The Best Way to Overcome Writer’s Block: Handwriting
Adding creative touches to your writing and planning, such as using fun ink colours and washi tapes, might be all the inspiration you need.
Can you believe that we're already over halfway through November? For those of us participating in National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo), this period of the challenge is probably the hardest on your creativity. You're far enough away from the start of the novel that the optimism is wearing off, but the excitement for finishing at the end of the month is still a ways away!
If you're starting to feel writer's block in your creative process, why not try handwriting for a while? No matter which genre you're writing, fiction is inherently creative and personal. One of the biggest causes of writer's block is self-doubt, so grounding yourself in a blank page with just you, a pen, and a notebook is a great way to get your writing schedule back on track.
Why a notebook and pen instead of a laptop? Well, one of the best ways to cure writer's block is to let go of your perfectionism. By allowing yourself to make mistakes in your first draft, you can simply get it done! If you're writing in your own font, so to speak, you don't have to worry about making your writing pretty; you just have to worry about getting it written.
Even though we won't be writing in coffee shops this year, a notebook is portable to take with you no matter where you go. As we detailed in a previous blog post, there are even waterproof fountain pen inks that will survive a tumble with a stray mug of coffee. Plus, a notebook will never die just as you finish a chapter or crash right before a deadline!
Do you write with a pen or a pencil? Choosing a smooth and reliable option, like a Rotring 600 or Lamy Studio, can make all the difference.
No matter what topic you're writing on, it's important to remember your motivations for starting the challenge in the first place. Stay grounded in your goals by handwriting affirmations between your pages. Remember, no one has to read your notes except for you!
Handwriting will also help your writing process because you won't be so worried about those dreadful squiggly lines reminding you of grammar and spelling. When you're not so worried about the subconscious concerns of punctuation and modifiers, you are likely about to meet your writing goals in a much more enjoyable way.
If you like to put yourself in the headspace of your characters, you’ve likely made mood boards, Pinterest boards, and music playlists of things that help you really picture their world. You can do this very easily with a pen and paper as well! You can match your ink colours to their moods or favourite colours, and you can even add accents like stickers and washi tapes to add a more creative touch to get your juices flowing.
Do you ever find that you have great ideas in the shower, only to realize the next day that you've completely forgotten what they were? Even if you type your story on a laptop, keeping a notebook and pen nearby for mind mapping, brainstorming, and sudden ideas can be incredibly helpful. Options like the Fisher Space pen can even write in water or on wet paper, and stone notebooks like the Stonit are 100% waterproof — you'll never miss a shower idea again!
Get your creative juices flowing no matter where you are! Options like the Fisher Space Pen will keep up with you no matter where you write — in the shower, upside down, or in space!
Handwriting is also a great way to avoid procrastination by using the internet. Twitter and Facebook can be great ways to get support on a piece of writing for a budding novelist, but a notebook never sends you down a spiral of hashtags on social media during a writing session! Avoiding distractions and actually sitting down to write can help you build momentum in your project and avoid the anxiety loop from seeing the progress other writers are making.
Overall, handwriting your novel, or even just the outline of your novel, will help you to combat a lack of inspiration because it can help you learn to enjoy the process of writing again, not just the end result. We're sure that you didn't start writing just because you wanted to be published — you likely started writing because you have a story to tell.
As Ernest Hemingway wrote in his memoir, “The blue-backed notebooks, the two pencils and the pencil sharpener (a pocket knife was too wasteful), the marble topped tables, the smell of early morning, sweeping out and mopping, and luck were all you needed.” Keep pushing through to finish writing your novel — all of us at Phidon Pens are rooting for you!
What tips do you have for someone who is experiencing writer's block? Let us know in the comments, and happy writing!