Writer’s Block (and a few ways to get past it)

I have a feeling that people go through this sort of situation at least once in their lives, if not multiple times:

You’re having a great time writing, and you’re just almost done writing this fanfic, or original short story, or something, when all of a sudden, your mind goes blank. Musical numbers of doom go off in your head and you stare at your paper/computer screen with dread as you come to the horrible realization that…

You have Writer’s Block.

Okay, so maybe it doesn’t come in that dramatically, but honestly it’s something that all of us will end up struggling with from time to time. So, I thought I’d list some advice for what to do when it hits.

1. Take a break. Sometimes you just have to take a break from writing the fanfic or short story or novel or whatever it could be. Get yourself some fresh air, or a snack, or exercise, or something that isn’t writing related, and then come back and write.
2. Listen to music. Writing something sci-fi related? Listen to sci-fi-inspired music or something similar, or synthpop or something. What about fantasy novels? You could listen to some celtic or medieval-sounding music. I usually find that listening to music that somehow relates to what you write can get you quickly back in the mood to write more. If you have characters, try finding a song or some musical piece that seems to relate to them.
3. Brainstorm! Let’s just say you’ve been writing a story, for example, about a bunch of mercenaries on the way to some distant castle to save the entire kingdom! But…just as your characters are about to walk into a cave, you get the writer’s block right then and there. This is when you can brainstorm things. Maybe a giant dragon comes out of the cave, but it’s friendly and smokes phoenix feathers instead of eating people. Or maybe the cave is full or mermaids that rob people’s marshmallows. It’s all up to you to think of things, and I find this as a really useful tool for getting back to writing!

These are probably only a few out of many other ways to get out of writer’s block, but don’t give up if it hits you, because you can get through it!