How to Overcome Writer’s Block

Lindsey Chastain
6 min readFeb 7, 2024

Writer’s block is a frustrating experience that most writers face at some point in their careers. You sit down to write, whether it’s a blog post, article, story, or book, but your mind goes blank, and you struggle to get words onto the page. Overcome writer’s block by following these techniques:

Understand Why You’re Stuck

Before attempting to move forward, reflect on what’s causing your writer’s block. Common reasons include:

  • Perfectionism — Holding yourself to unrealistic writing standards can paralyze you with fear of failure. Silence your inner critic.
  • Lack of motivation — Without drive and inspiration, writing can feel like a chore. Dig to find your passion.
  • Feeling overwhelmed — Facing a major project can freeze you with self-doubt and anxiety. Break it into small pieces.
  • Too much editing — Editing as you write interrupts your flow. Let the words spill out first.

Once you identify the source, you can start to chip away at your mental block.

How to Overcome Writer’s Block

Take a Break

Sometimes you just need to step away from your computer and preoccupy your conscious mind with something totally different…

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Lindsey Chastain

I’ve always wanted to be someone. I guess I should have been more specific.