How to Avoid Staring at a Blank Screen

by Mickie Kennedy, @ereleases

We’ve all been there. You have to write SOMETHING, but there is literally nothing going on or your brain. You’re tired, feeling fried, and that blank screen is just staring you down. For those of us writing blog posts or marketing material for a recently published book, it can be particularly hard to be creative when you feel that there’s no real news to share.

Stop stressing! This post will go over some tried and true strategies to relieve writer’s block, and provide some prompts when you think your content well has run dry.

If You’re Simply Blocked…

WIRMI Technique – Sometimes writer’s block rears its ugly head because you aren’t quite sure about your topic yet. Now is the time to finish the phrase “What I Really Mean Is…” (i.e. WIRMI.) Once you’ve answered this question, your content should flow much more readily.

Free Write – Rather than plug away at a piece that’s going nowhere, try free writing. This exercise consist of simply starting with a word or phrase and writing on the topic for 3-5 minutes. Never let your hand (or fingers on the keyboard!) stop moving. I’ve done this exercise countless times and have often found that my subconscious mind wanders back to the problem at hand – the press release or blog post I’m writing – during a free writing session. Give it a try!

Start in the Middle – Often, as a writer, you know what you want to say, but aren’t quite sure exactly how to say it. So simply start by writing what you want to say. Don’t even call it a “press release” or a “blog post” yet. Just get the idea down in rough form. You’ll find that once you have your idea on paper, it starts to take on a life – and format – of it’s own.

When You Think There’s Nothing to Say…

Sometimes you are filled with the urge to write but topics just aren’t coming to you. In this case, try these prompts to fill your screen:

Update an Old Topic – Was one of your blog posts especially successful? Revisit it, with updated information or insight.

Answer a Fan Question – For every email you get from a fan (or supportive friend), you can be sure there are 5 more out there wondering the same thing. So answer the question they haven’t even asked in blog post form.

Share Your Opinion – Perhaps you specialize in a particular genre that may now be aligned with a current piece of news. What do you think of the events unfolding? Share it on your blog, or even issue a press release venting your thoughts and opinions.

Write a Problem-Solving Piece – Write up the tale of that time you had a problem with writing/publishing, and how you got over it. Other writers – or potential writers – will see this story and relate.

This is a nice way to not only show how something gets solved creatively, but it also ties in an emotional story with it: your struggle and eventual triumph over the obstacle. People love to feel that they are getting the inside scoop on an author’s journey — even if they have little-to-no familiarity with the craft of writing. Just remember to keep it brief; you want people to read to the very bottom of your story, and a long, boring one won’t get them there.

What do you do when you can’t think of a topic to write about?

Mickie E Kennedy is the founder of eReleases and the author of the PR Fuel blog.  He lives in Baltimore, MD.