Overcoming Writer's Block
You ever feel that sometimes you're writing a story and its all played out in your head many times to nausea, but... you just can't put it in words?
I get that sometimes.
Sometimes, its like the story doesn't stop until its all laid out on screen. Sometimes, the story is at its best when you're thinking about the crucial moments that'll blend things together. Heck, even in the smaller, shorter stories have moments that reel everything together for that climax that feels so satisfying, even if its something mundane in hindsight. So the question (and topic) that lingers throughout my writing is...
How do you overcome this?
And the answer is... Well... what is the answer? For me, overcoming writer's block takes a lot of perseverance. Sometimes, that crucial moment of a story is right there and you wanna write it out. But you can't write it because you can't put the words together without sounding like a 5-year old. Trust me... I've tried. There are a few easy tips that can help, including the following:
Take a break
Sometimes you just need a breather. You've been sitting at your desk writing (or typing, you pleb) all day, and your body and brain just can't take it. Get up, have some water, eat an apple, and do something proactive.
Go get some rest (lots of it!)
Sleep is like a deep clean. You had a long day, and you're probably super stressed and overloaded with junk. A long sleep will wipe the worries away, allowing you to think.
Dreams will always keep your story intact. I'm always dreaming about my works (even when I don't want to) all the time, and when I'm deep in writing a story, I always ensure that my dreams relate to that story so that I can use ideas that come to mind, or cut out scenes that don't make sense. Be warned, you might end up dreaming something out of place in your story, and you might even end up becoming your dream characters. If that happens, pinch yourself in yourself. Lucid Dreams are maddening.
Watch some flicks
No, not watch someone move sharp and sudden, I mean like movies! Sometimes there's movies, cartoons, shorts, comics, episodes, books, etc. has hypothetical ideas of what you're looking for. Sometimes, if its not the exact idea, it's at least an approximation. That way when you go back to writing your own, you have a better way to write out your stories.
Get Healthy! Get Active!
Sometimes, all you need is just to get active. Do some jogs, run around, do push-ups, squats, anything to get the blood pumping. Blood pumping fuels the brain. Brain Fuel opens the imagination. Heck, get high... Runner's High! The more euphoric you feel, the more your mind will expand to the furthest place of joy.
Eat healthy food. Just like getting active, healthy food will open the brain and get your mind working. If you don't have any healthy food around... what are you doing?
And Last but Not Least...
Just Relax. It's not the end of the world if you encounter Writer's Block. We all encounter it, even when drawing. You'll get back into it eventually, and even if you never do, a lot of those ideas will come back again in the future. Sometimes, said stories can be demolished and rebuilt into new stories. It's a cycle that never ends and while some things get left in the dust, there's always others that never die. Just sit down, act on these household tips or OTHER quirky ideas you have, and you'll be back to writing in no time... eventually... Unless you're Valve, then you'll never finish Half-Life 3 like we all want you to.
Be Toontastic~!
~Mr. Toontastic