(Road Trip Wednesday is a ‘Blog Carnival,’ where YA Highway's contributors post a weekly writing- or reading-related question and answer it on our own blogs. You can hop from destination to destination and get everybody's unique take on the topic.)
This week's topic is How do you beat writer's block?
I've been told by writing teachers of yore that writer's block doesn't exist. That's right. It's a figment of my imagination, this four-sided, five-letter word that is the worst four-letter word a writer can imagine. But I don't really buy it.
Not to fear. I've found the answer to my imaginary foe.
It's not the local Starbucks for me. I get sidetracked by all the wonderful commotion and the real estate agents trying to close a deal at the tables to my right and left.
It's not the perfect desk sitting all alone in the middle of an empty room. Stephen King tried it and warned me it wouldn't work, but I didn't listen and had to try for myself. I've got a cute little black desk in the middle of my office, but am I sitting at it? Nope.
To get my writing juices flowing, I sit in the dining room on cushioned chairs or on the armchair next to the dining room table. Comfy, but just formal enough to keep me from falling asleep. Then I email my friend and say, "Hey, I'm going to send you an entire chapter sometime tonight."
Then I go get this:
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| from here |
Then this:
Then I open my laptop, close my internet browser, and write.
So, optimistic promises + chocolate + wine + familiar chair to place my butt = a few darn good pages.
Oh, and before 4 PM, I have coffee instead of wine. That's one cure for the malady of writers, and I endorse this message.
