Writer's Block

Post Reply New Topic

So... I'm stuck.

For those of you who don't know, I have written a book about AS, primarily designed for parents to help them understand and help their child. I 'finished' the book last august, but I never was really satisfied with it. I did the best I could, but I still feel as though the book is shallow, poorly written, and lacking proper explanations. However, as I was starting school that month, I didn't have enough time to go through and rewrite the sections that I didn't like (which was most of the book). So, basically, I published a rough draft. I made a nice website (its the one in my signature) and put the book there for download. I figured that I would eventually go back later and clean it up.

Now that I am done with school, I have been trying to go through and rewrite the book, but I seem to be stuck. I just can't seem to get the ideas from my head down onto paper the way I want. It isn't that I don't know what idea I am trying to convey; it's just that trying to put the idea into words is increasingly becoming a futile effort.

For those of you who have written anything extensive, how do you deal with this sort of thing? Is there any technique, or methodology that you have found to help, or something like that?

The only thing I can think of is to put the project aside for a week or so and hope that I can come at it from a fresh perspective, but I have been trying that the last 2 weeks and I am no more able to convey my ideas today then when I decided to take a break 2 weeks ago.

So, any ideas?

No idea if this will be useful but the best method I found was just taking a piece of paper and just writing random thoughts down on it about the subject I was working on, then taking scissors, cutting them out and grouping them, then ordering them within the groups into a story board, but I know this doesn't work for everyone, I like patterns so it works for me

Maybe find someone to help you articulate your thoughts?

I write fiction rather than nonfiction, but what I do for writer's block is that I don't force it. Instead, I just read my work, then think about it as I go through my daily routine. I also work on multiple projects simultaneously and switch to whichever one I'm most inspired for at a given moment.

Editing is the hardest thing for me, too. I tend to end up trying to rewrite the entire thing from scratch, getting overloaded, and giving up on it.

You could try talking through your thoughts and maybe recording them. I find that my thoughts are much clearer when I talk them through outloud first - then, when I sit down to write it is more like taking dictation. I do this when I'm alone in the car each and every time.

Same as Ettina.
But I suppose they're only different in subject.

What I do is (see, that's the thing, it changes for every person) take a break from it, during which I read other books, fiction or nonfiction, whatever, and I listen to some music, look for anything that will inspire me. But I don't force it.
Then after a while I will read over everything I have written, take notes on what I have noticed about it (little mistakes or strange sentences, etc), and then I make changes.
The reason I wait and do other things is so I have fresh eyes and not eyes that are tired with my own writing.
Hope this helps.

This is a good idea. I think best when I have someone to think with. Perhaps a collaborator, co-author, or just someone who would be happy to help you refine your thoughts.