From Tumblr: Anon Ask - Tips for writer's block

[nym_wibbly]

Could you share any tips for dealing with writer's block?
~ Anonymous

Depends on the situation. I’ve not had a lot of experience of being stumped for ideas - there’s almost always something burning a hole in my head trying to get out. If I get stuck on one project, I normally try writing something else like a request fic or a vignette. When I really don’t have any ideas, I don’t write at all but spend more time consuming media instead.

I get blocked on an ongoing story if I over-plan it; once my brain knows what’s going to happen to the characters, knows too many spoilers as it were, it loses interest in actually doing the work of writing it. I can just about pull off working from a plan if it’s a sub-10,000 words piece. Finding the approach that actually works for you is key, whether that’s planning down to the last nuance or the complete opposite. The best tip I can offer any other writer is “ignore all the great tips that don’t actually, physically, practically WORK for you.”

There are some good common sense tips. Make writing a habit; sit down with pen or keyboard and write no matter what. Even if you’re typing “I am a fish” five hundred times for lack of better inspiration, or jotting down random thoughts and observations, keep the writing habit going, because habits are easier to maintain than to begin, and it’s easier to get the time to write if it’s part of a routine. Opening that blank document or turning the notebook to a fresh new page, and actually sitting there, ready to work, is a big psychological hurdle, even for a confident writer. For writers who lack confidence, I reckon that’s a great tip. Make a start, every day. Give yourself the space to write in and permission to do it.

Read a lot, or consume whatever other form of information or experience gets your creative juices going. Consume inspiration at every opportunity, but don’t actively try to suck inspiration from the world at the expense of fully experiencing a thing. Live the experiences, give your brain time to process them; they’ll work their way back out as words someday, and don’t need to be dragged out or hunted down.

Writer Paul Cornell, back before he was famous and working on real Doctor Who, was well known in the fandom. One of the most practical tips I ever read came from him during the period when he was writing the BBC-endorsed DW New Adventures novels (one of which, Human Nature, was later adapted into a 10th Doctor episode). He advised that if you’re stuck in the middle of a story, it’s because your subconscious is telling you that you need to go back and fix something before you move forward. That’s an oversimplificiation, and a pain in the bum if one writes/posts works in progress or other serials, but I generally find that it’s worth considering when I’m staring at a promising scene that’s mysteriously getting nowhere, or fruitlessly drafting the same bit over and over. Is my brain waving a little flag marked “er, excuse me but NOPE”?