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I really like the constraints idea. Especially if it's for a piece that is more or less a practice piece or something shorter, it will 'force' you to take interesting paths!

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Definitely, Minna. You might like this article, which uses a particular technique 😁 https://open.substack.com/pub/terryfreedman/p/experiments-in-style-a-mystery-technique?r=18suih&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web

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Thanks, this is great stuff. Will apply this to my writing next time I'm experimenting!

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All good suggestions! I especially like the idea of changing the subject when ideas aren't coming to you and giving yourself permission to do something else. Sooner or later, something will come to you, but why not read a book or go for a walk in the meantime?

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Thanks JM. Yes, exactly

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Excellent suggestions! You also introduced me to a new word which I had to look up: persiflage. So thank you. :-)

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Thanks, Debbie. Persiflage is one of my favourite words 😃

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Great suggestions. For me, going for a walk (especially into nature) + working on something else that I do have inspiration for work the best. Whatever comes out is what I'm writing that day, instead of bashing my brain against a brick wall to force out something that for whatever reason does not want to come out (yet).

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Definitely, Robert. Walking or cycling in a natural environment does wonders for my creativity. Indeed, I usually find that an hour or so doing that means that the hours then spent writing are far more productive.

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Great suggestions!!! I always find time alone in nature helps my creativity. 💜

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Thanks, Sue. Me too!

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Such great tips - thank you so much, Terry!

I hadn't noticed that your suggestions all began with the letter G - this OuLiPo stuff is absolutely brilliant. I've just scheduled my next post for publication tomorrow, and I'm feeling slightly miffed that I hadn't thought to use such a technique within it. Maybe next time...

Slight bone to pick, Dr Tel - am I really an anti-blocking tool? Are your letters to me the literary equivalent of a sink plunger...? 😉

Seriously though - another great post. Saving it for the next time I need encouragement! 😁

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Thanks for kind words, Becks. I hadn't thought of you as the equivalent of a sink plunger, but now you come to mention it...

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🤣😉

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Ooh! I saw the headline and rushed right over. Writer's block is my specialty, mostly bc I rarely suffer from it. I have the opposite problem. Imagine a fire hydrant knocked off its base by a large and slow moving brontosaurus (don't mind the anachronism). Water spouting sky high, with all of the force of its pent-up energy, and no power on Earth can stop it. That's pretty much my brain. The post I published yesterday, I had to peel off an entire section bc it was burrowing a tangential rabbit hole in the post that really needed to be its own post, live its own life, leave the nest, ya know all that. Ah those kids. And that rabbit hole has now turned into a potential series.

Great list Terry. I wholeheartedly support #1 and #2, those are probably the most powerful antidotes to any writer's block symptoms.

My addition to the list would be to keep a running list, either physical or digital, of the conversations you have throughout the day, either here or with friends or whoever. You'd be surprised how many interesting idea seeds you generate without realizing it. It has to be a little spontaneous... the prompt sessions have honestly never worked for me.

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Once in a while I come across a prompt I can use, but mostly they seem too artificial

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More really great advice - thanks, Birgitte! 🙌

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😺

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I am similarly afflicted or blessed, depending on one's point of view. I call it writer's flood. Thanks for your suggestion about keeping a record of conversations. I've been doing that for a long time, for the reasons you state. I should have included it, so thanks!

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Thanks Terry!

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May 7, 2023·edited May 7, 2023Author

😀 you're welcome

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