This is not a definitive list nor a guaranteed cure. These are 12 suggestions that have worked for many writers and may work for you. Try them and see what happens. You have nothing to lose but a blank page and lot of frustration.
- Write what you love. It’s been said many times before but is worth repeating. Pick subjects, characters, places, that you love and write about them. Also pick genres you like. Don’t force yourself to write something because you think it might have a better chance of selling. The more you love your book the more readers will too.
- Forget about the market. Easy to say and hard to do. If you keep thinking about everything else that’s out there it will only make you freeze up. It doesn’t matter what’s selling now. That changes all the time.
- Stop caring what other people think of your work. That is very difficult to do but nobody said any of this was easy. Are you writing to please other people? Or are you writing to please yourself figuring that by pleasing yourself eventually other people will also be pleased? This is the challenge.
- Write for fun. Write for the sheer enjoyment of it. But wait, you say, I’m trying to turn this into a business. And your point is? Isn’t the whole idea that a reader of your books is supposed to enjoy him or herself? Well, then, why should your reader be entitled to have fun but not you, the writer of the book? If you don’t have fun writing it, no one will have fun reading it.
- Write a lot and often. If writing is a constant habit then it will no longer seem so monumentally important, something that you have to do perfectly. Also, if you can, write your first draft quickly. That will help you get your ideas, thoughts and feelings down, and take some of the stress out of the writing process.
- Stop worrying about succeeding. What kind of crazy advice is that? It’s actually Zen advice. The less you care about hitting your target, the more likely it’ll be that you’ll hit it. If you don’t care if you’re going to be published you’ll be surprised how freeing that is. Also, leave open the idea of self-publishing your work. That’s total freedom. Think about the writing itself not what you will or won’t do with it after it’s finished.
- Stop judging yourself. You can be the worst critic in the world. Shut off that part of your mind. Look at small children drawing with crayons. They don’t rate their own drawings, they just draw. Aspire to be like the child you used to be.
- Stop comparing your writing to other people’s writing. There will always be people who write better or worse than you. (Though ultimately, it’s all subjective). You are you, not anyone else. Forget about them, and concentrate on you. The more you write, the more you will find your own unique voice and style.
- Write what you like to read. What type of novel excites you and keeps you turning the pages? A love story, a mystery, a fantasy, science fiction, historical, mainstream, literary? Or something else. That’s the one to write.
- Don’t talk about your story with anyone before or during the writing process. If you talk about your story it will dissipate and vanish. Just write it. Then you can talk about it, but be careful who you speak to. Stay away from anyone who’s negative about you or your writing. Surround yourself with positive, supportive and encouraging people.
- Don’t show your work to anyone except a professional editor or another writer who has more knowledge and expertise than you and is willing to give you constructive help. Don’t let your non-writer friends, family, or anyone else see your work. They are not qualified to judge your writing and will not be able to help you edit or fix any problems you may be having and they may end up discouraging you.
- Be kind and gentle with yourself. Writing is like raising a child. You must be patient, loving, and nurturing toward it.
