Liz Strauss at Successful Blog

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January 30, 2007

Writer’s Block: Unblanking the Blank Screen

ME Liz Strauss wrote this at 8:58 am

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Why the Blank Screen Is Scary

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Ah, the blank screen.

The blank screen. It’s an invitation to look foolish, to be boring, to write something that we’ll regret. Some of us can use the blank screen to scare the proverbial pants off ourselves imagining how badly we might screw things up.

The blank screen reminds us that our thoughts will be there for the world to see.

A famous Guindon Cartoon said it better.

Writing is nature’s way of letting you know how sloppy your thinking is.

Fear of a blank screen, writer’s block, really is — a subtle fear of exposure — fear that people will see things in our thoughts.

Combine that fear with the idea of marring a pure and perfect white screen, and a writer can get totally ‘whelmed. (Who needs to be overwhelmed? Feeling ‘whelmed is quite big enough for me, thank you.)

It helps to know what we’re up against.

Unblanking the Blank Screen

The key to unblanking the scary blank screen is getting something on it we want to say. Some writers can type until they know what that is. I’m not one of them.

I find freewriting visually stressful. When I do that, all I see is a blank screen getting messier and messier. All I feel is me getting more and more distracted by the problem that I don’t know what I want to write.

What I do instead is look away from the menace of the vast white space. I get up and hunt down one sentence — only one — one sentence that says something I want to say. I use questions like these to help me.

  1. What something have I learned or learned about lately?
  2. What news have I heard that I’d enjoy adding my point of view to?
  3. What have I read that I might want to recommend?
  4. What pithy comment was left on my blog this week? How might I respond?
  5. What pattern, behavior, trend have I noticed?
  6. What question do I have that I want answered?
  7. What skill or a technique might I teach?
  8. What argument might I give the pro/con to?
  9. What lesson have I learned this week? What funny story can I share?
  10. What pet peeve or problem have I got a solution to?

The possible questions are unlimited, of course. I start with these, and look through books, cabinets and drawers, and the refrigerator while I’m thinking. The moving around and looking helps my brain unfreeze.

It’s not long before a sentence warms up to me.

I go back to my computer, and I write that sentence across the screen.

The screen is not blank anymore. I’m no longer distracted by its emptiness.

Now I can get to writing.

That sentence? It often becomes my headline. When it’s not, it’s usually my last line. Can you tell which one it is this time?

What questions would you ask to help folks unblank the blank screen?

UPDATE: IF you don’t read Joe’s post Liz Had My Idea Before Me, you’ll be missing a clever and entertaining blogger’s post.

–ME “Liz” Strauss
If you think Liz can help with a problem you’re having with your writing, check out the Work with Liz!! page in the sidebar.

Related
Why Dave Barry and Liz Don’t Get Writer’s Block
Don’t Hunt IDEAS — Be an Idea Magnet
10 Ways to Start a Blog Post — 01-29-07





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33 Comments to “Writer’s Block: Unblanking the Blank Screen”

  1. January 30th, 2007 at 9:55 am
    Karin said

    Hi Liz
    “(Who needs to be overwhelmed? Feeling ‘whelmed is quiet big enough for me, thank you.)”
    LoL, what a great find!

    As for blank screens and the first sentence you use to tackle it: my first sentence usually comes from a little note I jotted down earlier for myself so I wouldn’t forget it and leisurely can expand on it once I tranfer it to that blank screen.
    Don’t realy know the ‘feeling’ of a blank screen I must confess (blank jotter leafs, yes I do know them ;-))

  2. January 30th, 2007 at 9:58 am
    ME Strauss said

    Hi Karin!
    I have lots of “whelmed” words in my vocabulary. They’re my list of word with syllables we don’t need to spend the extra energy for. :)

    After years, and years, and years , writing on demand, I don’t have much problem with a blank page or screen either, but I know exactly what I do to make sure that I don’t. :)

  3. January 30th, 2007 at 10:00 am
    Marti said

    At the moment I am having just the opposite problem! Too much to say, too many places to say it, and not enough time to get it all out! LOL

    I’ve been there with that blank screen though, and these are great tips! (As always)

    Best wishes to you for a terrific day, hon. Saw you on the 2000, I’m in there somewhere - LOL

  4. January 30th, 2007 at 10:05 am
    Karin said

    Hi Liz
    (is it too much to ask to have a peek into that list of you? Love to LoL which I’m sure many will have me do).

    Marti: know the feeling of too much, too many and too few.
    (and then my little jotter pad - when I;m not in front of the pc - overflows)

  5. January 30th, 2007 at 10:08 am
    ME Strauss said

    Hi Marti!
    Put an idea in your head before you go sleep. You’ll wake in the morning ready to write that post. :)

    I’ll have to check the 2000. I’ve not been there for days. I bet I’ll find you in a second. :)

  6. January 30th, 2007 at 10:09 am
    ME Strauss said

    Hi Karin!
    You mean my list of words that have too many syllables? It’s only in my head. They just come out when I need one to make people laugh. :)

    Some day I’ll do my routine on why you never day a guy who’s name is a verb. :)

  7. January 30th, 2007 at 10:41 am
    Lisa said

    Funny, the blank screen doesn’t daunt me, it’s the pages and pages of already written stuff that scream “you better get back here and edit.”

    Best sources of ideas come from walking, sans iPod, sans everything (although shoes, pants and a shirt are a good idea).

    I’m working on a short story right now that came from this phrase that popped into my head while walking. “I do not own a gravy boat.” Seems to be floating into interesting, murky water…

  8. January 30th, 2007 at 10:44 am
    ME Strauss said

    Hi Lisa!
    I think that folks who understand their creative process work with it and thus don’t have the problem. Dave Barry says that writer’s block is nothing more than knowing that writing is hard work.

    ““I do not own a gravy boat.” And neither does my friend, Liz. :)

  9. January 30th, 2007 at 10:55 am
    cube said

    Good advice. I don’t waste too much time staring at a blank screen. I find mindlessly repetitive action, like bouncing a ball against the wall, clears my mind and let’s me conquer the blank screen.

    A little notebook of words or phrases of trigger material is also helpful to me when I’m stuck with nothing to say.

  10. January 30th, 2007 at 11:09 am
    Mad Cap said

    As a writer myself, I cannot recommend highly enough “The War of Art” by Steven Pressfield. A directly applicable quote, “The secret is this: It’s not the writing part that’s hard. What’s hard is sitting down to write.” The entire paragraph is worthwhile, but I have problems entering flow, not finding the words. Anyone in the Chicago area wanting to borrow my copy of the book - email me at madcap1one at yahoo.com. Liz, I would love to meet you for coffee one of these days as a loyal lurker.

  11. January 30th, 2007 at 11:13 am
    ME Strauss said

    Cube!
    What fun to see you here! I lurk at your blog often — even comment once year or so. :)

    Yeah, I’m into the repetitive motion thing too. I often sway side to side at my keyboard when I’m just thinking up a word. :)

  12. January 30th, 2007 at 11:16 am
    ME Strauss said

    Hi Mad Cap,
    I sit down to write out of habit. It’s the only chair in the living room that I sit in. Maybe that helps. :)

    Coffee sounds great!! Shoot me an email and we’ll get together. I have a goal to meet Chicago bloggers and bloggers-to-be as often as I can! :)

  13. January 30th, 2007 at 11:31 am
    Working at Home on the Internet said

    [...] What was one of the First Posts I come across? Writer’s Block: Unblanking the Blank Screen by Liz Strauss. She gives us 10 questions (I think she likes the number 10) to ask ourselves in order to unblank that scary blank screen. [...]

  14. January 30th, 2007 at 1:06 pm
    Joe said

    Hey Liz,
    Thanks for the nod (and the call). Now, back to looking at my screen that is filled with way too much to do. :-)

  15. January 30th, 2007 at 2:16 pm
    Robert Hruzek said

    Liz; a great list of helps, PLUS - I use the one in your following sentence for last-resort help (the refridgerator) - when all else fails, there’s always cheesecake! (Thank goodness I’m kidding!)

    Is your key sentence this one: “What questions would you ask to help folks unblank the blank screen?”

  16. January 30th, 2007 at 2:24 pm
    ME Strauss said

    Joe,
    It was such fun to read, I had to come back and point it out to everyone! :)

  17. January 30th, 2007 at 2:35 pm
    ME Strauss said

    Hi Robert!
    Thanks. Cheesecake can be very inspiring. I’m with you on that. It’s the eating that can be a problem. :)

  18. January 31st, 2007 at 4:26 am
    Alvin said

    Words of advice from one of the greats:

    “Just slap anything on when you see a blank canvas staring you in the face like some imbecile. You don’t know how paralyzing that is, that stare of a blank canvas is, which says to the painter, ‘You can’t do a thing’. The canvas has an idiotic stare and mesmerizes some painters so much that they turn into idiots themselves. Many painters are afraid in front of the blank canvas, but the blank canvas is afraid of the real, passionate painter who dares and who has broken the spell of `you can’t’ once and for all.”
    ~Vincent Van Gogh
    (Letter to Theo van Gogh, October 1884)

  19. January 31st, 2007 at 4:30 am
    ME Strauss said

    Oh Alvin!
    That quote is so wonderful! I’ve never run into that before, and I’m such a fan of Van Gogh. Thank you for the time I know it took to find it, type it in, and proof it for us to have it here.

    You are a giver. :)

  20. February 1st, 2007 at 5:21 pm
    Shanna said

    Can totally relate to this post. I’ve absolutely come to the conclusion that fear is a huge element of my writing.

  21. February 1st, 2007 at 6:09 pm
    ME Strauss said

    Hi Shanna!
    Taking care of the souorce of the fear is what this post is supposed to be about. Once we recognie what drives the fear — usually our interal editor, the bad boy with the big mouth, who’s sure we’re not good enough — we can do something to handle him in a way that keeps him quiet until his services are helpful — say for example during the editing stages. :)

  22. February 4th, 2007 at 10:05 am
    Bright Meadow » Sunday Roast: that’s the way this world keeps working said

    [...] We all get writers block. The good writers are the ones who get through it. One of my favourite tricks is using a song lyric then playing around with the ideas that inspires. Or going for a long walk, just me and the iPod. What about you? [...]

  23. February 6th, 2007 at 12:40 pm
    Kian Ann said

    Hey Liz!

    I’m going to hold a workshop this Saturday to help 10 individuals get started on blogging, would you allow me to use the 10 questions to help my participants unblank their blank screens when they need to?

    Of course, I’d say I got them from the great Liz of successful-blog.com! :)

  24. February 6th, 2007 at 12:57 pm
    ME Strauss said

    Hi Kian Ann!
    Thank you for asking.
    Of course, you may! I’d be honored! :)

  25. February 6th, 2007 at 12:57 pm
    Wishful Thinking » Blog Archive » Creative Links - January said

    [...] Making a Living as an Artist The online opportunities for creative producers can be bewildering - Jonathan Bailey clarifies the strategic options available in an excellent post on The New Content Economy. Writing Delve into the voluminous archives of Liz Strauss’ blogs and you’ll see she’s no stranger to Unblanking the blank screen so it’s worth listening to what she’s got to say about it. She’s got loads more great posts on writing, but 10 Ways to Start a Blog Post should keep you going for a while. [...]

  26. February 6th, 2007 at 1:01 pm
    Kian Ann said

    Thank you so much Liz! :)

  27. February 6th, 2007 at 1:04 pm
    ME Strauss said

    Kian Ann,
    You’re are so welcome. It’s my pleasure. :)

  28. February 7th, 2007 at 11:02 am
    Questions for you to get back to your blog said

    [...] Questions for you to get back to your blog Over at Successful Blog last week, Liz shared her thoughts about unblanking the blank screen for bloggers. In her post, she mentions about using these questions to spur inspiration for blog posts. 1. What something have I learned or learned about lately? 2. What news have I heard that I’d enjoy adding my point of view to? 3. What have I read that I might want to recommend? 4. What pithy comment was left on my blog this week? How might I respond? 5. What pattern, behavior, trend have I noticed? 6. What question do I have that I want answered? 7. What skill or a technique might I teach? 8. What argument might I give the pro/con to? 9. What lesson have I learned this week? What funny story can I share? 10. What pet peeve or problem have I got a solution to? [...]

  29. February 13th, 2007 at 3:51 am
    75 Resources That Will Help You Write Better Content · un/popular web culture said

    [...] Writers Block - Unblanking the Blank Screen [...]

  30. February 13th, 2007 at 10:58 pm
    Kelly Boyer Sagert said

    Hey! In January, I also posted a blog on the blank page and here are some of the great suggestions / responses that I received:

    http://thewomblog.com/?p=297

    Universal problem, I suspect.

  31. December 9th, 2007 at 10:00 pm
    JenWriter: Writing, Reading and Blogging » 101 Resources on the Web for Writers and Bloggers said

    [...] Unblanking the Blank Screen “Some of us can use the blank screen to scare the proverbial pants off ourselves imagining how [...]

  32. January 18th, 2008 at 1:07 pm
    » 101 Resources on the Web for Writers and Bloggers said

    [...] Unblanking the Blank Screen “Some of us can use the blank screen to scare the proverbial pants off ourselves imagining how [...]

  33. November 11th, 2008 at 12:57 pm
    101 Resources on the Web for Writers and Bloggers | Jen Hayley said

    [...] Unblanking the Blank Screen “Some of us can use the blank screen to scare the proverbial pants off ourselves imagining how [...]

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