Is It Writer's Block?

I want to write right now, and I totally don’t feel like it.

I’ve been like this all morning—I’ve been up for about five-and-a-half hours so far—and it shows no sign of going away. I feel antsy, like I need to do something, but I don’t know what. Should I go to a café to write? Sometimes that works—but I don’t want to drive down there and spend money and sit down only to feel like I do now, like I am incapable of actually writing. Should I take a walk instead? Or will that only make me feel worse, for putting off what I wish to do?

I can’t be the only one who feels this way. So what is the solution? It’s not writer’s block, exactly—I know approximately the scene I want to write. It’s clearly not an actual incapacity for putting down words—I’ve been writing other projects for the past 1600 words, and I’m writing now. What is it? I’ve been reading a lot lately, so my brain should be fed. I do get exercise. What’s left?

What’s left is a different form of stimulation. Sometimes, everyday back-and-forth isn’t enough. Sometimes, you need to do something significantly different.

There’s more than one way to feed your brain. Go, do something different. See someone different. Engage in a new skill.

(Or maybe you’re just dehydrated.)
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Deborah Natelson

​Deborah lives with a fluffy member of fauna named Flora. She is the author of Bargaining Power, The Land of the Purple Ring, and various other books. Her author website is www.deborahjnatelson.com.