When You Really Don't Know What to Write

A rather cryptic title perhaps for our article today, yet one that is delivered deliberately to draw your attention an especially important problem that many people who are considering how to get started in writing or speaking or presenting, may come up against.

My tip here is essentially about overcoming writer's block or the fear / illusion of having nothing worthwhile to say. Without doubt, there must be many unrealized yet talented communicators around the world disguised as housewives, office workers, seniors, steel workers, bricklayers, students, parents, school children, managers, professors, politicians, and so on.

Everyone, and I mean absolutely everyone has something worthwhile to teach others! Each of us formed into a human being against incredible odds. We are living a totally and utterly unique life, filled with tips, techniques and short-cuts that we may simply take for granted, yet which for others, could save money, time or heartache, if they could but only learn what we know.

Yet how do we share the gold that lies untapped in our minds, when we simply don't know what to write? Consider the following tips and surprising guidelines to help get you started:

• If you don't know what to write, say it anyway. I know that sounds slightly silly - please stay with me. What I really mean here is don't accept defeat at the first hurdle. Know that most activities become simple with familiarity and practice. For example, appreciate that the process of walking only three steps is incredibly complex. Yet if our legs work and we learn to walk, over time, the action appears to be so simple. In fact, we don't even think about how we walk: we just do walk. Therefore, do just get started writing and don't be too concerned about the first few "swipes."
• If you really, really can't get started then don't try to start at the beginning. Here's a big secret: professional writers often write introductions and start pages later. Why? Writing introduction text can be difficult when what we're introducing has itself not yet been written. We wonder how we can introduce something that does not yet exist. The solution is to write some of the later material first. As you do that, you become more familiar with the topic. Just start to write. In fact, feel free to write anything about your topic, or even something entirely irrelevant if this approach helps your mind get into the writing mode. Increased knowledge of exactly what you're writing about then usually provides the stimulus you need to write your introductions. Alternatiely, if you prefer, you can leave writing your introductions until the end.
• One effective, low pressure, yet fun way to stimulate your mental "juices" is to write some kind of daily journal, diary or web blog.
• If you find that the act of trying to force yourself to write something "interesting" is still hard and causing you much anguish, then excellent: write about that! Why: emotion and passion really can get your attention and help you focus. Through the power of applied focus, you writing can really take off! You can turn negative experiences into positive production and then, surprise, surprise, you may find that you can create what you wanted all along: a satisfactory result.
• You'll be amazed at what you have to say when you have vented some frustration. If not, it's fun and you get to just let off steam, after which you can find yourself in a relaxed frame of mind - equally good for creative production. When you relax or "lighten up", you can allow creative thoughts, ideas and words to almost fall from your fingers onto paper or screen. Later, in your follow-up drafts, you can examine your piece and rearrange sentences and paragraphs as necessary, fix errors, and so forth.
• Get to know which emotive tools work best for you: anger and frustration, calmness and serenity, or a mayhem mix of many. Use whatever works for you to help get you over your writer's block.