17 Cures for Writer's Block

Sometimes the words flow from our fingertips; other times, we have to strain our mental limits to coax out that creative muse. When faced with the dreaded writer’s block, it’s better to take action than to wait for inspiration.

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Title and End Music: "Clockwork" by Vindsvept -    • Fantasy Music - Vindsvept - Clockwork  

Background Music by Vindsvept:
"Illuminate"
"Woodland Lullaby"
"Wildkin Glade"
"Keeper of the Forest"
"Voyage to Nowhere"

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Tip number six involved summarizing the events of a particular scene as if it were a movie, though with additional descriptions of the character’s emotions. In my hypothetical scenario, the general idea for a scene/chapter was that the protagonist accidentally eavesdrops on his best friend and discovers that he’s in cahoots with the villain. Here’s how I might flesh out that eavesdropping example into a visual summary:

“The chapter opens with a roguish knight named Taj sneaking through the halls of the castle, whistling casually as he slips down the corridor to his best friend’s chambers. Now, his best friend is also a knight and has refused to lend his awesome sword to Taj for a tournament, so Taj has taken it upon himself to ‘borrow’ said sword while his friend is out of the castle. He gets to the room with no problem and is awfully proud of himself, but then he can’t find the damn sword. Taj tries to brainstorm places his friend might hide a valuable item. Under the bed, he finds some questionable reading material, but no sword. There’s also an unspeakably disgusting smell coming from the bottom dresser drawer that he really doesn’t want to know the origins of, but he checks anyway. Still no sword. Just as Taj is about to leave, he steps over a dragonskin rug and notices a peculiar creak in the floorboard, one that he had heard when he walked in but paid no mind. He moves the rug to find a trapdoor, and thinks, ‘How cliché.’ He pops open the trapdoor and voilà, there’s the sword. Then two voices echo down the hall, one of which belongs to Taj’s friend and the other to a stranger. Taj knows he has to either hide or get caught stealing, so he jumps into the pit and closes the trapdoor above him.”

Most of the details came to me on the fly, which is what makes this kind of “discovery writing” so valuable. By forcing myself to convert a nebulous mental image into something concrete that another reader could visualize, the scene became much clearer in my own mind. If I were to translate this into a scene, I’d come up with specific details to describe the type of “questionable reading material” and the horrible smell. I’d ensure that Taj’s smugness came through in his movements and the narrative voice. This scene outline allows me to not only see the big-picture path from Point A to Point B, but also pinpoints places where interesting sensory details and humor could be added.

Introduction (0:00)
1. Read Other People's Stuff (0:40)
2. Read Your Own Stuff (1:54)
3. Imitate Your Heroes (2:32)
4. Write in Pieces (2:56)
5. Make a List (4:20)
6. Summarize (5:03)
7. Surprise Yourself (5:49)
8. Talk to Other Writers About Your Writing (7:02)
9. Get Organized (7:43)
10. Research Relevant Topics (8:13)
11. Reflect (9:07)
12. Change Your Environment (10:08)
13. Start a New Project (11:01)
14. Use Music to Set the Mood (11:29)
15. Refresh (12:04)
16. Live Life (12:41)
17. Consume Writing Advice (13:15)