As a writer, I’ve had days when my writing just seems to leap onto the keyboard, and the writing is smooth and flowing and as sparkling as a mountain stream. Other days, I prepare to write and my brain just won’t function fully. I can’t find the right words, or the ideas that do come just don’t seem to work together. If you have any of those days, then here are five steps that may just blast away that writing block.
Get an idea book.
How often have you been inspired with a great idea, but you were driving the car or in the middle of a meeting? Do some of your ideas come when you wake up in the middle of the night, but you can’t recall them in the morning? You never know when your writing muse will favor you. Get an idea book. This can be just a small notebook you keep in your purse, pocket or on your desk. When an idea pops into your head, write it down. Soon you’ll have a list of new and unwritten ideas that you can develop into an article.
Outline it.
Now before you start writing that article from a topic in your idea book, take time to write a simple outline about the topic. Think of related ideas, and jot them down, and under each list sub-headings and short notes. Outlines serve to focus your mind as you write, preventing you from getting off the topic.
Don’t worry about grammar.
As you write, just let the writing flow. When you are on a roll, a few spelling errors or grammatical no-no’s don’t matter. Stopping to proofread just distracts from the flow of words. Right now, just get the ideas down and keep the words coming. Then, when you’re all done, edit it for those errors. An easy job if you do your writing with a word processor.
Review, review.
If you’re in the middle of an article and the words and ideas stop flowing, it may be time to go back to what you’ve already written and read it. You may find that you’ve gone off track, and this will often serve to get you back onto your original track. Go back to your outline to see whether you’ve missed a heading or sub-heading that was transitional.
Read it aloud.
Once you finish your article’s first draft, read it aloud. This is one of the best ways to check how it flows. You may not notice small errors, since the brain sometimes registers what should be there, not what is there. However, you will get a much better idea if you’ve been successful in achieving a readable and flowing article.
