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7 reasons for writers block and self-defeating behaviors in writing
By admin | October 26, 2009
By Anna Goodwin
1. Your conscious and unconscious thoughts and beliefs are self-critical and filled with fears. This can result in writer’s block, procrastination, and excuses. Most writers fall prey to at least one of these or all of them at times. Don’t be hard on yourself. These behaviors can be overcome. Take time to examine the feelings and the automatic negative thoughts running through your mind before, during, and after the behavior. Write about them. Continuously work on recognizing and changing your thoughts. But don’t forget, positive thoughts alone don’t do your writing for you. Follow up with actions.
2. You don’t have enough time. This is a common cry of the modern writer. Check your priorities. Is writing really important to you? Are you giving “time” as an excuse not to look at your fears of writing (e.g., success or failure)? If not, can you find as little as 15 minutes in your hectic day to write? Hopefully it’ll be the same time each day so it becomes routine like brushing your teeth and taking a shower. Be honest with yourself. You have time to see that one-hour television show you enjoy, or sleep fifteen minutes longer. If writing does not come into your top ten list of priorities at this point, you may have to wait until it does.
3. Your expectations are too high for your situation. You are pushing yourself too hard. You feel overwhelmed. Maybe you have important responsibilities. Reduce your expectations to what you can reasonably accomplish at this time. Decide on one or two realistic goals (not ten), and then write down small concrete steps to attain them. Work on one step each day.
4. You have chosen to write about something that you “should” write about but doesn’t excite you. Unless you have been assigned a topic by a magazine or paper, give it up and follow your passion. If you don’t know what that is, observe yourself. When you talk to others or watch television, what do you choose to watch or talk about? What are you drawn to? What makes you excited? What makes you want to speak out? Is it fiction, non-fiction, or humor? Or parenting, politics, or education? Whatever it is, write from the heart.
5. You are “beating a piece to death.” Many writers are perfectionists and don’t want to publish something they consider less than their very best. Take some time away from your project to calm down the obsession, or begin to write on something else. Then when you come back to it, limit the time you spend on it. Limit your number of rewrites. As soon as you find yourself going in circles, stop. I remember one of my professors saying that his colleague had published one A+ book in his live because he had rewritten it until it was perfect. But in the meantime my professor had published three B+ books and was on his way to writing another. A+ is great, but it can stop creativity and output.
6. Stress in your daily life (e.g., a divorce, work situation, or a family problem) invades your thinking constantly. There is no space in your mind for creative thoughts. It is counterproductive to sit in front of the computer obsessed with your problems, unable to write. Take the time to write in your journal or talk to a friend or psychotherapist so that you can clear your mind enough to concentrate on your writing and live a productive, happy life.
7. The well is dry. Give yourself permission to take time off, rest, and play. Enjoy yourself and allow the natural rhythm of life to reestablish. You will find the writing muse will return when it feels nurtured and renewed.
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