28 days stuck, then unstuck: How to beat writer's block and keep writing a book?

[Franky]

I hit a wall at 25,000 words. For four weeks, I sat down every morning and wrote nothing. Stared at the screen. Checked email. Made coffee. Came back. Nothing. Writer's block was real and it was winning. Then I learned what writer's block actually is—it's not a lack of ideas, it's usually fear, perfectionism, or overwhelm in disguise . For me, it was pressure. I'd built up this book so much in my mind that every sentence felt like it had to be brilliant.

What finally worked was freewriting . I set a timer for 20 minutes and wrote without stopping, without editing, without judging. Complete garbage. But somewhere in that garbage, a scene emerged. A conversation between characters I hadn't planned. Suddenly I had something to work with. I also tried jumping ahead . Instead of forcing the scene I was stuck on, I wrote a later scene I was excited about. That gave me momentum and clarity about what needed to happen earlier.

Another trick: change your environment. I moved from my desk to a coffee shop, then to a park bench. New surroundings shook loose new thoughts .

If you're blocked, don't just wait. Try something—anything. The block isn't permanent. You just need to find your way around it .

 

[QQBlansh]

I've been "working on" my thesis for months and have maybe 10 pages to show for it. The perfectionism piece hit hard – I keep deleting sentences because they're not "good enough," which means I'm literally erasing progress.

The freewriting idea is so simple but I've never actually tried it. Setting a timer and forcing myself to write garbage sounds terrifying but also... freeing? Like giving myself permission to be bad might actually let me be productive.

Also, the environment thing is real. I wrote my best chapter at a random coffee shop 30 minutes from campus. Maybe I need to stop trying so hard at my desk.

I hit a wall at 25,000 words. For four weeks, I sat down every morning and wrote nothing. Stared at the screen. Checked email. Made coffee. Came back. Nothing. Writer's block was real and it was winning. Then I learned what writer's block actually is—it's not a lack of ideas, it's usually fear, perfectionism, or overwhelm in disguise . For me, it was pressure. I'd built up this book so much in my mind that every sentence felt like it had to be brilliant.

What finally worked was freewriting . I set a timer for 20 minutes and wrote without stopping, without editing, without judging. Complete garbage. But somewhere in that garbage, a scene emerged. A conversation between characters I hadn't planned. Suddenly I had something to work with. I also tried jumping ahead . Instead of forcing the scene I was stuck on, I wrote a later scene I was excited about. That gave me momentum and clarity about what needed to happen earlier.

Another trick: change your environment. I moved from my desk to a coffee shop, then to a park bench. New surroundings shook loose new thoughts .

If you're blocked, don't just wait. Try something—anything. The block isn't permanent. You just need to find your way around it .

I've been "working on" my thesis for months and have maybe 10 pages to show for it. The perfectionism piece hit hard – I keep deleting sentences because they're not "good enough," which means I'm literally erasing progress.

The freewriting idea is so simple but I've never actually tried it. Setting a timer and forcing myself to write garbage sounds terrifying but also... freeing? Like giving myself permission to be bad might actually let me be productive.

Also, the environment thing is real. I wrote my best chapter at a random coffee shop 30 minutes from campus. Maybe I need to stop trying so hard at my desk.