A Blank Page Has No Power: 3 Practical Exercises to Help You Beat Writer’s Block

Do you ever get defeated by a blank page? You’re not alone.

I’ve been writing professionally for almost five years, but if I’m honest, blank pages still get to me. It’s sheer intimidation, which is ridiculous because blank pages have no power. Not only that, but it’s decidedly inconvenient since I fill blank pages for a living.

Here’s what I do. Hopefully, my process will help you too:

1. Take a Deep Breath — It’s easy to get distracted and procrastinate when the blank page stares mockingly at you. But that only wastes time — time you could’ve spent writing. Once you calm down and acknowledge the fear, anxiety, or whatever keeps you from writing, you can start addressing the problem.
2. Create a Rough Outline — Even if you have no idea what you’re going to write, creating sections (i.e., intro, body, conclusion) helps you focus on something other than the 300-word email or 2000-word blog post you have yet to write. The idea is to break the text into small doable chunks, so the task becomes less overwhelming.
3. Research the Topic Using Five Different Sources — Why? It’s a way to prevent plagiarism and #steallikeanartist. Plus, most information on the internet is so repetitive that two sources in, you’ll want to start writing, and after the fifth, you’ll have something to write.
4. Take Notes, Preferably on Paper — Taking notes is a great way to process research. In reading the same thing from five different sources, your brain starts exploring what to write on the blank page. And if you keep at it, there’ll be a lightbulb moment when inspiration hits. That’s when you leave everything and starting writing.
5. Focus on Getting It Written, Not Perfect — No one has to see your first draft. It’s for you. Once it exists, you can edit it, change things, make it better, and all that jazz. Your goal is to fill the page. Nora Roberts put it this way, “You can fix bad writing, you can’t fix a blank page.”

“You can fix bad writing, you can’t fix a blank page.” ~ Nora Roberts

I hope these tips will help you defeat the blank page when you face it again.

Let’s connect — Give this a like if you’re afraid of blank pages too.