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Feeling Uninspired? Try These To Give Your Creativity A Boost!

By on November 8, 2016
Feeling Uninspired? Try These To Give Your Creativity A Boost! -writers life.org

As writers, creativity is a hugely important part of what we do. The ability to come up with new, fresh, exciting ideas, to use language to create fantastic stories and characters, to continue to learn and experiment with new writing techniques for different effects and test new styles of writing to try and find your own unique author voice - these all require creativity.

However, being creative all the time can be particularly demanding, and there are naturally going to be days, weeks, months even, where we aren’t feeling very inspired. Some call this writer's block, some might refer to it as a creative slump, others may simply see it as a bad patch.

Everyone who works goes through stages in their career where they feel they aren't productive, or the tasks they must get through don’t fill them with excitement. When it happens to a writer, it can be a more troubling problem. If we don’t feel creative, we don’t write, and if we don’t write we cease to make a living!

So if you feel as though you need a creative boost what you can do?

Try these techniques to refresh your mind, increase your energy and get those creative juices flowing one more!

Find a new writing space

We all have our preferred places to write. You might be disciplined and organised and have a good writing routine where you get up, look sharp and write in an office. Or, like me, you might have slipped into incredibly bad habits and write in your pyjama’s with a cup of tea in bed. Either way, however, if you find yourself a bit sluggish try upping sticks and working in an entirely new environment. Whether that’s taking yourself out to the park, heading to a local cafe, joining your library if you prefer peace and quiet, or just moving to a different room in your house. Sometimes a change of scenery is all we need to feel refreshed and inspired once more.

Take a writing mini-break

No, we don’t mean a break from your writing, we mean a break FOR your writing! Not all of us can afford or have time to head to a swanky writing retreat, but there is no reason why you can’t recreate one in your very own home. Set aside a weekend dedicated to your writing, allow for no distractions, buy lots of coffee. Take hearty country walks in between and treat yourself to a glass or two of wine and a good book in the evening and voila - a DIY writing retreat of your very own!

Make time for reading

Sometimes I find when my creativity slumps I suddenly realise it’s because I have stopped reading. Reading is crucial for writers; it’s our research, our inspiration, our motivation. Reading a good book can give you the boost you need to get back to your work or give you one of those ‘eureka’ moments when you realise exactly what you need to do to make that tricky part of your novel work out.

Join a writing group

We all need a little help and support at times, and what better way to achieve this then by joining a writing group near by? If you can’t find anyone to do this with you, then there are always online alternatives. Your fellow writers are super handy for bouncing ideas off, discussing problems with and getting useful feedback from. Being part of a group means you will force yourself to write even when you aren’t feeling like it - often just writing, just pushing through the slump is all you need to get your creativity back.

Try something new

If you are used to writing in particular genre, why not take a break from that and experiment with some others? If you only write fiction work, try writing a few articles, start a diary or set up a blog. You may just need a break from your current work to get you motivated once more, and you may find these other forms of writing inspire you to take your career in a new direction too!

Whatever you do, when you feel yourself getting into a writing slump you need to figure out how to change your mindset. Try these tips above, or let us know what you do to boost your creativity when you are feeling uninspired!

Bethany Cadman -author of 'Doctor Vanilla's Sunflowers'

Bethany Cadman -author of 'Doctor Vanilla's Sunflowers'

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