by R. M. Ziegler

Created on: September 10, 2008

One of the best ways to tackle Writer's Block, is to write anyway. Writer's Block may be caused by the fear of not producing something worthy to fill a blank page, or it means you are stuck. One of the best ways to overcome The Block is freewriting.

Freewriting is just what the word suggests. You may use a predetermined topic, such as a prompt or idea, or you may begin with no plan. Start with the first thing that pops into your mind and write for ten or fifteen minutes, without stopping, without editing spelling, punctuation, or grammar. Do not worry about "rules." Forget about what your English teacher drummed into your head. Think of this as play time. Allow yourself to write junk. Be silly. Have fun. Dig deep. It doesn't even have to make sense. Tell your internal censor to shut up. If you get stuck, rewrite the last line until something else comes to mind. Do not stop writing no matter how difficult it is. Write through it. If you gather momentum and the words start pouring out, even after the fifteen minutes is up, keep writing until you come to a natural stopping point. Forget about the time. Receive it as a gift.

Some days will be energetic, and on other days, it'll feel like wading through molasses. You may not always have good writing sessions, but it's important to practice daily. I remember when I writing friend was ill, she made herself write, anyway. She wrote for three minutes. Only three minutes? It was some of her best writing. Write for three minutes or for thirty minutes. It doesn't matter. Just write. Maybe some days you may not feel like writing. Make yourself do it. Set your timer for three minutes. It might be good. It might not. It doesn't matter. What matters is that you do write.

I'll bet you're wondering why deliberately ignoring "the rules" of writing as in freewriting can be so helpful in developing the writing craft. Peter Elbow and Pat Belanoff address this issue in their book, Nothing Begins with an N': New Investigations of Freewriting. They also address why freewriting invites "some of our best writing and thinking." Some of the reasons they list are:
Writing is usually judged or graded, but freewriting is not.
Writing is usually for an audience, but freewriting is private, thus safer.
Writing is supposed to be more "important and dignified" than speech, whereas freewriting allows you to let the words be less important and careful.

Elbow and Belanoff also say while freewriting "removes the difficulties of regular writing," freewriting

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