5 Common Myths About Writer’s Block Debunked

What Is Writer’s Block?

Writer’s block is a mental block that makes writing seem like an insurmountable task. Whether you’ve run out of inspiration, encountered a plot hole that you’re not sure how to fill, suffered from a crippling depression that has kept you from writing, or simply haven’t had the time or energy to write thousands of words right now, the result is the same: you have a mental block, and you cannot write.

Fear not, dear reader! It’s totally normal to sometimes have that mental block. Part of being a writer means fighting through it even when you are lacking in inspiration or not sure where to go from here.

I came up with five myths about the dreaded writer’s block, which will hopefully help you feel more at peace when your brain meat doesn’t want to cooperate.

Let’s begin.

Myth: Writer’s Block Is Laziness

Writer’s block, in my opinion, is the furthest thing from laziness. It is actually perfectionism that hurts your ability to write.

Real talk: your first draft might be pure garbage. To rub some salt in the wound, you might have your nose buried in books that you feel are infinitely better than anything you could ever write, and that may discourage you—especially when you start writing and don’t feel like it’s up to snuff because it’s not immediately the next The Fifth Season or Game of Thrones or Parable of the Sower or Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy or…

You have to learn to be okay with imperfection. After all, “suckin’ at something is the first step towards being sorta good at something.” (Thanks, Jake).

The best part about the first draft is that, even if it is hot doodoo butter, there will be some bangers in there that you can expand on over time. That is, after all, what a first draft is for. Let it all out, get it all on the page, then come back to it later and make it even better.

It’s something I’m still learning. I feel like the first draft has to be the draft. It took a long time to realize just how borderline impossible it is to write something perfect and ready for publishing right away.

If you’re stopping yourself from writing because you don’t want it to suck, try forcing yourself to write a sentence. Just a sentence. Just for fun. Just a silly little thing. Just to see what happens.

¯\_ (ツ)_/¯

Myth: Writer’s Block Is Always Bad

Sometimes writer’s block is a good thing. Is it pleasant? No.

But as I mentioned in my previous post on why you should never start your story with worldbuilding, you are too in your own head when it comes to your story. Often, that means writer’s block hits you because you were so fixated on your story going a certain way that it’s difficult to come up with alternatives. You write yourself into a plot hole and find yourself stuck.

Writer’s block, while frustrating, is sometimes necessary. You need to take some time away from your writing, get some rest, and take a nice, long shower so that when you come back, you can reassess and find new paths to get you out of the dreaded block.

You’d be shocked at how often forcing yourself to let go of what you’re obsessing over to either 1. come up with new ideas, 2. focus on another scene/arc, or 3. rewrite the scene completely for a fresh perspective, can give you a moment of clarity that frees you from your block.

Myth: The Advice to “Just Write” is Cliché and Unhelpful

I know, I know. It’s one of the most annoying things writers hear all the time. “Just write.”

Trying to research ways to overcome writer’s block won’t always work. Truth is, the “just write” advice is cliché and frustrating to hear all the time, but it’s also true. Sometimes, despite your soul screaming at you to “please stop, it’s gonna be bad, you’re not inspired, don’t write right now or you’re gonna write something garbage,” you have to just…do it.

Seriously. Force yourself to put down a couple of words and go from there.

I’ll give you a personal example: This is the last part of this post that I wrote because I had a bad case of writer’s block. Eventually, I just said to myself, “Do it, you dumb bitch, just put some words down,” and I did it.

You don’t have to call yourself a dumb bitch or anything. Just write. You’ll start off feeling awkward and convinced you’re somehow doing it wrong because you lack inspiration, but you may be surprised by just how fast the words start to come to you when you just write.

Like I said before: write a sentence. Just one cute, silly little sentence. I don’t know, just for funsies. For shit and giggles. If you feel like it. ¯\_ (ツ)_/¯

Myth: It’s Easy to “Just Write”

Yeah, that’s right. I’m here to ruin your day with a contradiction.

Writer’s block is tough. And the answer often is to just force yourself to write and just let it be word vomit that you can fix later. But here’s the thing: people find this advice to be unhelpful and cliché because it can be very hard to force the words onto the page when you’re simply not feeling it.

I’ve heard it said that you can’t operate solely off of writerly inspiration. Sometimes you just gotta power through it. I agree with this advice, but I’d add the caveat that forcing yourself to “just write” can feel uncomfortable, and sometimes the best thing to do is to seek out some inspiration before you force yourself to sit down and write.

It’s good advice; that doesn’t make it easy advice to follow. Sometimes you need a little push. Or maybe just a break.

Myth: Writer’s Block Never Ends

When you fall victim to writer’s block, there’s this underlying fear that it’s more than just a normal block; that you’ve lost your spark and will never find the inspiration to write again.

I’ve got good news for you: writer’s block always ends eventually, and the call to write will claim you again. It might not be this week, this month, hell, it may not even be this year. Life gets busy. Inspiration may be hard to come by. And sometimes, like I mentioned above, following the advice of “just write” is much easier said than done.

I can assure you, though, that writer’s block will not have you in its clutches forever. Seek out inspiration. Sit down and write your thoughts until you get that spark that gets you writing again. Hell, write when you’re supposed to be doing something else. I’ve found that to be one of the most effective ways to beat writer’s block, because it’s doing something you actually enjoy while trying to pay attention to another task that you really don’t.

It takes time, but this too shall pass. Happy writing!