Writer's Block

Blank. Blank. Blank. Blank. Blank. Blank. Blank. Blank. Blank. Blank. Blank. Blank. Blank.  

Blank screen, blank mind, blank. 

I have Writer’s Block. To most, this means little to nothing. To the writer, they’d rather have their fingernails pulled out and get their kneecaps popped off. I think Taika Waititi (Jojo Rabbit, Thor: Ragnarok) once said something along the lines of, “even sitting in front of a blank page for hours on end, not writing a thing, is still writing.” It’s a nice sentiment, until you remember that he’s made millions of dollars and won the Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay in 2020, and I’m sitting at home. 

As I’ve said before, I love to write. I think it allows me to focus myself onto one topic for a few hours, and I get to put my opinions out into the world. It’s a win-win-lose scenario. You’re the loser. For having to read it. 

So…when I’m in a block, it legitimately hurts. I’m looking at this got-dang screen with a pounding headache. For days I’ve wanted to write an article, and for days I’ve had no clue what to write about. So, we’re writing about that. 

This isn’t the first time I’ve had writer’s block. Everyone, not just the “writer,” experiences it at some point or another in life. If you’ve written an essay for school, you’ve likely experienced it. You don’t know what to text that girl you met at the coffee shop? Writer’s block. In my experience, it’s essentially the process of being speechless, but with your hands. I can talk about whatever, for however long I need to, but writing? That requires my ADHD riddled mind to sharpen neurons and do the one thing that I’ve never been good at: sit still. 

I’ve been blocked before, many times actually. Regarding these articles, I experienced a block on Orwell, which took me almost six days to work through. I’ve had writer’s block during school assignments, cover letters while applying to jobs, and most notably for myself, while writing scripts. 

For those who don’t know, I’ve written a fair share of scripts, none of which have ever seen the beginning of a production process. For the most part that’s a good thing. Trust me, The Coin Toss didn’t deserve to see the light of day. That one sucks. I have a mini-series that I’m actually very proud of, which I hope to begin production on in the next year. The mini-series took, if you believe it, almost 6 months to finish writing. It started as a one episode short film, and expanded to a fifteen episode series. Of all the times I experienced writer’s block, that series certainly had some of the worst instances. 

Have you ever wrestled with dialogue? Trying to make a character sound cool, whilst also trying to make the character sound natural? Do you have any idea how hard that can be? Have you ever had a brilliant idea, one that you genuinely think could be a phenomenal addition to your work, and immediately lose it the moment someone texts you? 

Then, you remember for a moment, and it feels like you have it in your grasp, until you lose it again. That exact sequence of events literally just happened to me. Like, as I was writing that sentence. 

So I guess the question is:

How do you lift the block? How does the dam spring a leak? 

The answer, for me at least, sucks. It requires me to do the one thing I truly believe I can never do again, and that’s write something. Anything. I just have to do it. Like a boxer or an athlete, the writer knows, sometimes the only way to get back on your feet is to stand up. Accept that it’s work. Accept that it’s gonna suck, that it may even hurt, mentally. But, accept that it’s the right thing to do. Would I let myself stop doing something I love? That’s right, of course I wouldn’t. 

The nice thing about this annoying process is that it works. Almost every time I’ve forced myself to write something purely out of necessity, I end up creating something I didn’t expect. This article alone serves as a prime example. I told myself, “just put something on the page. It’s not going to kill you.” 

However, forcing yourself out of writer’s block pushes you into a corner. Like a tiger in a cage, you sit there. Calculating. Weighing options.  There’s one way out, and that’s the ending. Which, of course, is the hardest part. Ask anyone who’s written an essay for a class, the teacher always requires a conclusion. In every form of media that we consume, the end is always the most important part. The ending can make or break any piece of media, be it an album, a book, a movie, or any other medium. 

I almost gave this article a bad ending. I had a whole paragraph about Robert Eggers’ Nosferatu written and ready to publish. Then I realized, it meant nothing. My point had already been illustrated, I was just putting a hat on a hat. That’s the hard part. Writing what you want is good, but knowing what people should actually end up reading is the most important aspect of creating art in this medium. 

The consistent reader might notice I’ve slowed down on these articles, and now you can understand why. Writer’s block is the worst, but it’s a curable ailment. Take it from me, the guy whose memoir might genuinely be titled Local Dumbass Finds a Microphone, writer’s block is beatable. You just need an endgame. 

That’s about all I have to say on this matter. This one’s mostly for me, to remind myself how to beat the block, but hopefully it finds the write crowd. (Awful joke, I’m sorry) If you found this relatable, let me know. Hopefully it helps knowing there’s more out there sharing this same kind of anxiety or “pain.” Thanks for reading.