Is Writer's Block Real?

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Ernest Hemingway fought bulls in Spain, dodged bullets as a war correspondent, and hunted big game in Africa...but when he was asked to name his scariest experience, he said, "A blank sheet of paper."

Recently I received an email from a buddy of mine who's convinced she's got writer's block. Convincing me, though, is a tough sell. You can quote Hemingway all you like, but I think writer's block is a scam.

Hold on. Before you sharpen your pitchforks and/or chastise me for being a heartless friend, allow me to explain.

Just because you can't pump out 50 words to save your life doesn't mean you've contracted the dreaded 'Writer's Block Virus'. It simply means you're going to have to work. Yes, indeedy, welcome to Realville. More often than not, writing is work. Grunt work. The kind that makes you sweat.

Oftentimes when one thinks they might have writer's block, it's simply a case of having to search deep inside to come up with a sentence or two. Sometimes that's super hard, but it's never impossible...unless of course you're in a coma and/or your fingers are broken.

Granted, you might not have a clue what to write on your current WIP, but writing isn't just about a WIP. You could write a letter to a friend, an encouraging note to your pastor, a measly shopping list for crying out loud. Writing is writing. It all counts.

I hear you, though. You want to make progress on your Work-In-Progress, yet you've all of a sudden skidded to a stop. Instead of throwing your hands in the air and crying, "I've got writer's block!" give one of these ideas a whirl...

• Write something completely different. A sonnet. A piece of flash fiction. A rebuttal to a letter to the editor.
• Walk away and refuse to think about your story for a day, a week, or two even.
• Kill off a character (one of my personal favorites).
• Add in a new character.
• Do something creative with your hands. Paint a poster. Bake bread. Color with your kids.
• Begin work on another scene.
• Go to a mall and eavesdrop on other conversations.
• Write the last scene.
• Think of an event that would make your protagonist weep. Write it.

What do all of these ideas have in common? They put your mind on something other than the spot you were stuck in so that hopefully when you do eventually come back to it, you'll have a new perspective.

But what if you're still stuck?

That's when you need to pull out the big guns. Call a trusted writerly buddy and cry on their shoulder...then brainstorm like nobody's business.

I refuse to believe that writer's block is real. Is that naive? Cold-hearted? Ignorant? Perhaps, but those are the least of my sins. I serve a pretty big God. If He wants me to write, I will, block or no block. Therein lies my confidence.