Beat Writer’s Block By Writing Letters

Writer’s block is a common occurrence. Every writer has experienced it at one point in their career, usually several times. But, not all writer’s block is the same. Sometimes you get stuck on facts, and sometimes you have just been working on the same thing too long. Sometimes you don't know how to start, and other times you just don't have the words, for anything.

There are several exercises that you can try, writing prompts, taking a walk, free form writing. If these haven't worked, or if you are just looking for something new, you can try writing about a part of your history. Sometimes telling your own story comes easier, especially if you try it in the following format.

A lot of times our writer’s block is, at its source, a fear of what our reader, or editor, or publisher will think. Are we witty enough? Are we making enough references? Are we making too many? So, sometimes a good thing to do is to think about something that we would really like to tell someone we love about ourselves. And then write them a letter.

You don't have to send it, or you can, that’s really up to you. The point is that you are writing about your life and you are writing to someone who you know won't judge you. You are free to just write without expectation or convention.

Maybe you would really like to share with your spouse about the house you grew up in. How it shaped you. How the smells and the people and that crazy linoleum floor somehow had a hand in turning you into the adult you are now. Maybe you want to tell your children about your parents or grandparents who they will never meet. You want your children to know how special those people were to you and how you want that to live on.

It doesn't matter what you write about, or to whom. What matters is that you feel free to express yourself. And once you are done you will be in a free flowing mood. You will have something special to share with a loved one, and who knows you might just find some gold in that letter. There may be a description that you just love. Or maybe you will be inspired to flesh out that story into a chapter or an entire book.

You may just find your next project in that letter. But, even if you don't you will have started the creative juices flowing. You will have written something of worth, which you weren't doing just staring at your computer. You will have shared an important story to you, and you will have remembered things you thought were long forgotten. In any case you will have done yourself a service not just as a writer, but as a human being.