Tales from a Bruised Mind

I don’t usually struggle with what to write, or say, for that matter. I’m pretty bloody fortunate that putting words to paper naturally comes with a degree of ease, especially when I’m writing about real life things, like the new car industry, for instance.

It makes sense because cars is not a creative avenue like writing a fiction book or writing a poem. So I am lucky that it usually goes pretty smoothly.

But, only recently, I came face to face with writer’s block for the first time in a long time.

But it wasn’t for a motoring article, or this blog.

It was instead while I was trying to write original music.

You see, I have no trouble thinking of lyrics, because, well, I can write a lot about my mental health journey, my past and my family.

But actually sitting down and writing something that you are happy with is so bloody challenging.

Professional musicians make it look easy, especially when you hear that beautiful pieces of music like Fleetwood Mac’s Songbird, or Coldplay’s The Scientist, were written in an hour or less.

But I guess I have to realise that I am far, far away from that world and that music creation takes time and lots of patience.

Steps to cure writer’s block, according to the internet

I had no idea what to do in this situation, so I turned to my good friend, the interweb, or better known as the internet.

According to the Nazarene University, some of the best cures for writer’s block include:

• Write every day, even if you don’t want to
• Figure out when you are most creative in the day
• Forget the rules of writing every now and then
• Take regular breaks
• Avoid comparing yourself to others
• Read lots of relevant material to expand your knowledge base

I’m going to start trying these and will report back!

Zak