What to do When you Can’t Write

Just as we all have good writing days, we all have bad ones, too. But what should you do when you can’t put your thoughts into words, or you don’t feel inspired? Here are a few things you can do instead.

Make Self-care a Priority

Listen to your body. If you’re tired, you’ll struggle to create ideas and put words onto paper. You might not be able to work because you’re burnt out or stressed and trying to work through this will only slow you down even more. Be kind to yourself. Take a break. Find out what sort of rest you need and make that a priority. Maybe you need to speak to a friend, go for a walk, or take a nap. Do what you need to do so that you can come back to your writing feeling refreshed.

Tackle Some Chores

“The best time to plan a book is while doing the dishes.” Agatha Christie

It is widely acknowledged that being bored encourages creativity and problem-solving. When you spend time on tasks that don’t require much thought process, such as cleaning, ironing, or gardening, your brain is free to spend time thinking about other things. You also take the pressure off of yourself to create ideas.

Exercise

Exercise offers a physical and mental reset that can be the spark you need to get creative. It can help you to clear your mind and reduce stress.

Switch to a Different Project

Maybe the problem is the project you’re trying to work on. Perhaps you’ve come to a problem you don’t know how to overcome, or you’re not as passionate about your idea anymore – there are things you can do to help you with this, and one of them is to step away from it.

Switching to a different writing project allows your mind to be creative without the pressure of overcoming the problems you’re facing in your other project. Moving your focus onto something different – another story, a blog post, or even your journal, can help loosen the mental knots you have.

Often when you return to your original work, you’ll feel more optimistic and motivated, and you may even have found new ideas or solutions in your time away from it.

If this is something you decide to do it’s a good idea to set a time to return to it so that the project doesn’t become abandoned.

Read a Book

Reading a book will distract you from the pressure of your current project and give you a chance to relax, which will help you to find your creativity again. Reading also engages your imagination and can rekindle your passion for storytelling.

The one thing that all of these activities have in common is that they take you away from your work so that when you return to it, you have a fresh perspective and more creative energy.