I don’t know who first coined the phrase, “No rest for the weary,” but perhaps it should be changed to “No rest for the writer.” It feels like that sometimes. On those days when we sit at our computers and everything that flows out from our brains to our fingertips to our computer screens feels dead wrong. That happened to me yesterday, but I had to remind myself of several ways to get around what feels like the insurmountable writer’s block. In a way, it seems too easy. But nothing’s wrong with easy, especially if you’ve been banging your head against the wall all day long. There’s only three here, but remember, I’m saving the best for last.
1) Read a bit of someone else’s book. It doesn’t have to be a favorite. In fact, I often read books outside of my genre on purpose. Don’t stress out about it, just take a break and do it. Subconsciously, it does something inside our brains. We learn a new way of saying the same thing, a new word or phrase, or even an idea to help push us in the right direction for our own books. For instance, we might realize we need to give more description to a scene or to a character. The next time we sit down to write, things automatically come from that experience. I don’t try to understand it, I just accept it.
2) Use the voice memo button on your phone. Yes, a lot of us probably do this already. Here’s the thing. There have been so many times I’m in the car listening to the radio, or at a restaurant and overhear something that I think I can use in a book. Knowing you actively seeking ideas helps us to tune in to our surroundings. And sometimes, I just have an epiphany, almost out of the blue. It’s important to record those ideas as soon as they come. I’ve learned that the things I think I’ll never forget have a way of getting forgotten.
3) This is my favorite hack and I try to use it as frequently as possible when I’m stuck. At bedtime, after praying for creative ideas, I give my brain an assignment. Since the subconscious works millions of times faster than our conscious brain, this usually pays off. Actually, I think it always pays off. If I’m stuck in a scene, I tell my brain to give me an idea to get me out of it by the time I wake up. If it’s a new idea for a book, same thing. I tell my brain to work on ideas while I sleep. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve woken up with the answer to a scene problem or new ideas to add to a scene to spice it up. Occasionally, it might come later the next day, while I’m writing, but so far, the strategy has not let me down.
Sleep creative!