Every writer I know—bestsellers, debut authors, even myself at 50,000 words into a manuscript—has faced the same paralyzing thought: I can’t write today. That’s writer’s block.
The truth? Writer’s block isn’t a sign you’ve failed. It’s a sign you’re human. The challenge is learning how to climb out of it and keep your creativity alive. Here are the strategies I’ve used while drafting thrillers across airports, consulting projects, and sleepless 3 AM nights.
Writer’s block often comes from overwhelm: the novel feels too big, the scene too important. The fix? Shrink the goal. Start with one sentence. One line of dialogue. One description.
Momentum builds from small wins. You don’t need to conquer the mountain today—just take one step.
Staring at the same desk can drain your spark. Move to a café, a park, or even a different chair in your house. Sometimes creativity needs a shift in scenery to wake up.
When I wrote parts of The Ahriman Legacy, I drafted entire chapters on trains and in airports. The chaos became fuel.
If typing feels impossible, try handwriting a scene. If prose feels heavy, sketch your character’s room, or outline dialogue like a script. Switching mediums tricks your brain into play—and play is the antidote to pressure.
Sometimes writer’s block isn’t a lack of discipline—it’s an empty tank. Reading in or outside your genre can spark ideas, rhythms, and energy. When I’m stuck, I’ll grab a thriller for pacing or poetry for fresh language. Inspiration breeds inspiration.
Perfectionism is the silent twin of writer’s block. If every sentence must be brilliant, you’ll freeze. Give yourself permission to write badly. Messy, clunky, cliché—it’s fine. Besides, most of the time, you’ll probably find it is even that bad.
Remember: you can revise bad words. You can’t revise any words.
Physical activity—walking, yoga, even doing the dishes—resets the brain. When you step away from the screen, your subconscious keeps working. Some of my best plot twists arrived on long hikes when I wasn’t “trying” to write at all. Sometimes the best ideas come to you in the bath or the shower. Give yourself a little space and see what happens!
Block often hides fear: fear that the story isn’t good enough, fear that no one will care. Combat it by remembering why you started. Do you want to tell this story for yourself? To see someone like you on the page? To share a truth with the world?
Write that reason on a sticky note. Put it where you draft. Let it remind you that this story matters.
Writer’s block isn’t a wall—it’s a signal. A signal to slow down, change tactics, or refill your creative well. But most importantly, resistance of any kind is a signal that you’re doing the right thing. Most things worth doing aren’t easy, and it’s okay for you to recognize that what you’re doing is hard.
So shrink the task, move your body, change the scenery, write badly, write differently, but above all—keep writing. Because on the other side of writer’s block isn’t just words. It’s your story waiting to be told.
Warmly,
Puja
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