Get Published – Writer’s Block And You

Many writers, both new and published, fear writer’s block. But does it really exist? Should we continue to believe in it?
There will be cries of outrage on reading those questions, because many writers are suffering right now from something which is blocking them from writing. Let us look more closely as to what this ‘something’ is.
In my writing career I am happy to say that I have never suffered ‘writer’s block’. My head is always full of the seeds of ideas. Everywhere in everyday life I see possible characters and plot situations that could be developed. My imagination is constantly switched to the ‘on’ mode.
So, is it the case that writers who believe they have writer’s block have somehow switched their imaginations to the ‘off’ mode? I rather think not. It can not be that simple.
Something I particularly noticed while writing each of my novels was that the creation of the plot and the piecing together of the book was a very different experience each time. It seemed I never tackled the writing the same way twice. Why is that?
The answer is, of course, that everything on earth is unique and cannot be duplicated. There is always a minor imperfection that makes an object different. And I, as the writer, was different each time, because with each experience of creating a novel, I changed. I gained more confidence in myself as a writer and I honed my techniques ever more razor sharp.
Perfection and imperfection – are we getting closer to the truth about writer’s block?
The writing of each novel was a unique experience, but my style always remained the same because my style of writing is my ‘voice’ – unique to me. Each writer as his/her own unique style. New writers sometimes start off trying to copy the style of others. That rarely works; however, if they are persistent their very own style will emerge. And with that emergence comes confidence.
There was days while I was writing the novels when I could not write. But this was not writer’s block. It was quite the opposite. Those days of writing inactivity usually occurred just before tackling a very important or pivotal scene in the book – a scene of high emotion or violent action.
Although I was not at my keyboard, I was writing in my head. That is to say, my subconscious and my conscious minds were collaborating in writing the scene for me. I instinctively knew when the process was complete because I could not wait to get to the keyboard when the words and phrases would just flow.
You may be getting an inkling of why I have never suffered from writer’s block – an inflated ego. You are right, of course, and I am so glad of it, but I did not start out like that. As a new writer I agonized over my ‘literary style’ or whether my writing was ‘good enough’.
There is no good or bad writing as such. There is pretentious writing and there are bad books, where the structure and construction have gone to pot; where the author has created two dimensional characters or has constructed a plot full of potholes. Happily, these flaws can be corrected by the writer taking time and patience to learn the correct techniques of putting a book together successfully.
One hears of authors who write five chapters of their new novel and then destroy then because they believe they are not good enough.
Self-deprecation, this is the problem here; the opposite of an inflated ego. The writer has no faith in himself, and lacks utterly any confidence in is own ability. He cannot begin to write or cannot continue to write.
Writer’s Block, then, is no more than fear – fear of failure; a fear of not turning out the perfect book. But there is no such thing as perfection. Ask Stephen Hawking. There is only glorious chaos; the womb of creativity and uniqueness.
Writers who hold themselves back through this fear should realise that the most successful books published are not the least pretentious but are written in an ordinary everyday language; and are honest, simple and straightforward.
As a writer you are unique with your own individual style. Go for it!