If you're a student, or have ever attended school, then chances are you've come in contact with this scary thing called writer's block. It's every writer's worst fear, when suddenly it seems like your mind stops working and you can't possibly get another word down on the page. It can be anything from school assignments, professional articles, and story ideas. In fact, I have a fresh batch of writer's block right now. Instead of just sitting here staring at the blank page, I took the advice of poet Charles Bukowski, who famously said "writing about a writer's block is better than not writing at all."
I figured I'd do just that and write about writer's block. Or at least, have other writer's write about writer's block for me. No one can seem to agree on the best way to cure writer's block, why it actually happens, or if it even actually exists. But every single idea seems scarily accurate to what I'm feeling so if you're feeling it too, here are a collection of quotes that will make you feel less alone and frustrated, and may even inspire you to start writing again.
1. “The wonderful thing about writing is that there is always a blank page waiting.The terrifying thing about writing is that there is always a blank page waiting.”
2. "It's not the fear of writing that blocks people, it's fear of not writing well, which is something quite different."
3. “I don’t believe in writer’s block. If I can’t write, I go out and live. Then, if I’m a writer, I’ll find something to write.”
5. “Writer’s block is my unconscious mind telling me that something I’ve just written is either unbelievable or unimportant to me, and I solve it by going back and reinventing...Writer’s block is never solved by forcing oneself to “write through it,” because you haven’t solved the problem that caused your unconscious mind to rebel against the story..."
6. “Who is more to be pitied, a writer bound and gagged by policemen or one living in perfect freedom who has nothing more to say?”
7. "There is no such thing as writer's block. That was invented by people in California who couldn't write."
8. “I deal with writer’s block by lowering my expectations. I think the trouble starts when you sit down to write and imagine that you will achieve something magical and magnificent — and when you don’t, panic sets in. The solution is never to sit down and imagine that you will achieve something magical and magnificent. I write a little bit, almost every day, and if it results in two or three or (on a good day) four good paragraphs, I consider myself a lucky man. Never try to be the hare. All hail the tortoise.”
9. "If you imagine the world listening, you'll never write a line."
10. "Writer's block is just a symptom of feeling like you have nothing to say, combined with the rather weird idea that you should feel the need to say something. Why? If you have something to say, then say it. If not, enjoy the silence while it lasts. The noise will return soon enough."
Honestly, writing is one of the greatest but hardest things to do. It's challenging, it's inspiring, and it's wonderful. I would gladly spend the rest of my life writing, and I know in doing so I will encounter writer's block yet again.
I wish all you writers the best, and hope these quotes at least made you feel a little better, and at most gave you the perfect idea for your next line.
"I thought you knew what you signed up for."
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"Shocked disbelief: '95% of the population is undateable?'"
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