writers block - getting unstuck

Have you ever hit a wall ? I mean really hit it !? Gone right smack into it ? Ever felt that you simply can't write even the simplest article ? You know that feeling that you get when starring at a blank page on a blinking screen and nothing , absolutely nothing comes your way ?

You stand up from your desk and you draw circles around your room and you chew on some pen and you still can't get anything done ?!

The deadline is coming , your visitors are breathing down your neck and you know you need that article . What can you do !?

Well , if you haven't followed rule 5 of what a blogger should not do then this means that you don't have a secret stash of ready to be published articles . ( Which by the way you should . Always have a couple or ready to publish articles in draft - you never know when you hit a dry spot )

Here is a way that might help you through this terrible time .

Take a breath .

Forget about your blog for a second. Relax , take a deep breath. Stare at the sky , watch some birds flying , listen to a song , see a movie . Anything to get your mind of your blog . You need to get your head clear in order to start fresh . All that struggle left behind a dirty page of scribble and scrabble and you need a brand new page . A clean page . So take an hour and go for a walk . Listen to some music . Take your girlfriend out . Catch up with a friend . Drink a beer . No more though . Alcohol has the wonderful effect ( in most cases anyway ) of freeing you . Drink a beer only if you know that this is the effect it has on you . If not ... stick to water or some coffee .

Gain perspective . 

Now that you have your head clear of all the mess that you got yourself into you can start fresh . In most cases this is the part where you should be able to get an idea . You won't need the next 2 steps . 

But if you're not most cases then you need perspective on your problem . Think of it as a puzzle . Take a piece of paper and write down all the pieces you already have . Take your topic and split in several categories . Then , if necessary , take those categories and create some sub-categories . Tick off the categories that your blog has already served .

I'm assuming that someone that has been blogging for 2-3-4-5 years already knows how to get out of a slump like this . This guide is best suited for bloggers with little experience , bloggers with just a couple of months of posting . Bloggers that can still get a perspective on their blog without getting lost amongst hundreds , if not thousands , of posts .

So , getting back to business . After you've broken down your topic in categories and sub-categories , try and tick off the ones that you've already written about . If you've written an article on all of them ... then try and see which one can be improved .

Think of this as a maze . It's hard to get from one end to another when you are in the maze . But it's a lot easier to do it when you have a birds eye view of the maze .

This is what you need to do . Step back and get a look at the big picture . Then break it down so that you can digest it easier .

Plan your journey .

Now that you have established what needs work and what can be left alone it's time to plan your road . Plan your article . 

For example you have a blog about ... well , blogging . Let's say you've discovered that you have not written a post about time management .

Make a plan for your post . What does it need to communicate ? What's the point of time management ? Why does a blogger need it ? How can he do it ?

Basically ask any question that comes to your mind . And then do some research . See what others have come up with . See what they might have missed .

Think outside the box .

By now you should have a list with a topic for an article and some guidelines on writing that article . This is the hard part . You need to learn to write without knowing what to write . Put some headsets on and listen to music . Let your mind wander while at the same time keeping those guidelines in sight . Don't be afraid to come up with crazy theories , weird ideas and fun stories . Try them . Write them down . See how they look . Think outside the box .