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begin expanding your outline to create your rough draft. This should be relatively simple because all you are doing is crafting sentences to present the points you have outlined. If you reach a point where you are asking "What comes next?" then stop writing and return to your outline. Outlining is a skill like any other, so do be surprised if your first attempt isn't perfect; force yourself to go back and revise it until it works as a solid roadmap to your essay.

9. Once you've written your rough draft, you should set it aside for at least 30 minutes (and, ideally, 24 hours) to let your mind rest before you start editing. If you jump right to the editing process, you will not be able to view the essay objectively.

10. Reread the assignment guidelines, and then read through your essay. Be sure you have met all the requirements of the assignment. Then, check to see if your essay develops logically. You may find you want to move paragraphs around to build your case in a better way. If you outlined well, this should be relatively easy since your ideas are all grouped together logically.

And that's it! If you follow these 10 steps, you shouldn't get blocked because the distance between each step is short and easily navigated. Once you are finished with step 10, all that remains is to proofread your essay for grammar and spelling errors and turn it in!

The next time you become blocked, ask yourself: "Which part of the process am I skipping or attempting to rush through?" Perhaps you didn't take the time to choose a workable point of view, or you may have skimped on your research, leaving you without the knowledge you need to fully address your thesis. Maybe you felt so enthusiastic about your paper idea that you skipped the outline and jumped right into the rough draft. Whatever the reason, stop and go back to the place in the process where you went astray and begin again. You should find your writer's block fading away in no time.

Learn more about this author, Jayden Harlow.
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