When it comes to writing as a creative art form, there are two major challenges that affect every creator. The first is having a great idea but not being able to put it into words. This can be troubling, but very common. Given time, words will start to come and eventually shape into the proper idea. Far more distressing, though, is not having an idea at all.
Writer’s block is a real thing. For some, the idea of staring at a blank page or document is panic inducing. At times, ideas just will not come. A writer then becomes easily distracted, doing anything to get away from the feeling of failure. The need to write anything can be obsessive, but the ability is simply not there. The inverse would be having numerous ideas and bursting with details about each one. It is blissful.
Truly, it is possible to expand writer’s block to other art forms as well. I am sure staring at a blank paint canvas or sculpting material induces the same sensation. The feeling of being uninspired would be a low point for any artist. To combat this, an artist could take suggestions, commissions, writing prompts, anything where the idea is already supplied. While this can be an outlet for art, it is not nearly as fulfilling as fleshing out one’s own idea.
Writer’s block—or any similar deterrent in other art—is damaging to the artist’s potential. Luckily, this is often a temporary issue. On the other hand, there is not a reliable way to jump-start a case of writer’s block. All an artist can do in the meantime is read more, do more, experience more and hope inspiration strikes.
