writers block

[MissJaneEyre19]

i have to write an essay for english that is due in a week, and i am having TERRIBLE writers block. any tips?

[chmpman]

what's the essay on, poetry, prose, or fiction?

[MissJaneEyre19]

it's a personal essay, we have to write about someone significant in our lives. and my mind is completely blank.

[chmpman]

ooh, i hate those

[Petrarch's Love]

Yuk, there's nothing as bad as writer's block. I've been through that a lot. There are a couple of different strategies that seem to help me. One is to do something to relax the mind--take a long walk, listen to some calming music, exercise, meditate, but nothing that requires verbal attention like chatting on the phone or watching T.V. You'll probably find ideas surfacing as you get into a more relaxed frame of mind. Another good idea (especially after you've taken some time to relax a bit) is to just sit down and write. This may sound silly, since writing is exactly your problem, but sometimes you can get past writer's block by actually getting your pen to the paper. Just tell yourself you're going to write anything. It doesn't matter how disjointed or stupid or ungrammatical it is just write the first words that come to mind on your topic and don't stop writing. Let yourself go off on tangents, whatever, just get some words on the page. For your topic you might just make a list of people you know and characteristics about them, or pick someone and pretend you're writing a letter of recommendation for that person. What's important is to just start writing anything. You'll probably find some ideas starting to develop. Also, if you're having trouble settling on a significant person for your topic, maybe you could try looking through favorite photos from the past. These might bring back memories of people who have played an important part in your life.

[Xamonas Chegwe]

I agree with PL, just write anything. I usually find it's starting that's the hard part. Once you get past that first hurdle, a rhythm kicks in. You can always go back and revise later.

[Ryduce]

Ok this will be a weird suggestion.Whenever I get writers block I just start reading the dictionary,and eventually I come across a word that sparks me into writing a new sentence,paragraph,or sometimes even a page.Sometimes a word will just pop out at you to get you thinking in another direction.I'm the only person I know who does this,so feel free not to,but it works for me so maybe it will work for you.

[Petrarch's Love]

Ok this will be a weird suggestion.Whenever I get writers block I just start reading the dictionary,and eventually I come across a word that sparks me into writing a new sentence,paragraph,or sometimes even a page.Sometimes a word will just pop out at you to get you thinking in another direction.I'm the only person I know who does this,so feel free not to,but it works for me so maybe it will work for you.

That's great Ryduce. I've never tried doing that systematically, but I got my idea for a seventy page thesis once while mucking about in the OED and hitting on the right word, so I guess it can work. :nod:

[Xamonas Chegwe]

That's a really great idea Ryduce - I will bear it in mind next time the demons descend. Thanks.