How do you deal with writer's block?
I want to give you the dreadful answer of, “I don’t,” but sometimes I do, in fact, get around it. I’ll give you a mix of what I actually do and what people say you should do.
The only surefire way I’ve found to defeat writer’s block is to sign up for a fic exchange, because then the deadline acts as a motivator.
Lately, I’ve been having a lot of luck with setting myself weekly word goals - I’ve been averaging 2,000 words a week when I haven’t been too busy IRL, which is a massive step forward for me. If you’ve got some way to reward yourself or if you’re trying to do an ongoing WIP, this helps a lot with keeping to your word goals.
theonlycheeseleft brought up the best piece of writing advice for dealing with blocks that I’ve ever heard. Instead of seeing it as a block, look at it as something you have to move around. Sometimes that means going back in what you’ve written and figuring out where you created an obstacle - other times it’d mean moving around what’s blocked you.
Keep to a writing schedule. Don’t let yourself get distracted with music, TV, instant messaging, etc. Working in 15-20 minute long spurts can do well if you find writing makes you stressed, so then you can do a quick little decompress between writing.
Also, try to feel good about what you’re writing! It’s hard to motivate yourself if you keep beating yourself up about what you’re producing. If I’m feeling super stuck, I’ll work on something else, like a self-indulgent shortfic or something so I can see writing as something enjoyable and not a chore.
Hope that helps!
