Writer's Block and How to Deal With It

By: Kelly Shelton

                                

Writer's block is a pain that every student and writer comes across when writing their research paper or creating the next classic novel.  I always get stuck in the worst possible parts of my paper like the conclusion or those super stellar attention getters and I've always wanted to find a quick way to get me back to writing. So, I decided to research some methods online and from other teachers for helping with writer's block and put them on here to be a caring person because God knows I will probably come back and read these methods myself on the next paper. So here you go world.  Let's be friends and get through this together.

1. The Claus Method: Write down your ideas on a separate sheet of paper and just follow your train of thought.  Don't worry about flow just write down your ideas as they come to you and go with it.  Once you feel you have written a sufficient amount of information that could be used in your paper, cut up the sentences and place them where you think they should go in order of your paper.  It may be a little tedious but it will get you somewhere in the end.
2. The Muscle Method: This method encompasses a couple different ones that I found.  This includes stretching and just getting away from your paper for a bit.  Stretch your arms and back then get down to business.  This refocuses your mind in a clear way to be more apt to write.  If this still doesn't work, go get a snack or walk around.  Save it and come back to it later when your mind is fresher and more ready to get your sweet writing skills on.
3. Talk About It: Sometimes it helps to go see a teacher and have them read it or have a friend read it as well.  Other people could give you a nudge into what you might want to write down next.  They might just have to point out another angle to consider and your thoughts will start coming faster than you can write them down.
4. Revisit:  Another method is to revisit the mental or written outline that you have for your paper.  Seeing where you want to go next can refresh your mind into how you want to make your paper flow.  The breakdown of it can give your mind a step by step way of trucking through your block.

Well these are just a few methods and I'm sure there are other specific methods like drinking tea or playing with your cat or someone else's cat or petting a baby bunny that could work just as well (THE BUNNY!!!). But those are more specific to the person so I just gave you the ones that the all-knowing internet talked about the most and that I've personally found helpful so enjoy it, live long and prosper and all that jazz.
... Bye!