First Aid for Writer's Block

by Marcia Yudkin

Stuck? Not for long when you try these remedies for creativity on call.

1. Go somewhere else. One of my clients hops a train whenever she has a deadline and writes on board.

2. Freewrite. Right this second, copy the following starter phrase and keep writing nonstop wherever it leads you: "What I really want to say in this piece is..."

3. Change your medium. If you've been stuck writing at the computer, sit down with a pad of paper or even a grocery bag. If you've been trying with a pen, try crayons.

4. Take a rest. Sometimes you're just trying too hard. Sleep on it and in the morning you'll feel in the mood for a fresh start.

5. Write something else. If you're hung up on something for work, write something for pleasure or vice versa.

6. Talk it out. Call a friend and tell her what you would say in writing if you could. When it's flowing, hang up the phone and continue on the computer.

7. Repeat prior successes. Remember how you successfully started or completed something earlier in your life, and reuse that strategy.

8. Do it wrongly. Try writing your piece very badly. You may find you've created a halfway decent version with hardly any effort.

9. Start typing any old thing. Someone in one of my seminars got started every morning by typing the Gettysburg Address ("Four score and seven years ago..."). Before the end, she'd always segue into what she really wanted to write.

10. Visualize. Close your eyes and imagine your book or report completed, with a beautiful cover. In your mind's eye, open it and begin reading. Write down what it says.