Do not wait for the ‘muse to inspire you’

By Ryan Jones

Journalists and authors alike are affected by writer’s block which is defined by Oxford Dictionary as a condition which hinders a person’s ability to write.

According to Mental Health Daily, a mental health blog, there are many factors that contribute to writer’s block such as stress, sleep problems, lack of motivation, fatigue and lack of emotion.
Mental Health Daily said “if you lack emotion it becomes difficult to write. Most writers are able to come up with insights based on the emotion they feel about a certain topic.”
The mental health blog also says stress distracts the mind, “zapping” people of their creativity. Too much or too little sleep causes cloudy thinking and fatigue slows a person’s thought process, all acting as barriers to writing.

Jessica Gouin, a local author of the book Losing Scars, said she has never experienced writer’s block but has been stuck on her scene work a few times when writing her novel.

“Talking about it out loud helps to come to a resolution. Also music. I find a lot of my inspiration comes from listening to lyrics,” said Gouin.

Chris Vander Doelen a columnist at The Windsor Star, said he has experienced writer’s block and learned how to overcome the obstacle at a young age. He said writer’s block comes down to procrastination.

“It’s like ripping off a Band-Aid, just do it,” said Vander Doelen.
To help combat the condition, he said physical activities such as splitting wood or mowing the lawn help him. Vander Doelen also said to just write down what you have, take a break and come back to re-write it.

“You can’t wait for the muse to inspire you,” said Vander Doelen, quoting science fiction author Kevin J. Anderson.