesn’t mean a writer has nothing in him or her to write; rather it usually means they do have something to write, but there’s some kind of internal crap filter that keeps them from writing it. As though there’s a part of most writers that insists that every single sentence be an appropriate calling card for the Nobel Prize for Literature. Or at least a Hugo or something.

But that’s just dumb. Not everything you write will be perfect. And it’s not supposed to be perfect. That’s what God invented re-writes for.*

So wait, now you agree I may have a point, but still aren’t getting the whole brain surgery connection. Well, it’s simple, my fine young friend.** The point of the brain surgery example is to illustrate a simple fact about writing: unless you are in charge of correspondence between hostile states, it is very likely that no matter how bad a writer you are, no one will die.

Person who does brain surgery without adequate preparation = bad (and probably dead brain surgery patient). Person who engages in writing without adequate preparation = fine-and-dandy-because-how-the-heck-else-are-you-going-to-get-good-at-it? So the stakes are low and you can write without worrying about killing someone. Takes a load off, don’t it?

And that leads to this question: You want to know how to avoid writer’s block? Answer: Just WRITE. Accept the fact some of what you write will not be fit for wiping Charley Manson’s behind. When you accept that, you can also accept that you’ll be able to go back and fix it later (thus making what you write fit for wiping the hinies of really important folks like the President or Oprah or other people who run the world).

And when you start to write with this attitude, an odd thing happens: you start to get good. You start to get fast. You start to be a writer who knows you can sit down at a moment’s notice and bang out something that resembles a good piece of work.

Example: I recently optioned a screenplay, and was asked to do some rewrites on it. I netted several tens of THOUSANDS of dollars. Total time to write the script: three days. Total time to do the rewrites: two days.

That’s a good earnings ratio.

Or how about this: I wrote a book called Billy: Messenger of Powers (which, BTW, you can get at smashwords.com or at Amazon.com). The book is pretty good: it’s currently the Highest-Rated book out of many thousands at smashwords.com, and has gotten great reviews from dozens of folks. All this to say (aside from being a really subtle way of pimping one of my books) is that the book does not stink. It is even possible to call it “good.”

It is over 180,000 words. That’s well over 400 pages in paperback format.

I wrote it – including rewrites – in a month. Because I just let myself write, and let myself enjoy it.

Writing is NOT brain surgery. It is NOT nuclear weapons testing. It is WRITING. It is something that anyone and everyone can do. And along with that fact, it is also something that anyone and everyone WILL get good at.

If they practice.

If they recognize “writer’s block” for what it really is: they’re own insecurity getting in the way of a good first draft.

If they, in a word… write.

So what are you sitting around reading this for? Go write something!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Michaelbrent Collings is a lawyer, screenwriter, black-belt martial artist, father, husband, and has a killer backhand on the badminton court. He is, in a word (wait, that’s several words!), a guy going through some serious personality issues.

In addition to Billy: Messenger of Powers, Michaelbrent has also written the amazon.com suspense-thriller RUN and the sci-fi epic Celestia. He’s also written screenplays, several fairy tales, a couple of nonfiction books, and dozens of articles on a variety of subjects. He even has a blog at http://whoisbillyjones.com/mylittlethoughts/ that lets you delve into the inner creakings of a warped mind.

* Unless you don’t believe in God, in which case I guess you’re just going to burn in Hell, where you will have writer’s block forever and also will probably have to sit next to me while I smack my chewing gum very loudly.

**You may in fact be a cruddy old coot, but since we’ve never met I’m going to give you the benefit of the doubt. Just like you’re going to imagine me with a thick head of hair.

Writer’s block is one of those problems that somehow defies a clear description or explanation.

It’s tough to tie down and be clear about what it really is, simply because every writer’s experience of writer’s block is a little different.

But the end result is the same…one day we are writing well and productively. And the next day we come to a grinding halt.

Writer’s block can slow down or halt our writing progress for a couple of hours, a couple of days or for even longer.

So what’s the answer? How do we deal with it?

I won’t pretend to have the answer for everyone in every situation, but I do know of two major issues that can severely reduce our productivity as writers.

First, ask yourself whether you really WANT to be writing whatever it is you’re working on when you grind to a halt.

When we write on projects that simply don’t appeal to us, our subconscious minds have a powerful and infuriating ability to sabotage even our best efforts.

If you don’t truly want to be working on whatever it is you are writing when you’re struck by writer’s block, it may be time to step back and make some tough choices about the kinds of writing projects you should be choosing.

The second major cause of writer’s block or procrastination is when you don’t prepare for your writing task.

Whatever the projects I’m working on, I plan a structure or outline in advance. I gather together any reference materials I might need. I set aside a time for writing.

In other words, I get ready and allocate a block of time.

This means that when I start writing I can simply follow the outline from beginning to end. I don’t have to pause and wonder about what is coming next. Nor do I have to stop and do research mid-way through the writing phase.

If you confine yourself to taking on writing projects that really appeal to you, and you prepare thoroughly before you start writing, you should find yourself free of writer’s block most of the time.

For more help in putting writer’s block behind you, follow the Writing Rituals method…

Instant article writing templates such as those found at Start WritingArticlesFaster.com can help you overcome writer’s block. In many cases, with the right article templates, you can write your articles in 30 minutes or less.

Notice the keywords there – “with the right article templates.”

If you do a Google search for “instant article writing templates”, “instant article templates”, “article writing templates”, “free article templates” and “article templates”- underneath my websites and my articles you find hundreds of other resources. Some sites even give you free article templates.

Heck, I even give you 3 free article templates at TryMyFreeArticleTemplates.com

Here’s the problem… most article templates are not designed to help you write better articles faster. Now, the creators of these article templates had good intentions. However, if you use the wrong article templates, you will find yourself even more confused.

The 3 Biggest Problems with Most Instant Article Writing Templates

1. Most article templates do not give you the structure and organization you need. In fact, here’s a sampling of what one article template provider offers…

Article Writing Template – What I Learned From….

This one is simply a bulleted list of what you have learned from any number of things or events such as what I learned from my parents, my sister, my brother, my son, my daughter, from my third grade teacher, from September 11th, from watching a TV show, etc.

Bullet 1-

Bullet 2-

Bullet 3-

And, so on…

Now, to me this is not a workable template. Templates are supposed to be worksheets that guide you throughout the process. For example, I put my “Instant Article Writing Templates” in MS Word format. Each template is in chart format. All you have to do is put the information that’s in your head and put it exactly where I ask you to. Once the template is complete, all you have to do is copy each section and paste it into a new document – and you’ll have a finished article.

2. Most article templates don’t keep you, the article writer, focused. If I don’t use my article templates, I find myself rambling, going from one topic to another. And, I’m the article writing and article marketing expert. When you have a workable template that provides you with structure and organization, your copy will automatically become more focused. It becomes an easier, better read for your readers. However, most templates like the example I showed you above do not give you a structure and organization to follow. And, they allow you to bounce from one idea to another without any kind of transition.

3. Most article template resources do not provide real article examples from a wide number of industries. If there are any article examples provided along with the article templates, you’ll just find articles that the creator wrote. So, you’ll just find Internet marketing articles that promote the creator’s other products and services. You want to look for article resources that provide actual article examples of those in your niche. For example, in my Instant Article Writing Templates Kit, I not only share with you some of my own articles, but I share with articles that are written by my clients who are authors, speakers and entrepreneurs dealing with a wide number of business, finance, relationship and parenting issues.

Again, I do not mean to mock or offend those in my industry. I just want to help you write your articles faster. Now, that you aware of the problems that most instant article writing templates have – you can choose wisely.

Article Marketing Expert Eric Gruber uses the power of articles to create online opportunities for Internet marketers, small business owners, authors, entrepreneurs and speakers who want more publicity, prospects and profits. Now, you can get 3 of his favorite his instant article writing templates that will help you overcome writer’s block and write your articles in 30 minutes or less. Get your free article templates now: http://www.TryMyFreeArticleTemplates.com