Essay On Writers Block

Submitted By mrMchan
Words: 1541
Pages: 7
Open Document
Understanding Writer’s Block
I didn’t think it would happen to me, not me. How could it? I never run out of things to say, more often than not I’m advised to shut-up. I consider myself to be a very effective communicator, and isn’t the written word the epitome of communication? It has hit me hard like a warm glass of whiskey on an empty stomach. I’m blocked! I honestly expected to sit down for a couple hours and just unload everything I’ve learned about writer’s block and why people suffer from it but I see so clearly now that that was a mistake. I was naïve, and I am finding it ironic that I’m suffering from the same thing I’m trying to write about. In Mike Roses’ essay Rigid Rules, Inflexible Plans, and the Stifling of Language: A Cognitivist Analysis of Writer’s Block he concludes that inexperienced writers suffer from writers block because they are “operating either with writing rules or with planning strategies that impede rather than enhance the composing process” (390). Interesting right? But why am I blocked? What rule am I trying to hold onto and follow? As if one of my previous English teachers is going to show up and mark a big red X on this paper. Within this essay I will give my thoughts and opinions as to why inexperienced writers feel they must follow a blueprint or some rigid rule that has them stuck in their tracks and is impeding the natural writing process as well as some strategies I use personally to get over writer’s block.
One example that Mike Roses uses in his essay is Ruth, She was always taught that the introduction paragraph must reach out and grab the reader’s attention. Nobody wants to write a boring essay. This seems like a universal trend as I have been told the same thing from numerous teachers over the course of my education. It makes sense to me and it’s something I always try to do when writing. However in life, in regards to many things, we’re told that “it’s not how you start it’s how you finish” but that just doesn’t apply to writing. If your introduction paragraph is boring and the reader has lost interest already it doesn’t bode well for the rest of your writing. Sure you could have great supporting paragraphs and an amazing conclusion that wraps it up and brings it all home but without a proper introduction I think you have already lost your readers and they have either consciously or subconsciously made adverse inferences about your work. So yes Ruth is right. Her introduction does need to get the reader’s attention and have them wanting more, because if it didn’t she would fail. I believe that the true reason inexperienced writers like Ruth suffer from writers block lies in the emotional realm, it’s that fear of failure. Their anxiety, fear of evaluation, or their insecurities are holding them back because in their head they have deemed certain rules essential to a good paper, but in reality composition is a complex process and often can’t be restricted. It’s their own emotions holding them back not the rule itself. In Ruth’s case I would create an outline of my paper and start with one of the supporting paragraphs. You can always come back to the introduction later.
This brings me to my writing style. Typically I don’t write a rough draft but rather a very rough outline that helps me organize the flow of the paper I’m going to be writing. This allows me to best arrange ideas and facts within my essay in the shortest amount of time possible. After every paragraph I go back over it and make sure I’m happy with the structure but I’m not really paying close attention to grammar and punctuation. When my paper is complete I read it again from start to finish. If I have time I always try to have a friend or family member read my work so I can get there opinion about possible changes I could make to make my writing stronger. Once I’m happy with the content I fix the grammar errors and punctuation mistakes and hopefully I’m left with a nice finished product. When I experience writer’s
Show More

Related Documents: Essay On Writers Block

Writing and Academic Success Essay

essential in academic success. There are many resources within the University I personally feel would help me. One of my favorites is The Center for Writing Excellence. Using this help from the online university web will help me improve my writing and understanding of proper grammar and punctuation. The web is a major use when it comes to my learning. According to Davis, we define Perceived Usefulness here as "the degree to which one believes that using the Internet Learning Resources would improve learning…

Words 1087 - Pages 5

The Way essay

us that for years he made the mistake of living out some ideal life rather than discover who he is and living faithfully to the truth of his own being. He talks of this type of imitating others as ego driven. He puts it this way, “Behind this understanding of vocation is a truth that the ego does not want to hear because it threatens the ego’s turf: everyone has a life that is different than the “I” of daily consciousness, a life that is trying to live through the “I” who is its vessel. This is what…

Words 1050 - Pages 5

Darkness Visible: A Memoir Of Madness, By William Styron Summary

yearning for oblivion becomes a daily practice, almost like second nature. Amongst the many careers, depression afflicting writers is not unheard of. Writers like Ernest Hemingway suffered from it through something as seemingly simple as experiencing writer’s block. What is even more baffling is hearing about depression not from a medical provider’s perspective but from someone who undergoes acceptance and treatment for depression. “Darkness Visible: A Memoir of Madness” by William Styron tells the tale…

Words 1170 - Pages 5

Lovelle Joy Cutaran Ethnographic Paper Writing 1100

something I’ve never done in my life. There was a lot to learn when it came to graffiti. There were different types of graffiti designs and styles that I had to educate myself on. Tagging is the simplest form of graffiti and is basically the graffiti writer’s signature or a crew’s name. A “throw-up” is a little bit more complicated than a tag and usually is associated with having two or three colors, but is not as elaborate as a “piece.” A stencil is just a quick way to put up somewhat complicated pieces…

Words 2186 - Pages 9

Lesson Planning with Siop: a Theoretical Base (Benchmark Assessment) Essay

comprehensible input presented through natural communication opportunities. However, second language input must be at least one level beyond the learner’s current level of linguistic proficiency. v. The Affective Filter Hypothesis attributes the mental blocks of acquisition to affective filters such as motivation, self-confidence, and anxiety (Gitsaki, n.d). Krashen suggest that comprehensible input will be hindered if these affective barriers are not addressed. In summary, Krashen’s Monitor Theory is…

Words 1374 - Pages 6

Essay on Phoenix Day Apa Example

1 An APA running head is not needed for undergraduate or master’s courses per the University Writing and Style Guidelines. If you are a student in a doctoral program, or otherwise require a running head in your paper, consult the doctoral APA Sample Paper in the CWE>Tutorials and Guides>Doctoral Writing Resources. Pagination: Use the header feature in Microsoft® Word to set the page number (see Appendix A). Writing Style and Mechanics Student Name Course/Number Date Instructor Name The title:…

Words 4187 - Pages 17

Get the Picture? Archetypes in Comics and Related Media Essay

Tony O’seland Get the Picture? Archetypes in Comics and Related Media While the majority of the worlds population goes about its day in a state of relative oblivion to the constant barrage of messages, meanings, and somatic structures that bombard them there are those few who not only acknowledge but embrace these bits and pieces of information as a form of communicating a deeper meaning, a form of transmitting a deeper structure to those who live their own lives of quiet desperation and dumbness…

Words 2362 - Pages 10

What Is Writing to Me? Essay

What is writing to me? Some time ago, there was a TV program in Korea that surveys students who go to Harvard University. The topic was ‘which ability do you want to improve most?’ The result was very interesting. I would think the answer is IT knowledge or leadership. Unexpectedly, the answer was ‘writing ability’. At that time, I thought that it is very strange because the students who are called geniuses chose writing ability as the first thing that they want to improve most, not advanced technology…

Words 2720 - Pages 11

Academic Essay Writing Resource

proverb: “Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day, but teach him to fish, you feed him for life.” The academic world 3 Critical thinking 4 Preparing to write an essay 6 Unpacking the essay question 6 Looking at the marking rubric 7 Understanding a Brainstorm of the essay topic 8 Developing a Taxonomy for the essay topic 9 Academic essay structure 10 A word on academic language 10 Writing a thesis statement 11 Writing an introduction 12 A note on using headings 12 Writing…

Words 8207 - Pages 33

Media Theory 1: Developing Argument?

THE MEDIA SCHOOL Level C UNIT: Media Theory 1: Developing Argument Semester 1 Framework Unit Guide Media Production Undergraduate Framework BA (Hons) / Dip HE / Cert HE Digital Media Design BA (Hons) / Dip HE / Cert HE Media Production BA (Hons) / Dip HE / Cert HE Scriptwriting for Film and Television BA (Hons) / Dip HE / Cert HE Radio BA (Hons) / Dip HE / Cert HE Television Production September 2014 (Version 1.4) Contents Developing Arguments: Overview of the Unit 1. Introduction…

Words 7241 - Pages 29