How to Handle Writing Drought

Just what is writing drought? It’s somewhat like a block, which is perhaps one of the most covered aspects of the writing profession. However, it does differ in many ways. For example, when you are going through a writing drought, you won’t have ideas; even in writer’s block you often have plenty of ideas. The answer is to take action and work hard, because if you do that, you will be close stopping the drought.

Difficulty: Moderate

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Time to think
• Willingness to take action
• Notebooks for journaling and sketching

1. Getting New Ideas:You need new ideas; that is the main problem. So to get new ideas as a writer you need to start exploring the ideas of others. For example, pick up a book from a completely different field. You’re a copywriter, but you pick up a magazine article looking for something new. New ideas mean a certain change; you change by exploring different fields. This doesn’t mean you have to change careers—you are just exploring yourself as a writer.

2. Journaling, Sketching and Being More Creative:Journaling allows you to explore your ideas. You just write whatever is in your head. Soon, the ideas will come. You can do more than just journal. For example, you can start sketching things. If you are a novelist, pick out a few scenes and try to draw them; even stick figures work. It allows you to be more creative. You are, as a writer, an artist and therefore you can build up your imagination—and defeat writing drought by exploring different creative fields.

3. Finding Money as the Answer:Money isn’t always the bottom line as a writer, but it can help you gain perspective. Are you making any? How can you make more? If you look at writing as a career it makes it easier. It might be time to change your strategy for earning income as a writer. It’s a sad thing, but money is very important to succeeding as a writer. By looking at money, how much you have or haven’t made, you can set new goals and explore things which will help you stop the drought.

4. Searching for New Ways to Say the Same Things:I once interviewed a freelance magazine writer who said, in short, that originality is overrated. I took from this a simple rule: Learn different ways to say the same things. If you try to be original with everything you will, in the end, run out of ideas.

5. Using Your Talent:You have a talent if you’ve been writing for a while. It’s there. All you need to do is use it. Originality may not be as important as you thought. Journaling may help you; ideas may come. What matters here is seeing what your good at, and exploring what you're not. This is tied to money: good writers get published; good writers get better with time.

6. Discovering Your Voice:Each of us has our own voice. It’s your job to find it. Once you find a certain voice—in writing a novel, article or whatever—it will be easier to get through droughts.

Tips & Warnings

• When you get rewarded for something you tend to try and repeat it, again and again. Yes, success is important, but so is changing what you want. Don’t let success rob you of writing on different topics; this will help during a writing drought.
• Depression can sink in when you are experiencing a writing drought. It’s your job to keep writing. You will want to quit, take a day off, but you must keep going and writing. Even a little bit of writing keeps you in the flow.

[amylaine]

on 7/2/2008 Great inspiration.