The two different kinds of writer's block. · 11:30pm Sep 3rd, 2020
Hello again! Here I am, writing blogs instead of chapters for my stories, even though I really want to be writing chapters. This is because of more than just college, I'm also going through a sort of writer's block, but not the kind most people are familiar with, more on that in a bit.
Recently, I've been scoping through some stories I used to read that were on hiatus, cancelled, or straight up haven't been updated in a while, I did this to see if any had been. Something I noticed in more than a dozen or so of them, when people asked why the story hadn't been updated, the author responded with, basically, they had writer's block. A lot of people then suggest ideas for where the story to go, which is bad by the way, as a creator I do my best to steer the story to where I want it to go. If my story is change or driven by other people, it becomes less original, and I have less fun writing it.
Nothing against stories that are comment driven, those are a whole different thing, I'm simply talking about general stories.
This led me to realize that many people misunderstand writer's block, or, at least have a bad conception of it. So, I decided to write a blog about it. Both because I wanted to help the people who read my stuff to understand a bit better about why it takes me so long to write my stories even though I'm very passionate about them, and also because I felt like ranting about something and this seemed like a good enough subject as any.
In my experience and knowledge, there are two main kinds of writer's block; The first being the kind most people are familiar with, where the creator is struggling to figure out where they want the story to go or what to do with a character. I used to have this problem, mainly when I started out writing and was just doing stories to improve myself as a writer until I got to a point where I really wanted to start creating the stories I've wanted to for years.
I'm genuinely not saying this to brag, but I haven't had this issue in at least two years or so. Mainly because when I write a story now, I have at least a rough idea and some forethought about where I want the story to go, what I want it to be about, what to do with the main characters, etc. I've come to a point where I dislike writing a story where I have to improvise and make the story as I go, there are stories that do well with this, but I just do not like it.
The second kind of writer's block, and the kind I've been suffering from for about a year or so, is with writing scenes. I've been writing fanfic for a very long time, and have had multiple accounts on multiple websites before this one and written about many other things besides MLP, none of which I intend to share out of sheer embarrassment. It has only been recently that I feel my writing skills have developed into being above average and people are enjoying what I write, which has been my goal as a creator since the beginning.
However, I have hit a plateau of sorts. When you write for a long time your change is slow but gradual, your grammar begins to improve, your descriptions get better, and you learn how to write characters more realistically and know what tropes and story premises people like and how to best execute them. This is the point where I've gotten, however, I sometimes struggle with specific scenes.
When writing a scene, you need to think about its importance: How does it connect to the over all story? What characters should be in it? How can it foreshadow future events? etc. I hate writing pointless scenes, if I write a scene, I want it to add something to the story, no matter how little. That isn't where I struggle, I have an issue with making sure the scene is as impact as I desire it to be.
I want to be able to use the right words and phrases to describe it so you can picture it in your minds eye, while not being so lengthy that it feels like a chore to read. I find myself googling synonyms to words a lot because I don't like repeating the same adjectives and sayings, and I also try to look up other objects and rooms for comparison and example. I want to be able to properly describe not just what's happening, but the emotions involved.
The slight changes in their facial expressions that gives away the characters thoughts, the shifts in the pitch and tone of their voice that shows the emotions their feeling, their body language as they talk or any tics about them like cracking fingers at certain words to provide further emphasize. I see these things described and done so well in other scenes and try to replicate them to the best of my abilities, but sometime I feel I am lacking.
Every time I write a scene, I stare at every sentence for a solid five-fifteen minutes asking myself 'Am I forgetting anything important? What do their eyes look like when they talk? Is their smile pained or sad?" And probably dozens of other questions, and I either have to move on because I've spent too much time on it, or feel like I've made it too wordy. I try to put every amount of effort I can into every paragraph I write, but sometimes I am unsatisfied and know I could have done better. Which is the main reason I take so long to write even a single chapter, it's quite a frustrating process I'm sure many writers have gone through.
Looking back on this after writing it, I realize there probably are more than just two types of writer's block. Trying to figure out how to properly develop a character can be considered it's own type, world building/lore can also be since you have to remain very consistent with it as a writer.
Well, there's my rant. Thanks for anyone who took the time to read this, and if you're waiting for any story of mine to get updated, at least now you have a better understanding of why it's taking so long and I'm not just making excuses. Thanks for being patient with me, and I hope you continue to enjoy reading my creations! 
Yep, do this every time, especially the synonym look-ups. I've also had to go through and find multiple pictures of rooms in mlp for scenes so I know how to show ponies walking through it, what the room has to sit on, etc.
Luckily, me and Crowscrowcrow look over eachother's work, ping ideas off eachother, or may try to figure out scenes that are failing to come to fruition when asked. We've both re-written scenes for eachothers stories when we felt their may be a better way to do them, or a way to put more emphasis on something the other isn't thinking about during that scene. Partners can help alot.
I wish you luck on your current block, you may be overthinking it to a point, but I don't really know; most writer's tend to be their own worst critics and that is probablly a good thing so long as it doesn't leave them frozen for more than a day or two on how to proceed.
🤓
hey, I get that same thing. Especially if it’s increased by ADHD...gods be damned it all...