It’s one of those days when your ink runs cold. Looking at your notebook feels like staring into the abyss.
Somehow, your cozy, little writing nook has turned into a hostile room. You’ve got page fright.
Maybe you think your subject’s too deep, your story’s too grand, or your poem’s too wrought with emotion. Whatever the case, you’ve got to grab your pen and get out there.
This is no time to wait in the wings. It’s also not a time to get too serious.
Doing so is probably what got you pen-tied in the first place. You could stand to loosen up.
Getting playful is a great way to move past the fear. That’s why I’ve put together a list of:
7 Playful Ways to Overcome Your Page Fright
1. Play a role.
Now and then, it’s fun to pretend you’re someone else. Kids and actors do it all the time, and you can do the same thing when you’re writing.
Instead of writing in your usual voice and style, pretend you’re someone else and write your piece as they would.
You could go Shakespearean and pepper your prose with lots of thee’s and thou’s. Or you could go Aunt Gertrudean, use lots of folksy proverbs, and make heavy use of the introductory phrase, “Let me tell you somethin’ else you don’t know, honey pie.”
Oddly enough, pretending to be someone else can actually free you up to write more honestly. Give it a try, see who shows up, and find out what they have to say.
2. Play for laughs.
Even if you’re hoping to write something serious (and maybe especially if you are), it helps to be silly.
That big scene from your epic romance novel? Try first writing it as a farce.
Begin your sonnet as a limerick. Start your essay as a stand up act (Hey, what’s the deal with tax policy?).
You can always snip off the giggles during the rewrite, but you’re apt to find several things you want to keep in tact: turns of phrase, metaphors, connections, comparisons, and contrasts.
Get goofy and get some good ideas on paper.
3. Play devil’s advocate.
Trying to make a persuasive argument? Working to create a lovable hero? It’s sometimes easier to build something when you start by tearing it down.
Attack your own point of view, expose your hero’s flaws, really let it rip, and have some fun doing it.
When you’re finished, you’ll know what you and/or your hero are up against.
4. Play it out loud.
Can’t get your thoughts on paper? Try getting them out in the air.
Sometimes it’s easier to walk and talk than it is to sit and write. Think out loud as you pace around the room.
Record your thoughts on a digital recorder. If you don’t have one, try your cell phone. Most cell phones have a feature that allows you to record personal memos.
Get creative. Speak with an accent, impersonate someone, sing. If you’re writing fiction, play the part of your narrator or one of your main characters.
When you’re tired of talking, sit down and write everything you just told yourself.
5. Play the fool.
They say there’s no such thing as a dumb question, but it doesn’t hurt to try and think of one, or two, or more.
Ask yourself the most ridiculous, inane, and irrelevant questions you can imagine.
How would you explain your topic to a frog? What would your hero do if someone stole his ice cream? How would your poem sound if it were an informercial?
“Dumb” questions can lead to some pretty brilliant answers.
6. Play your cards.
Grab a stack of index cards and write one word, phrase, or idea related to your subject on each card.
When you’re through, shuffle the deck, deal yourself a hand, and play the cards you’re dealt. Try writing something that incorporates all the things on the cards in your hand. Do this for five minutes.
When your five minutes are up, repeat the process. Shuffle, deal, write.
Eventually, you’ll deal yourself a winning hand.
7. Play matchmaker.
Being creative usually means taking old things, things that already exist, and combining them in new and interesting ways.
Think of what you’re writing about, then think of something completely unrelated (your mother’s apple pie, the price of tea in China), and find a way to connect the two.
How are the two things similar? How are they different? What would happen if the two things met on a bus ride to Albuquerque?
If nothing else, this kind of exercise builds your muscle strength for metaphors and your agility with analogies. And who knows? This could be the start of a beautiful kinship.
Make a Game of Being Playful
I’ve only scratched the surface. Put your mind to it, and you’re sure to come up with seven more (or seven dozen more) playful ways to calm your nerves and overcome your page fright.
Turning writing into play keeps you from running away, and that’s all I have to say. Hey, hey, hey.
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{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }
I write erotica. you can imagine that far too often I am faced with the “great how do I make this new?”. After all people having at it isn’t new. It’s been done … over and over and over and over again.
I love some of these ideas, humor is something that often will come as my final line. A little play on words etc. My favorite one is to try and do it not using the “usual” words for the bits. You should see some of the creative work around! Some are too funny and never get used – but the tears of mirth are well worth the tangent and detour.
But I do get stuck. So I have bookmarked this page and next time …. I’ll come over and see if one of these tips will jog the brain forward.
fantasia Lillith´s last blog ..Let’s Play…
You write erotica? Have you tried sitting in different positions as you write?
Yes I do. As a woman you can not imagine the creeps and weirdos – yet the real fans are amazing. I have tried in different positions (I think you are being sarcastic here or full of inuendo … either way …hahahaa…).
What I find does help is to go to something that is really not my domain like say Hentai … come over some time … never know you might like what you find. I focus on intimacy not sex.
Sarcastic? Never. Playful? Always.