Four Tactics to Avoid Writer’s Block

It’s easier than you think.

Warning: These tactics and strategies are not mine. I don’t remember where they came from, but I’ve honed them over the years, and they work for me. I want to share these techniques with my fellow writers, but I don’t want to take credit for these ideas.

I wrote and illustrated my first book, Death Valley, in fourth grade at Northview Elementary School in Valparaiso, Indiana as part of the Young Author’s Conference. In fifth grade, I wrote The McKinley Mansion. Since those early attempts at storytelling, I’ve had thousands of articles published, some for clients and others as a journalist and freelance writer, starting in 2001 doing hometown stories for an alt+weekly in Lafayette, Indiana.

I can’t remember the last time I had writer’s block, but it’s been at least a decade. Thanks to some great advice, I don’t get writer’s block – ever. Not ever. Those who know me might attribute that streak of good luck to my nonstop talking for which I received the coveted award of “talks too much in class” on nearly every report card since I could speak. Others know that my mind is always working. I can’t turn it off, but that isn’t what keeps writer’s block at bay. I credit a few finely-tuned techniques that I learned during my freelance years.

1. I keep a running list of article or story ideas on my phone, so I always have the list with me.

The key for me is to write down the idea as soon as it comes to me, including any phrasing or words that come along for the ride. This gives me a deep pool from which to pluck ideas when I’m in the mood to write. The ideas seem to come in waves. For example, when I started my Substack a few weeks ago, I already had a list of three or four ideas. Now I have more than a dozen ideas, not including the ones I’ve already written about.

2. I regularly exercise my writing muscle.

This is something I’ve started recently (thanks, Joe). It requires discipline, but it is paying dividends beyond my imagination. Every time I write, the more I want to write, the more I have to say. Whether anyone wants to read it is outside my control.

By making writing a daily exercise, I am poised to grab onto an idea as soon as it strikes me. It is a different skillset, but it is similar to the way athletes train for the Olympics. It needs to be a daily habit, something to be perfected through regular training, until you’re the best you can be. And then you train some more because there is always room for improvement.

3. I write what I know. It’s not what you think…

In this sense, I am not referring to the topics I choose to write about. I am talking about writing what I’ve learned during the process of my research for an article or story. Let’s say I interviewed five businesses for an article that will be a walking tour of a little-known community. I did my research online, and I checked my facts, but I’m not sure where to start. This is where I write what I know, even if it is only typing up my notes.

Here's an example:  I visited five businesses in Smalltown, Washington to see why they draw people from around the region. I asked the business owners and their customers what their secrets to success were. Why is this store a hit? Business Owner #1 said she started her business as a home-based business, but her friends and family encouraged her to open a retail location to engage her customers and sell more homemade widgets.

At this point, I don’t submit this draft to my editor; I’m just typing out the facts without concern for flow, poetry or prose. I just write what I learned during my research. At some point, during that writing session, or perhaps a second or third session, my creativity kicks in and the story starts to take shape. This works for me Every. Single. Time.

4. I don’t panic over the lede*.

This used to be a tough one for me. I was such a perfectionist that I couldn’t move beyond the opening paragraph unless it met or exceeded my expectations. I’ve had to let that drive to be perfect go. Instead, I sleep on it. I’ve already typed up what I know and more often than not, a good lede will come to me in the middle of the night or while I’m walking my dog when my brain is (somewhat) quiet. I’ve provided my brain with the basics, and I let my subconscious mold it and shape it into a palatable beginning that will attract the attention of my readers. If all else fails, I reach out to my editor or a writer friend to get suggestions for opening my article.

Bonus tip: I read…a lot!

Every night before bed - and sometimes during the day if my schedule allows - I read. I usually have at least one fiction and one nonfiction book going at a time. Reading shows me the discipline other writers have, and I learn so much from their ideas, their vocabulary and their cadence. I’m currently reading the latest in the Cormoran Strike series by Robert Galbraith (aka J.K. Rowling), and the author uses words I’ve never heard before. I look up every word I don’t know. While it might not ever find its way into my writing, I like to be well informed.

If you answered “yes” or “sometimes,” how do you tame the beast?

*Interesting anecdote: In the newsroom, “lead” is misspelled “lede” to help copyeditors and typesetters distinguish it from the word “lead” when typesetting. Not everyone subscribes to the use of this spelling, however. Marty Smith of Willamette Week and Roy Peter Clark are not fans.