"Block" Buster: Positive Self-talk

"Whatever follows 'I am _____' will come looking for you." ~Joel Osteen

Paying attention to my self-talk really opened my eyes to what I invited into my life.  I frequently used phrases such as: "I am so busy" "I am overwhelmed" "I am tired" so--surprise!--guess who was busy, overwhelmed, and tired!  Now I strive to change those phrases to "I am careful with my plans" "I am handling my schedule" and "I am getting re-energized."

If I tell myself, "I am blocked" or "I am stumped" it can invite more blocked-ness and stumped-ness to hunt me down.  So I tell myself, "I am finding creative solutions" or "I am solving this" and sure enough, I am doing exactly that.

If something will come looking or me, I want it to be a good thing!

"Block" Buster: Writer's block is bunk.

"Writer's block is bunk. ... It's simply a sad excuse for not confronting the blinking cursor and your own inadequacies." ~ Daniel H. Pink

Well now.  Don't I feel silly for devoting space on my blog for "block" busters.

I agree that creative blocks come from within, but it's nice to have weapons for the inner conflict, and reminders that it all boils down to, simply, get to work.

"Block" Buster: Change your thinking and actions.

I keep making the same mistakes, and think of the saying, "If you keep doin' what you're doin', you'll keep gettin' what you're gettin'."

Or put this way:

"Frustration is dreaming of a new future while continuing to think and act in old ways." ~Dan Rockwell

"Block" Buster: Push past the self-imposed limits.

"Argue for your limitations, and sure enough they're yours." ~Richard Bach

Creative blocks form when we say…

"I'm not creative."
"I'm never going to get this project finished."
"I don't have enough talent."
"I can't find the time to write (paint, dance, photograph)."

Let's not limit our abilites.  Thomas Edison said, "If we did all the things we are capable of, we would literally astound ourselves."

"Block" Buster: Protect your writing time.

I frequently get blocked because I've allowed too many other things to bump my creative time. How often must I learn this lesson:

"You have to protect your writing time. You have to protect it to the death." ~William Goldman

"Block" Buster: Plot twist!

Sometimes life slaps the creativity out of us. It helps to remember...

When something goes wrong in your life, just yell, "Plot twist!" and move on. (From Screenwriting U)

"Block" Buster: Want it!

Quoting Bill Cosby: "Decide that you want it more than you are afraid of it."

Last week opportunity knocked and I grabbed it by the hand, pulled it through the door and invited it to stay. Afterward the reality sank in, I don't know what I'm doing! And the negative critic chanted, Who do you think you are? You can't pull this off. Fear engulfed me. What if I stink at this?

But you know what? I don't care. I want it more than I fear it.

(Stay tuned for Wednesday's Action! post.)

"Block" Buster: Open the gate.

"It is my experience both as an artist and as a teacher that when we move out on faith into the act of creation, the universe is able to advance. It is a little like opening the gate at the top of a field irrigation system. Once we remove the blocks, the flow moves in." ~Julia Cameron

Sometimes I think I am blocked, but as soon as I make the effort (take action) the block lifts. I am still writing on my screenplay every day. There are days I don't write very much, but I make sure I write something.  It's amazing how much progress I make even when the action I take seems small.

"Block" Buster: Turn the faucet on.

"Start writing, no matter what.  The water does not flow until the faucet is turned on." ~Louis L'Amour

As I mentioned in a recent post (see: Action!: Battling Resistance) I am writing even when inconvenient. For instance, last Wednesday I was very busy and at the end of the day, when I was ready for bed, I realized I had not written on my screenplay.  Even though I felt more like sawing logs, I opened up my screenwriting software and did some re-writing.  I was amazed how ideas started to flow, even when I was so sleepy.

Indeed, when I turn the faucet on, I can tap into a hidden reservoir of creative energy.

"Block" Buster: Noun-verb combinations.

I came across a writing exercise similar to the one I wrote about last June (see: "Block" Buster: Shifting Adjectives).  However, in this exercise you randomly make a list of nouns...

1. cat
2. computer
3. pan
4. radio
5. truck
6. book
7. rug
8. cart
9. apple
10. cabinet

Then think of an occupation (chef, accountant, doctor, teacher, carpenter) and make a list of action verbs fitting that job.  For instance, a sales associate...

1. bargains
2. drives
3. discounts
4. sells
5. negotiates
6. shows
7. guarantees
8. displays
9. stocks
10. assists

Now put the nouns and verbs together and see what fun combinations emerge...

1. cat bargains
2. computer drives
3. pan discounts
4. radio sells
5. truck negotiates
6. book shows
7. rug guarantees
8. cart displays
9. apple stocks
10. cabinet assists

Hey, that was fun.  Now I make sentences...

1. The cat bargains for the most comfy chair.
2. A slow computer drives me insane.
3. 
   
4. The radio sells advertising.
5. His truck negotiates tight turns with ease.
6. A travel book shows pictures of exotic locations.
7. That crumpled rug guarantees tripping.
8. The cart displays fresh produce.
9. 
   
10. The bathroom cabinet assists me with organizing.

It's amazing how writing exercises help break through the blocks.

Give it a try.  What sentences would you write with noun-verb combinations #3 (pan discounts) and #9 (apple stocks)?  

"Block" Buster: Fill in the blank and be wrong fast.

"You can fix anything but a blank page."~Nora Roberts

I agree with that to a point, but actually, you can fix a blank page by getting started.

Which brings me to...

“The first draft is nothing more than a starting point, so be wrong as fast as you can.” ~Andrew Stanton

"Block" Buster: Fail better.

"Fail, fail again, fail better." ~Samuel Beckett

I let Resistance push me down, and counted myself a failure for a while. Now I am back in the artistic battle. Yeah, I might fail again, but I learn each time. Real failure comes only if I quit trying.

"Block" Buster: Involve other imaginations.

"I always believe it's better to have 30 imaginations working on a project, rather than one imagination telling the other 29 what to do." ~Trevor Nunn

This particular quote refers to people working together on a project, but it made me think: When we feel a block in creativity, asking others for input can unleash a flow of ideas. We might not want to involve 29 other people, but even asking one person gives more ideas than what we can think of on our own. It's the two heads are better than one concept.

Remember when I posted about allowing ourselves an abundance of ideas before tossing any out?  (see: "Block" Buster: Allow abundance.)  I challenged myself to come up with 50 script choices for a screenwriting contest, and at the time I posted that, I thought I was nuts.

I was amazed when I actually achieved that goal.  And in reality, I surpassed it. How? Not only did I come up with the five ideas for each of the ten storyline suggestions, but I asked my husband for suggestions and he helped me think of things beyond what I'd already written down.

I selected one of my ideas for the storyline of my short script, and I plan to involve other imaginations too.

Want to share your ideas with me? Tell me what kinds of things/events/situations an angel might become addicted to (fun or serious).

"Block" Buster: The element of surprise.

H. G. Wells on writer's block:

"Try the element of surprise, attack it at an hour when it isn't expecting it."

Hmmm... the ol' sneak attack ploy.  I like it.  I will give it a try.

"Block" Buster: Get out of the rut, and feed the card catalog.

"Imagination muscles have to be developed the same as physical muscles. I believe very strongly that just as wagon wheels once carved ruts by traveling over the same road too many times, we make ruts in our minds and then lose the ability to leave them. Life gets to be a pattern, and it's too easy to follow the old trails."
~James C. Christensen, American artist.

Last week I didn't leave the house for the equivalent of three days. That's right, 72 hours. I came home from church around noon that Sunday and remained indoors until lunch-time Wednesday. By Tuesday night I had a nervous twitch in my mood and knew I needed a change of scenery, but still didn't leave the house. By the time I stepped out the door on Wednesday, it took me awhile to adjust to "life on the outside."  

Sometimes it's easy for me to stay cooped up, and even though I accomplished a lot of writing, it's still important to break free and force my mental wheels onto another path. I need to get out and experience or learn something new.

Which brings me to another quote by the same artist:

"...creativity is not making something from nothing. Creativity is taking information that we already have and putting it together in a new way. Our brain can be compared to a card catalog in a library. When we're born we've got millions of blank cards. In mortality we fill in the cards. And every card is a single perception. Creativity is simply taking the cards and putting them together in a new order or new combination."

Sometimes creative blocks occur when I see the same-o, same-o things. It's important when I break away from the desk, that I learn or experience something new to add to my cards. If the information in my card catalog is meager, it reflects on my creativity. The more cards I fill, the more I can create.

To break through a creative block, get the wheels out of the rut and go feed the card catalog.

"Block" Buster: What NOT to do.

I can't help it. When I think of writer's block, I think of this scene from Funny Farm (1988). Andy Farmer (Chevy Chase) leaves his successful sports journalist job to pursue his dream of writing a novel. He and his wife leave the city and move to a quirky community in New England. After getting settled into their home, he sits down to write and smiles as a little bird chirps outside. Ah. This is the quaint writer's life... but when writer's block kicks in immediately after typing the title of his novel, he is no longer amused.

Most writers can relate to this, but it is NOT the best way to break through a block:

"Block" Buster: Dump the doubts.

“Our doubts are traitors, and make us lose the good we oft might win, by fearing to attempt.” 

~William Shakespeare

"Block" Buster: Take notes.

"They say an elephant never forgets. Well, you are not an elephant. Take notes, constantly. Save interesting thoughts, quotations, films, technologies... the medium doesn't matter, so long as it inspires you. When you're stumped, go to your notes like a wizard to his spellbook. Mash those thoughts together. Extend them in every direction until they meet." ~Aaron Koblin, Creative Director of the Data Arts Team at Google

I jot notes (see post: Notes to Self), but I need to improve on reviewing those captured little nuggets. They don't do much good sitting undisturbed inside my binders. Good advice, "...go to your notes like a wizard to his spellbook." That could work like magic, zapping through creative blocks.

"Block" Buster: Don't wait for the mood.

“I don’t wait for moods. You accomplish nothing if you do that. Your mind must know it has got to get down to work.”~ Pearl S. Buck

It's so easy to slip into the habit of waiting for the right mood before writing or creating (or any task, actually). I find that when I wait for the mood, it rarely arrives; but if I move forward--take action--the mood usually comes running like a child to an ice cream truck.

"Block" Buster: Go ahead, make mistakes!

"Creativity is allowing yourself to make mistakes.  Art is knowing which ones to keep."  ~Scott Adams

Fear of making mistakes is a major block for many creative artists. But sometimes what we view as a mistake turns out to be a favorite piece. We look at it with fresh eyes and go, "Wow!"

I remember an art assignment while in the eighth grade. We were instructed to create a picture using water colors, then let droplets of India ink splatter onto the color. I followed the instructions, but mine looked ugly, to me. Frustrated, I folded the four corners of the paper in until they met in the center, then smashed my fist against each of the four folded edges.

My best friend kept me from throwing it in the trash. I still needed it... to show I had attempted the assignment. So, I unfolded the paper, put my name on the back, and placed it to dry with all the other artwork.

Imagine my surprise when I attended an art show at the school a week later and a classmate ran up to me, "You won first place!" Huh? I didn't enter anything! She took me to the Abstract Art display and pointed. I didn't recognize it at first, and checked for my name. Yep, it was mine. My art teacher submitted it for me, and named it "Craters."

Smashing it with my fist had made the India ink fan out, and when it dried, it formed what appeared to be craters of the moon with pale water color background.

My "mistake" was a winner.

Go ahead, make mistakes!