I sometimes see discussions about writer’s block and I wonder what they’re going on about because it’s not something that ever seems to afflict me. But that doesn’t mean there aren’t other things that cause havoc with my writing.
You may have seen this sort of thing yourself. Somewhere online someone will post about writer’s block. Maybe they’ve been finding it hard to get some writing done, struggling to come up with new words, and are wondering how to get unstuck.
Or maybe they’re offering suggestions for how to overcome this impediment to the creative life. Funnily enough, these often seem to involve not writing. Take a break. Go for a walk. Play with the kids. Listen to some music. Clean the house. There seems to be no limit to these suggestions.
Whatever it is that’s being said, I’m always left a little bemused because I never seem to suffer from writer’s block. In fact, if anything, the opposite is true. My head always seems to be so full of things I want to write that keeping up is the problem.
But that doesn’t mean that I don’t experience occasions when my creative output isn’t what it’s capable of being and by far the worst culprit here is a lack of sleep. Other things, such as writing in a noisy environment or being interrupted aren’t exactly helpful, but a lack of sleep can be disastrous.
It isn’t that I can’t write when I’m tired but what words I do put down will almost always be sub-standard, even plain rubbish. It might be there’s enough there to rescue at a later date, however I’d prefer not to have to do that.
All of which means that I do my utmost at all times to ensure I get a decent amount of sleep each night. It may be a simple thing to do, most of the time, but it’s such an important one. If I want to set myself up for a productive and enjoyable day writing then I need to get a good night’s sleep first.
