When the Words Just... Blegh.

So what do you do when you're really motivated to write but when you sit down, your brain shuts down and refuses to cooperate? Turn on music? Drink some coffee? Yoga? Brain bribery? (Hey Brain, if you do this for me, I'll do the New York Times crossword alllll week.) Actually, I haven't tried that last one yet. But as I continue editing, I find that what I think I'm about to accomplish and what my actual creative output has in mind are in complete schizoid universes. So what does any average person sitting at the computer do when stumped? Why, we ask Google, of course!

"Dear Google, how do I get over writer's block?"

I like to show Google that I can be polite, so sometimes I ask it very nicely. First hit is a link to an

Entrepreneurial Ramblings

blog. That was a copy paste so that I didn't have to type out

Entrepreneurial

but I kind of like the effect. It does sound very important. However, the second link had six whole ideas for me to get my groove back. Courtesy of problogservice.com, the first point of advice was to carry a notebook with you at all times. I'd love to, but my job makes it rather difficult, so I skipped to number two: write something else. Okay, but while editing? Maybe not. Step three, then. Write it in an email instead. Yeah, still not for the editing, but clever! Number four? Pick a different environment. Now that was something I'd done before, and sure enough, I can usually crack down on at least a few more paragraphs. Step five was to write nonsense. Again, editing. And lucky you and lucky me, the last one on the list ended up being the most help out of all the other "feel good" solutions.

QUIT WAITING TO BE INSPIRED.

And yes, I was the one who put it in all caps. Because I'M YELLING AT MY BRAIN. Sometimes I think we let ourselves get suckered by all the creative writing classes we had to take in school or by the romantic ideas of having completed a piece of work. When it comes down to it, if I really want to polish that pile of crud I spewed out during NaNo, I can't just sit and mope about how that one sentence really just wasn't exactly how I wanted to express the cut of the character's jacket. I will never, ever finish editing if I treat my novel like a delicate little flower. No, this bitch is more like fresh bread dough. I'm going to stir it up, pound the shit out of it, leave it alone for a couple hours, then pound the shit out of it some more. Now if you'll excuse me..

I have a novel that needs edited. May you be as angrily inspired as I am.