What do you do when you struggle with the creative process to make ideas to write new things?
There’s a couple things I do to keep the idea machine running!
1. Routine: while I don’t have an exact time I write everyday, I do have a general time/place, which is a coffee shop some time in the morning. Routine is super important for writing since it’ll train your brain to switch on for creating stuff and make it so you can produce more in a timely manner.
Some days you won’t feel like writing, but building a habit of it will make it easier in the long-run.
2. Ideas: routine is good, but if you have no idea what to write then it can make it hard. One thing I do is keep an “ideas” folder that I stalk-up every now and then
it has sub-categories like “scary stories” and “fantasy” but my main one is just general ideas where I spit-ball any and every idea that I think has potential. The ideas range from entire plots to just a sentence where I describe the prompt.
I also have a folder called “writing things I love” where I keep track of things I’ve read that I’ve really liked such as quotes or twists or just tropes I like. This folder makes it so I can go look back at things that inspire me and draw ideals from that.
I have an article on WHERE I get my ideas from as well if you want to read it.
3. Burn-out: burn-out is real and I do experience it every few months, it can be important to take breaks and recognize when you need to take a break. If writing another word makes you feel drained or angry or just very negative I suggest taking some time off to refuel. Take a few days to just read or watch TV or not think about writing at all.
HOWEVER, taking breaks can risk undoing your routine and be a problem on its own, the way I counter-act this is that I make a new deal with myself. Writing every day is a contract I make to myself in good-faith, I do breaks in the same way.
This means I make a new contract with myself: I’ll rest for 3 days and then go back to writing on the 4th. This has worked for me so far! The part of me that’s tired feels respected and is willing to go back to it when the time comes.
I hope this helped in some way! Let me know if you have anymore questions~
