How to beat Writer’s block.

How many times have you stared at the screen, attempting to put words together but failing? Many times, right? Yes, it happens to many of us, and to be honest, it’s not a good place to be as creative. Writer’s block is a common term in the blogosphere, and it’s been hard for me to acknowledge that I had it. Had it not been for the monthly writer’s meetup with the Afrobloggers community sometime last year, I wouldn’t have had the courage to finally put my gut down and upload any content this year. Although I had been preparing posts with the help of my friends, it was not easy to beat writer’s block.

2023 is the year to complete what we started in obedience to God. As I mentioned in the previous post, we will be uploading posts twice a week, and promise to be as consistent as I possibly could. Already the posts for January are scheduled. I’m excited about the new year.

In today’s post, I’d like to share some of the things I did to overcome writer’s block. I can only give you what worked for me. But before we go on detailing how I beat writer’s block, let’s look at the possible factors that are likely to cause it. There are many, but I only chose three common ones which I experienced. Here we go.

Causes of writer’s block

Waiting for inspiration
You’ve probably heard that waiting for inspiration to write will make you wait forever. Do you know why? …. because inspiration will never come. Many authors indicate that they achieved success by just showing up at their computers when they didn’t feel like it. It’s not an easy thing to do, but that’s the only way you can produce results. You need to just show up on the screen and write.

Perfection
Practice makes perfect, as the saying goes. If you don’t practice anything, you can’t expect to be good at it. Drafts that you kept because you felt they needed to be polished before publication are also drafts that could open doors for you. No matter how imperfect they are, they can create opportunities for you that you never thought you’d have. Successful authors would tell you that they all had a very rocky start and that their writing skills eventually improved because they did not wait for perfection.

Check out my very first post here and please don’t laugh. Hahaha.

If you are not feeling well.
I understand some people draw inspiration from places of hurt. But some cannot write anything if they are hurting. The sadness just dims the light enough to put up anything. The mind, body, and soul aren’t able to connect the dots because of the pain. This can sometimes create writer’s block.
 
You can also check how writing is good for mental health.

There are undoubtedly a ton of tips for overcoming writer’s block, but in today’s post, I’ll just talk about what worked for me.

• Read other people’s work. Be sure to take in as much content as you can from other creatives. Watch videos on YouTube, listen to podcasts, and read books, articles, and blogs. This is a great way to get ideas from other content creators, in this case, writers. It’s possible that someone will write on investing or financial literacy. You can go ahead and expand on how to go about it. How does investing operate? Where are the benefits? And how do investments work? The inspiration grows stronger the more you read other people’s work. My hiatus took longer than expected because I was simply not reading any blogs or articles as I should. And it usually came from reading other people’s posts. I am looking forward to reading more content from you for inspiration.

• Check out your old posts. In the past few weeks, I was going through some of my previous posts, and indeed, it helped me remember my ability to create content. I even read the comments and noticed all the supportive remarks and it helped me a lot. Browse through your old posts and read the comments to get rid of writer’s block. You will realize how that can change the way you see yourself. You will realize that you are good enough just as you are. You just need the motivation to keep the ball rolling.

• Do not wait to perfect the idea. Sometimes there’s that perfect idea in your mind, but you cannot execute it the way you envision it. And you give in simply because you cannot put together the first paragraph. That’s all right! Move on. Write the body and the conclusion now. Or you could just start at the end and work your way up. The introduction will be built up as you do that. Or, even better, you may just write the body of the piece and edit it later or the day after. Now that you are clear, new suggestions for how to carry out the post will come. Just because you struggle with the first paragraph doesn’t mean you should ignore your brilliant ideas. Just start writing.

•  Do not be afraid to write about new topics. I understand the concept of niches, but you can always venture into something fresh and different. That will make you realize your potential and versatility as a writer. Lazarus, one of my fellow afrobloggers, said that he felt challenged during the winter ABC festival because the topics weren’t what he typically wrote about. But it was a great challenge since it forced him to do something different and let him realize how versatile he was as a writer. I am not saying step out of your niche, but find other ways you can spice up your posts within your niche. Check out other writers in your niche for ideas and how to implement some of the posts.

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Those are my tips to help you beat up writer’s block. Please send me an email if you’d like to share some of your tips at sanctuaryofgreatness@gmail.com on my blog.

Or you can also share your tips in the comment section. It will be of help to me and others reading this blog.

From my heart to yours
Cheers!

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