How to Overcome Writer's Block The Princeton Review
Hi, everyone.
I’m Rob Franek, Editor-in-Chief at The Princeton Review.
A lot about school has changed lately.
But one thing that hasn’t is that you still probably have assignments due.
And you may still struggle—as so many of us do—with writer’s block.
You know how frustrating it can be to stare at a blank screen, a blinking cursor—knowing
your essay is due tomorrow.
There are many different reasons writer’s block happens, from not enough ideas to too
many ideas; from having questions about the material, to having so many opinions that
you don’t know where to start.
So how do you snap out of it?
You need to get organized, my friends.
Start with what you know: You know your topic.
If the prompt is open-ended, like for a college essay, check out our video where we cover
how to brainstorm ideas.
You also know your audience.
Probably your teacher, but could be a test grader, your peers, or anyone else.
Keep them in mind as you’re writing.
You know your limits.
Is there a word or page limit?
Is there a time limit?
Here’s a funny thing about limits: Rather than hinder you, they can actually help you
because they provide a structure within which you can start thinking about your essay.
If you know, for instance, you’re aiming for a five-paragraph essay, then that can
help you pare down the examples you’re going to cite.
Don’t let limits intimidate you—think of them as tools you can use to write your
essay.
Now, here are three tricks you can use to overcome your writer’s block.
First: Don’t start at the beginning.
Sometimes it helps to start at the end.
This strategy works well for a five-paragraph essay or other assignment with a strict structure.
If you know what your conclusion is, start there.
Then write your last paragraph first, and work backwards from there, through your three
body paragraphs back to your introduction.
You can also try starting in the middle.
If there’s an example that speaks to you, then write about it.
Think about why it speaks to you.
Think about what other examples do the same thing.
And then write about those.
The next thing you know, you’ll be tying them all together with a thesis statement.
Second: If you don’t have a particular example or conclusion in mind, try your hand at what
I like to think of as the kitchen sink method.
For this, you just write.
Write whatever pops into your head around the topic.
Let your mind go on tangents.
Write in circles.
Then stop, take a break, and read back over what you wrote.
What pops out at you?
You can probably pick out a theme in what you wrote.
Use that as a focal point around which to organize the rest.
A variation on this is that you can try setting a timer: for five minutes or ten minutes or
some other non-intimidating amount of time.
And write down absolutely everything you can think of that relates to the prompt in that
period of time.
Afterwards, ask yourself: what jumps out at you about what you wrote?
Write about that.
Next: write an outline.
This is actually a good thing to do after you try one or both of the methods we just
talked about.
An outline will help you organize your thoughts and keep your writing succinct and to the
point.
Again—limits are a tool you can use!
This is particularly important when you have a word count, or if you are writing a timed
essay for a standardized test.
Nothing’s worse for writer’s block than letting that time pressure get to you.
If you are writing a timed essay, set aside your first 10 minutes to write your outline.
These essays typically follow the five-paragraph format: Intro, three body paragraphs, conclusion.
Even if you add extra body paragraphs, it’s a good template to follow when you’re limited
in length or time.
One final tip, my friends.
Especially for essays that aren’t timed, the introduction should almost always be the
last thing you write, after you have figured out all the points you need to make and have
written your conclusion.
Once you’ve done all that, the introduction will practically write itself.
If you have other tips for getting over writer’s block, leave us a comment and let us know!
Thanks so much for watching.
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