I'm sure there are creatives out there who never get blocked. At least, I think there must be, although I have never met one myself. I imagine those lucky people to be extremely organised individuals who always know what they want. Unfortunately, I am one of those who get what they call a creative block on a regular basis. I don't mean that I stop being creative altogether, but I do tend to get blocked in whatever project I am working on at that particular time quite a bit, at least once every few months or sometimes even weeks.
To combat that, I have devised a whole army of unblockers that work for me. I'll be recording them below as I go along. Feel free to post your own in the comments section or email them to maia.nikitina@googlemail.com and I'll include them in my list.
Unblocker #1
Change it up
Whenever I am stuck, I look at my life at that particular moment and then change something in it, even if it is just for a day. It can be anything - staying up all night if you usually go to bed early and vice versa; writing in a different environment; changing your writing method, e.g. using a laptop if you usually write longhand; listening to music if you usually write in silence; spending time with a group of people who are different to your usual friends... The change in your routine will usually give you a chance to look at things from a different perspective and new ideas might come to you at that moment. Just make sure you have some way of recording them (I have a notebook on my bedside table for writing ideas down in the middle of the night, and if I'm out and about, I record my ideas on the voice recorder on my mobile phone).
Unblocker #2
Get your hands dirty
For those who like a bit of gardening, some planting or pruning can be the answer to their creative block. I used this unblocker myself today when I noticed that I was coming up with more and more extremely important things to do before I sat down to write, including washing up and putting shopping away. Luckily, a pot of dying sage on my window sill attracted my attention. As I set about re-planting it out into the garden, my thoughts cleared and my creativity suddenly started to pour out of me. I barely had the chance to wash the mud out from under my fingernails. I don't think I wrote my best today but the fact is, I wrote. Just like in running, there are good days and not so good ones, but keeping my writing moving allows me to stay focused (and I don't feel guilty for wasting a good day).
If you are one of those who end up inadvertently killing even the most thriving plants, try some digging or raking instead. Or, in the worst case scenario, go outside, pick up some mud from the ground and use it as a stress ball for a couple of minutes.
Unblocker #3
Spy on people - just make sure you don't do anything illegal
If you are creative, you are probably also really really nosy, right? Some people feel bad about such a character trait and mask it by saying they are just curious about life blah-blah-blah. But between us, we know the truth. So admit that you are nosy and get people watching. The best way is to either sit in a cafe, listening to people's conversations, or walk around a busy shopping centre. There are other ways, of course, like keeping your ears peeled while getting changed at the gym, or while on the tram, or even in a toilet, but these are more of an accidental eavesdropping type cases and I don't suggest that you set yourself up with a notebook and a pen in a public toilet, listening to what people are saying as they wash their hands.
The thing with people watching is that it gives you an opportunity to get into other people's lives without the effort of imagining them. It relaxes your subconscious and can bring you some of the best ideas for your work. Just remember to be ethical in your use of other people's details. If you want more on how to do it, click here.
Whichever way you choose to indulge your curiosity, write down everything you hear and see - it may prove invaluable next time you are writing dialogue or describing a scene. And don't feel bad - the kind of people who choose to keep their curtains open at night or talk loudly about very personal things while buying a coffee must be in some way exhibitionists - so you are just helping them. At least that's what I tell myself. Good luck!
Unblocker # 5
Get some positive feedback.
One of the hardest things for me is waiting for feedback once I send my writing out into the world. If nothing comes back straight away, or if I feel that what I get back is not enough, a whole array of negative emotions floods in. I doubt myself, I doubt my work, I doubt my very purpose in life. It is no use telling myself that the people I am waiting to hear from are busy, or away, or ill. I end up blocked.
Obviously, this is a big problem: if I constantly wait for feedback, I not only make myself dependent on others, but my work flow suffers too as I stop and start. One solution is to get good feedback - once it's in, the blocks will fall away on their own. But what if it takes time, or worse, never comes? What if you write and write and send and send and nothing comes back for weeks, months, years?
There is still something you can do. Write down a list of all your achievements, starting from your childhood and all the way to the present. Resist the urge to criticise yourself or to minimise what you have already done. Sit quietly for a few minutes and feel proud of yourself. It doesn't have to be about writing or career - anything that you have done well can be classed as an achievement. Decide to reward yourself. Buy yourself a coffee, or an ice-cream, or watch a good movie. Feel good. Then get back to writing.
If you are the type that needs to talk things through in order to process them - I know I am! - then either ask a trusted friend or a partner to just listen as you talk, or, if you prefer, write it all down instead as a stream of thoughts, like The Morning Pages. Once you get to the actual block and acknowledge it, more often than not it will disappear.
Unblocker # 6
Make some new friends
Most writers are interested in people. We like to solve the puzzles of people's lives, and what better way to unblock your creativity than to get new people to get excited about! You don't have to forget your old friends but making new ones can shake up your writing life. Plus, if you have been blocked and grumpy, your old friends are probably tired of you anyway.
They don't have to be writers either - in fact, the more different your new friends are from you, the better.
To combat that, I have devised a whole army of unblockers that work for me. I'll be recording them below as I go along. Feel free to post your own in the comments section or email them to maia.nikitina@googlemail.com and I'll include them in my list.
Unblocker #1
Whenever I am stuck, I look at my life at that particular moment and then change something in it, even if it is just for a day. It can be anything - staying up all night if you usually go to bed early and vice versa; writing in a different environment; changing your writing method, e.g. using a laptop if you usually write longhand; listening to music if you usually write in silence; spending time with a group of people who are different to your usual friends... The change in your routine will usually give you a chance to look at things from a different perspective and new ideas might come to you at that moment. Just make sure you have some way of recording them (I have a notebook on my bedside table for writing ideas down in the middle of the night, and if I'm out and about, I record my ideas on the voice recorder on my mobile phone).
Unblocker #2
Get your hands dirty
If you are one of those who end up inadvertently killing even the most thriving plants, try some digging or raking instead. Or, in the worst case scenario, go outside, pick up some mud from the ground and use it as a stress ball for a couple of minutes.
Unblocker #3
If you are creative, you are probably also really really nosy, right? Some people feel bad about such a character trait and mask it by saying they are just curious about life blah-blah-blah. But between us, we know the truth. So admit that you are nosy and get people watching. The best way is to either sit in a cafe, listening to people's conversations, or walk around a busy shopping centre. There are other ways, of course, like keeping your ears peeled while getting changed at the gym, or while on the tram, or even in a toilet, but these are more of an accidental eavesdropping type cases and I don't suggest that you set yourself up with a notebook and a pen in a public toilet, listening to what people are saying as they wash their hands.
The thing with people watching is that it gives you an opportunity to get into other people's lives without the effort of imagining them. It relaxes your subconscious and can bring you some of the best ideas for your work. Just remember to be ethical in your use of other people's details. If you want more on how to do it, click here.
Whichever way you choose to indulge your curiosity, write down everything you hear and see - it may prove invaluable next time you are writing dialogue or describing a scene. And don't feel bad - the kind of people who choose to keep their curtains open at night or talk loudly about very personal things while buying a coffee must be in some way exhibitionists - so you are just helping them. At least that's what I tell myself. Good luck!
Unblocker # 5
Get some positive feedback.
One of the hardest things for me is waiting for feedback once I send my writing out into the world. If nothing comes back straight away, or if I feel that what I get back is not enough, a whole array of negative emotions floods in. I doubt myself, I doubt my work, I doubt my very purpose in life. It is no use telling myself that the people I am waiting to hear from are busy, or away, or ill. I end up blocked.
Obviously, this is a big problem: if I constantly wait for feedback, I not only make myself dependent on others, but my work flow suffers too as I stop and start. One solution is to get good feedback - once it's in, the blocks will fall away on their own. But what if it takes time, or worse, never comes? What if you write and write and send and send and nothing comes back for weeks, months, years?
There is still something you can do. Write down a list of all your achievements, starting from your childhood and all the way to the present. Resist the urge to criticise yourself or to minimise what you have already done. Sit quietly for a few minutes and feel proud of yourself. It doesn't have to be about writing or career - anything that you have done well can be classed as an achievement. Decide to reward yourself. Buy yourself a coffee, or an ice-cream, or watch a good movie. Feel good. Then get back to writing.
If you are the type that needs to talk things through in order to process them - I know I am! - then either ask a trusted friend or a partner to just listen as you talk, or, if you prefer, write it all down instead as a stream of thoughts, like The Morning Pages. Once you get to the actual block and acknowledge it, more often than not it will disappear.
Unblocker # 6
Make some new friends
Most writers are interested in people. We like to solve the puzzles of people's lives, and what better way to unblock your creativity than to get new people to get excited about! You don't have to forget your old friends but making new ones can shake up your writing life. Plus, if you have been blocked and grumpy, your old friends are probably tired of you anyway.
They don't have to be writers either - in fact, the more different your new friends are from you, the better.
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