Yes, writer’s block is real, and yes, researchers have figured out why it happens.
Sarah J. Ahmed and C. Dominik Güss, in the Department of Psychology at the University of North Florida, explored this topic in their study "An Analysis of Writer’s Block: Causes and Solutions." They found that common causes fell into one of four categories.
Let’s take a closer look at each.
#1 Physiological or Affective
When you’re experiencing a period of stress, anxiety, burnout, or fatigue, completing even the simplest of tasks can feel like climbing a mountain. Research shows that stress and anxiety “notably impact a person’s working memory and many other mental processes” and make it difficult to think clearly. Trying to write in this state, especially when you’re required to conjure up creative ideas and fluid prose, is difficult.
Similarly, if you’re experiencing depression or grief, the inability to put pen to paper is, understandably, intensified even more. Emotional turmoil or low energy negatively impacts your information processing and executive functioning – both of which are required for writing.
Writing through difficult times can be cathartic and even therapeutic. But sometimes, you need to prioritize rest and recovery.
#2 Motivational
Self-motivation plays a huge role in writing, especially prolific writing. But when writing shifts from being a rewarding activity to an obligatory one and you feel like you’re not actively enjoying the process, you’re probably experiencing a motivational block.
This type of block can also include evaluation anxiety, where self-criticism or the fear of criticism and rejection from others inhibits your ability to write.
At one time or another, many writers fear their work will be judged or even ridiculed. When that fear sets in, it can cause the writer to enter a freeze response. Freezing can take the form of a lack of original, creative ideas, difficulty expressing your thoughts on the page, or getting even one word down on paper.
This type of block can also include evaluation anxiety, where self-criticism or the fear of criticism and rejection from others inhibits your ability to write.
#3 Cognitive
Sometimes, you’re determined and excited to write. But your brain has other ideas. One of the cognitive causes of writer’s block is perfectionism.
Perfectionism is particularly difficult to overcome because perfection doesn’t exist. Trying to perfect your work can lead to “rigid all-or-nothing thinking, toxic comparison and a lack of creativity”.
When you edit as you write and try to make every sentence flawless in the first draft, it will slow you down and sometimes even stop you in your tracks. If you’re experiencing a cognitive block, you may also fixate on grammar, sentence structure, formatting, and all the other things that simply don’t need to be prioritized during the drafting process.
Perfectionism is particularly difficult to overcome because perfection doesn’t exist.
Of course, cognitive blocks can also look like planning too much and not writing enough, or not planning enough for a complex project that requires a lot of research.
#4 Behavioral
Procrastination is something everyone does at some point or another. It’s human to feel the urge to avoid difficult tasks and look for distractions — and we have easy access to a lot of distractions these days. If you think about your latest writing project and want to avoid it like the plague, you’re experiencing a behavioral block.
If you think about your latest writing project and want to avoid it like the plague, you’re experiencing a behavioral block.
This type of writer’s block can also take the form of having an irregular schedule or lack of structure that prevents you from gaining momentum. Perhaps your daily life is super busy and writing falls to the bottom of the to-do list. It’s natural, in that instance, to feel disconnected from your ideas and lose steam.
The good news is carving out specific blocks of time to write — and do nothing else — will help. (We know, easier said than done.)
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Going through a physiological, motivational, cognitive, or behavioral block?
You’re not alone. And don’t worry, there are proven strategies you can use to overcome them and write on.
