"I know I can. I know I can."
This short list of tools to help fight writer's block was compiled and created by this children's writer. Writer's block affects all of us, no matter what genre we write in, or what age group we write for. All of us have or will, at some time in our career, fall into the abyss of wordlessness, the dungeon of no ideas. Perhaps, you're down the hole right now. The dilemma is the same for everyone and often, the cure is also the same.
The key to combatting writers block is investing in yourself as an artist and nurturing your creativity. Thirty ways of taking a new and productive path follow.
1. Read, read, read.
2. Journal, journal, journal.
3. Cut and paste all those gems: articles, pictures, and quotes. Beginnings, middles, ends. They’ll come in handy.
4. Find something small to write about every day, a word, a sound, a rhythm, an idea, an image, something that might lead to the remarkable.
5. But remember, often, the simplest things are the true gems.
6. Create the phase someone else missed.
7. Write about what you know.
7. Become a hobbyist of your art form. Know it like the palm or your hand.
8. Rest and let renewal happen during quiet times.
9. Make exercise a daily pleasure.
10. Never fixate on what you have already written or what you think you are writing about.
11. But open your mind to the ideas and specific facts that will make your writing pulsate and shine.
12. Don’t be afraid of writer's block, it’s only your mind’s way of telling you that you’re not on the right track. Stop, look, and listen for a new and revitalized path.
13. Explore your creativity - there are places in your mind you have never visited that crave to be discovered.
14. Consume everything before before you and behind, the simplest thing might lead to a new and fresh idea.
15. Love what you do to the point of excess.
16. But never forget your family. Without them, the journey is a lonely one and the friction destructive.
17. Aim high, higher, higher.
18. Edit, edit, edit. As a matter of fact, learn to love editing.
19. Don’t worry about not having anything to say that others will want to read.
20. Just stick true to your adventure and others will slowly begin to follow.
21. Never say, “NO!” or, “I can’t.” These and other self-putdowns kill the artist.
22. Rather, think like the little engine that could, “I know I can. I know I can.”
23. At all times, be brave. There is only one person to do the writing - you.
24. Be kind to yourself.
25. Read and experiment with all genres, mix and match, create something truly your own.
26. Listen to your heart and speak true to yourself.
27. Your weirdness will make you stronger.
28. Build on your handicaps. They are what make you different.
29. Share your writing, why else have you worked so hard to create.
30. Learn how to read your writing to others, how to taste your words and share from the heart.
Now, it's your turn. You're pen is waiting.
Partially inspired by Milena.
Robert Max Tell Stelmach's social media links:
Web: www.maxtell.ca
Email: robert@maxtell.ca
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Twitter: https://twitter.com/maxtellstory
Blog: Koetry for Pids: http://koetry-pids.blogspot.ca
Blog: More Happy Readers: www.more-happy-readers.ca
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