Writer’s Block is the most common manifestation of Resistance.  It prevents you from getting your work onto the page.  It’s the terror of the blank screen.

Writer’s Block has prevented many people from doing the work that they were meant to do.

Many prolific writers don’t believe writer’s block exists.  For the rest of us, it can be crippling.

I experience the inability to write when I focus on the product or the outcome.  I worry too much about how the writing will turn out.  But I won’t know how it will turn out until I write it, so why worry about it before hand?  Focus on the process, not the product.

The process is to write.  Then edit.  Write then edit.  Repeat.

I saw an interview with Seth Godin a couple of months ago.  Seth is a prolific writer.  He’s written 23 books and over 7,000 daily blog posts.  He says he never gets writer’s block.

Why?  He says he writes like he talks and you’ve never heard anyone complain about talker’s block.  When we are chatting with friends, we just talk.  We don’t agonize over what we’re going to say to our friends or family.

Talking is a form of communication.  Writing is a form of communication.  Writing is different from talking, but there are many similarities.

When faced with the dreaded Block, imagine that you are communicating with a good friend or family member.  If you’re writing non-fiction, imagine telling them how to do something or tell them about something.  If you’re writing fiction, imagine telling them your story.

In both cases, you don’t have to get it right the first time.  You just have to write it.

© 2019 Peter Gruner