I have struggled with writer’s block off and on the entire time I’ve been writing. What it took awhile to figure out was how many types of writer’s block there actually are and that it was what I was struggling with. From my my perspective, writer’s block comes in two main categories of different rarity depending on the person.

Writer’s block is portrayed relatively frequently in books and movies. A struggling writer in front of a type writer or computer. A love struck teen trying to write a love letter and just adding to a trash can full of crumpled up paper balls. An unfinished half a sentence after realizing that it was not good enough. This is the type of writer’s block associated with a lack of inspiration and what people are most familiar with. It is also the type I struggle with the least. I get a majority of my inspiration from personal experience and dreams. Dreams are a wonderful blender for reality. New themes spawn from seemingly nowhere and the mundane is reorganized to become special. But this of course does not work for everyone. Every writer has their own method for getting over this type. The struggling writer goes through a life changing experience and his world broadens. The love struck teen listens to love songs and learns new phrases. That unfinished sentence is erased and tackled from a new perspective. There are many ways to get unstuck from this type of writer’s block. The biggest takeaway however is to seek change. Staring at that Word document will not dig you out of that rut. A mental change has to occur.

The type I struggle with is from burnout. I hyper focus on that shiny new plot; that fun new theme. It becomes everything on my brain while awake. I get a lot done before progress slowly decreases. I get bored. I’m so familiar with it inside and out that it loses that sparkle. I’ve called this the motivation type of writer’s block. You can be trying your best to work but the lack of motivation creates a wall. I procrastinate and feel guilty for doing so but don’t want to do it at the same time. The fix for this type and I imagine everyone else is to take a break. I don’t mean just a physical break either. Getting it totally out of my mind. A state of unthought until the work feels new again. The mind has a chance to rest and recharge. Then I can work efficiently. Too much of anything is never good and this is no exception. I deserve to feel proud of my work and rest is a step for that.