F'n writer's block

For the life of me, I can't get this one article going. Nothing seems to be clicking and my frontal lobe feels like it's going to burst with absolute nothingness. What do all of you ladies & gentlemen do when you're dealing with WB?

 

There's no such thing as...well....the phenomenon you describe.

That said, just start typing. Grocery list. Christmas list. Passover menu. Ending of the story. Middle of the story. Transcribe your quotes. Transcribe your notes. Find further rhymes for "notes and quotes". Finish this: "There once was a man from Nantucket..." Retype the first two pages of "Oliver Twist." Just type. Repeat as necessary.

Good luck with your, um, phenomenon.

 

Outline your piece. What is the conflict? What is the resolution? What developments get the subject from point A (your lede) to point C (your end)?

Just come up with your structure and then start overlaying your words.

Use the SI formula if it helps:

A. Introduce the readers to the subject and what a stud he is
B. Flashback to your character's adversity in getting to the point he is at now and bring it on home

 

Just start writing, even if you think it's jibberish. Type in all of your notes and maybe one of them will spark a lede. Don't walk away, though. Type whatever comes to mind. Something good will pop up.

 

Talk about it, out loud. Describe the story, what you want to do with it, why it matters. Just tell the story, to the dog or the goldfish, doesn't matter....but it does help to hear yourself say what you want to say, without worrying about beautiful words.

Then write the parts that come easily....just get it down. You'll be rolling in no time.

Although...I do find that when I absolutely cannot write something, there's usually a reason. Either I don't know the story well enough to tell it, or it's just not a very good story.

 

Also, don't worry about the words. Worry about the ideas you need to get into the story, then polish the word play up later on.

 

Start writing where you can. Write the lede later.

 

I take a break and read.

 

If you have a boss there, go ...

You: "Hey (insert name here), I have a story but can't find the theme or start writing it."
Boss: "What's it about?"

Then start telling him why you thought it was a good story in the first place. He/she will probably hear a good buzzword or two and say, "There's your lede."

 

Usually when I suffer the dreaded writer's block, it's because I have too much other stuff on my mind. Since I work at home now, I've learned to do most my writing when everyone is either in bed or gone.

That said, I will get away from the computer for a little while -- take a walk, do the dishes, something mindless. But only for a short time.

Then, do like the rest have mentioned already. Do an outline, write a couple grafs to rearrange later. Transcribe your notes. It will start clicking, it just takes a little time sometimes. Just try not to stress over it, that will usually make it worse.

 

I just sit down and start typing, and shape it as I go.

If that fails, I go through my research and make sure I'm confident in what I'm working from.

 

Problem could be that you're using your frontal lobe.
Try the temporal lobe. It's where high language functions reside.