I've been struggling with writer's block lately. I think the block is the result of the confluence of many forces—perfectionism, feelings of inadequacy, and learned hopelessness after writing so many rejected drafts. I have high expectations for my paper, I want a draft done now, and I keep getting stuck every time I try to dig in and write. Sound familiar?
Naturally, I went in search of good advice. Maria Gardiner and Hugh Kearns (Flinders University) have a couple great articles published in Nature, aimed to help academics with motivation and the writing process. Definitely read these brief articles with free access!
This advice should be useful for any creative work—writers, artists, and even engineers.
Some universities publish advice on how to overcome writer's block:
- University of Illinois has these tips for writer's block.
- Flinders University has advice for writer's block and perfectionism.
Of course, many self-help books try to help us overcome writer's block. Here is a short list of titles to check out:
- The 7 Secrets of the Prolific by Hillary Rettig
- The Successful Author Mindset by Joanna Penn
- The Mental Game of Writing by James Scott Bell
- Around the Writer's Block by Rosanne Bane
- Crank It Out! by C. S. Lakin
Please contact me if you have other useful resources, advice, or a review of any of these books! Bon courage!