Dealing with Writer’s Block Pt I

All creatives, no matter how prolific, talented, smart, etc., run into what is colloquially called “writer’s block” at some point. There are so many possible causes for it … the weight of what work has already been done and is created by our peers, stress, etc. Regardless, I believe that the method I describe below is applicable to most cases. I am a firm believer in scheduling creative work and scheduling creative breaks. I personally take a fair amount of influence from the Eastern Religions (primarily Buddhism and Taoism) in my approach to life. The approach I describe below is arguably a zen buddhist approach.

I like to describe the flow of creative energy like the flow of water. When it rains a lot and the tributaries are clear of gunk, our creative energy flows ferociously like a mighty river. Oftentimes, however, stress and other thoughts can clog up the sources of our creative river and the flow of our creative energy weakens, turning the mighty river into a gentle babbling brook. We notice when the flow of creative energy is a mighty river because we noticeably are abnormally more creative than usual and we bask in the river, treating it like it’s a rush of pure adrenaline. When we return to the gentle babbling brook of creative energy that is normal, we don’t miss the mighty river because we know that if we swim in the mighty river for too long, we might get lost or drown. We just appreciate that we got to swim in the mighty river, even if only for a short period of time, and we think nothing more of it. However, when we draw from too much creative energy from the brook in a short period of time or consistently draw too much creative energy much over a longer period of time, we start to use our creative energy faster than it can be replenished. This causes the water level to drop, and more and more branches and leaves start to clog up the flow of the brook, causing the once ferocious roar to slow down to just a trickle. We notice this. We start to freak out and worries such as the worry that the creative energy might be gone for good often start to creep into the back of our minds. We call this state “writer’s block.” We feel that no matter what we do, we can’t seem to absorb enough creative energy to write whatever we’re trying to write. But just like over time a river will replenish itself, if we allow ourselves to stop trying to use our creative energy and just rest, over time our creative energy too will replenish itself and flow again like the ferocious mighty river that it once was.

That’s why when I have gotten writer's block, I have found that it helps if I force myself to take at least three to four days off from writing. Obviously that might not be always possible, but I have found that it's refreshing to occasionally stop forcing yourself to write constantly and just give yourself a "creative" break. Rather than fight against the lack of creative energy, I choose to embrace it as part of the natural process. As composers, music courses through our veins, and if we give it time, the urge to compose will return and will be unstoppable.