Old Habits Die Hard
I’ve learned a lot over the many years I’ve been writing, both self-taught lessons (often the hard way!) as well as from professionals. I have a much better idea of what works and what doesn’t. But absolutely there are (a lot of) times where I feel stalled, flummoxed, despairing and hopeless, no matter how many manuscripts I’ve written.
Yet I’ve also found a counter-intuitive way to get past some of that writer’s block. I actually revert to old habits—some that had never worked for me before.
Example: “pantsing”, the art of writing whatever comes to mind without a plan of action. No outline, no brainstorming, just writing (and hoping!) that the story will come together on the page. It works for some writers; it hasn’t worked for me in the past. BUT! I found when I’m stuck, I go back to it, and, like a form of freewriting, I let myself go. When I surface, I feel better about words on the page, even if I know they’ll be changed. And that’s the difference from before—I appreciate how and why I may be missing story elements and can then go back and fix it. In the meantime, though, forging ahead without a plan has freed me from my paralyzing doom.
That may not be your old habit, but if you’re stuck, trying something you’d otherwise moved on from. A little nostalgia may be all you need to re-spark your confidence. 🙂