Writer's Block

Greetings from the South.

I'm sure everyone has heard of it. Many have had it and some are experiencing it now. Yes, you know what I'm talking about. The dreaded writer's block. Or as I like to call it, writer's panic. That sheer feeling of fear as you stare at the stark white blank page with the little lone cursor blinking rapidly in front of you.

Waiting.

Waiting for you to type something. Anything. But, you can't. Your mind draws a blank and you just stare at the cursor praying the screen has some kind of magic ink that will reveal itself to you. It doesn't.

So, how does one overcome writer's block? By writing, of course. No it might not be your best. It might not even make sense. Chances are it will have to be trashed immediately, but as a wise author once said, "You can't fix a blank page."

Personally, I take that little slogan to heart.

Don't get me wrong. There are days when I stare at the white screen with the little blinking cursor and want to throw in the towel. Nothing seems to fall into place and for the life of me I can't string two sensible sentences together. Instead of surrending to the blinking cursor, I type. And delete. Then type some more. And delete some more. Finally, just when it seems like a lost cause, something happens. A little magical spark of sorts and my characters take over (they really do have a mind of their own, you know) and the scene starts to flesh out. Maybe not perfectly at first, but enough to move forward. So I type while my characters lead and at the end of the day I am no longer facing stark white pages with a lonesome little cursor. I have something to work with. I might not be able to fix a blank page, but I can certainly fix a page full of ideas and promise.

So there you have it. Writer's block defeated once again. Ok. Your turn. Let your fingers tickle the keyboard while your mind releases the magic.