by Ogelthorpe Q. Sighvatson

Created on: June 22, 2009   Last Updated: June 23, 2009

All writers have encountered it in one form or another: blank page syndrome, writer's block, congestion of the opening sentence, etc. It is the trouble that comes with beginning any writing problem. After all, you may have an incredible idea playing out in your head. This idea could be a brilliant thesis, a from-the-heart essay, an amazing novel, a blockbuster screenplay or an eloquent letter to a loved one. Still, something about this idea is just not letting it make its way to the page.

What is a writer to do? The answer may seem simplistic at first, but really it is the only true remedy to this disease. The answer is this: write. Let us consider the verb for a moment. More importantly, let us consider what the verb is not. "Write" is none of the following: "edit," "critique," "nitpick," "market," "pigeonhole," "benchmark," "compare," "talk," "describe," "outline," or "fret".

The blank page is intimidating because anything can happen. Sure, you can put words on the page, but when the page is blank you can worry about all the horrible things that could go wrong with those words. What if your opening sentence is weak? What if your choice of adjectives is insipid; your use of semicolons, forced?

I'll tell you what happens. If any of these things go wrong, you can fix them. The trick is getting the words on the page in the first place. Get your thesis, essay, novel, screenplay or letter written. Fill those blank pages and they become considerably less scary. Know this: a portion of what you write will be crap. Great work is rarely just written. It is rewritten.

You must not let your fear of failure stop you from trying. Think of blank page syndrome in terms of other things in your life and you will soon see it to be the ridiculous psychosomatic condition that it is. Try to imagine having parked car syndrome, a disorder by which you can't shift your car into first gear for fear that you might secretly be a lousy driver. Or empty desk syndrome where you never go to work to avoid being bad at your job.

Do either of these seem reasonable? Of course not. Likewise, blank page syndrome should make no sense if you are compelled to be a writer. Write a sentence: "Corsages dipped in white chocolate fondue were all the rage the year that I turned 17 and started listening to folk music." From that moment on, the page is no longer blank. You have fired the first shot. You have set pen to paper, or pixels to screen and there is no turning back now. Don't worry about if the sentence is good or not. You have no context by which to determine the quality of the sentence. Instead worry about the sentence that is to follow. Continue this process until a first draft is done.

Then, take the time to worry, tweak, edit, critique, nitpick and so on. Just don't let editing become a new kind of paralysis.

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