Writing Thoughts
How can we deal with writer's block? I have two school-age children so I feel a bit guilty (a mother's prerogative) because, there is a huge time block while they are at school. The urge to write often comes at inopportune moments: i.e. in line at the store, waiting at the dentist, or the hour before dinner when my children's every emotional issue needs to be addressed.
Lately when the compulsions arise and I can't drop everything, I jot down
essential notes in a small spiral notebook I keep in my purse. Often, when I have plenty of time for writing yet feel I have nothing to fill the big white paper with, I reach for the notebook and retrieve these lines of captured inspiration.
There are times when the notebook doesn't help and I think (sorry to be vulgar) "Everything I write is crap. I suck at this. I have to get a real job." What is happening before and after this negative
internal diatribe is a sense of lack of flow. It is a beautiful feeling to be in the groove, in the flow, right-brained, tapped in, first thoughts--in other words, the writing feels easy. The question is, how do we get to that place?
I've tried several methods. If negative self-talk is occurring, or my thoughts are cluttered with other tasks which need attending, I actually start writing these things down: "This is hard. This sucks. This
has no feeling. The dishes are filthy. I need to make cupcakes." I write down the minutiae until I'm sure I've covered all the topics flitting around in my head. I then try to resteer the internal conversation: "What do I really want to say about this? How will this help people? What's the real story hear?"
Another method is simply to set the notebook down and critically read another writer's work. Sometimes
all it takes is reading a great lead and I think, "Ooh, now I've got an idea for mine." Or, I'll study the structure and active verb usage.
Sometimes I'll try a writing exercise as suggested by one of my favorite authors, Natalie Goldberg. Writer's Digest magazine is another excellent place to find tips and prompts.
Occasionally, I remember to try prayer (no I don't ask God for a great hook, but maybe I should). I quiet my mind (or attempt
to) with meditation and then ask in quiet "How can this work be of service to the world? Please, dear God, help me to open my heart and mind to you and allow what's really important to come through. Thank you. Amen."
If you try all these methods and you're still blocked, don't give up. Keep writing. That beautiful writer's groove and compulsion to write will come back. Probably during your next grocery trip. | 
