5 Ways of Avoiding Writers Block

Finding the motivation to get a story down on paper can, at times, be difficult. Hands hover over the keyboard, struggling to find the beginnings of a great novel.

We have all been there.

So what tips and tricks can you use to get over that starting hurdle? Here's my suggestions:

1. Just Write.

It sounds silly but it can work. Scribbling anything down on paper, the first things that come to mind, the things you can see, hear around you, can get your brain working to start coming up with new ideas. Tap into that voice in your head and listen to all the nonsense it is coming up with. You never know what it might be saying that is actually useful. Plus, you can always delete it later.

2. Move.

Step away from your screen or your notebook and do something other than writing. Play sports, do yoga, bake a cake, paint. Working on something else for a while takes your mind away from the project so when you come back to it, your looking at it through fresh eyes.

3. Keep A Dream Journal.

I don't know about you but some of my best ideas come to me in my sleep. Keeping a journal inspires some great stories. Try mix and matching different dreams or nitpicking sections of dreams to create entirely new stories. A dream journal also helps you to lucid dream which can be a lot of fun!

4. Focus.

Turn off distractions. Put phones on silent and in another room, turn the TV or YouTube off, tell people around you to give you an hour or so to yourself. Give yourself metaphorical horse blinders. This means you can really concentrate on the task at hand without thinking about the other stuff.

5. Unfocus.

Similar to number two and the exact opposite of four, step away from the project but instead of sports or baking, wash the dishes, do the laundry, walk the dog, do anything that needs doing that doesn't require a lot of brain activity. If your brains work anything like mine, they will start working stories into everything you do. Ideas will literally come from thin air and soon you'll be writing about the struggling waitress with the one legged dog or the KP musician who can't catch a break.

Writing doesn't have to be a chore and if it is, then you might be doing it wrong. The important thing is to enjoy it. Have fun writing your story and love your work.

- Mattie Winters, screenwriter