by Glenn Magas

Created on: October 25, 2009   Last Updated: November 15, 2009

Writer's block is an incredible phenomenon where a writer loses the ability to produce new work. It varies widely in intensity but it has been known to be extremely severe. In fact, some writers are unable to work for years because of this mental coma and some writers have abandoned their careers because of it.

It is a serious affliction but here is a secret: Writer's block does not have to exist. Grab a pen and a piece of paper and construct a new sentence at any given time and you will discover that there is no block. The ability to produce 'new' work is only a sentence away, but how do you get to that sentence?

Here are 6 Simple Tips to cure your writer's block:

1. Write badly
2. Have a date with your characters
3. Write around a prompt
4. Look through a different window
5. Draw
6. Change your voice

Whether it is a first draft or a rewrite, sometimes you will feel bogged down by many factors that contribute to your block: stress, family, a day job, etc. The only way to get rid of that block is to write. You can go for a run, meditate, read a book, but the only true way to cure yourself is to use a pen, a paper, and put those two together.

1. Write badly

Forget about character, structure, plot points, and page count. Forget about subtext and exposition. Forget everything - including 'the rules'. Just write and write badly. Write like someone who has never constructed a grammatically correct sentence ever. If it is fiction, write your story and or character into run-on sentences and keep 'running on'. Write dialogue that will make any reader cringe in horror; ramble on and on and keep on rambling. Let it all go and give yourself the freedom to do what you were born to do - write.

This tip is the most important and productive tip out of the 6 sure fire tips provided here. As Eric Edson (UCLA Screenwriting teacher) states: "Write badly with pride!"

2. Have a date with your characters

Take your pen and paper on a date. Does this sound silly? Well, if writer's block determines whether you are abandoning your career or not, you have to do what it takes or quit. So be silly.

The date could be an expensive one or a cheap one. But go out on one!

Order a glass of wine or a Big Mac, and put one of your characters across from you and have them do the same. Write your dialogue you are having with them. You know them better than they know themselves! You created them. Discover more about them during dinner. Ask them questions: ask them how their food was and what they did during the day

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