Falling short...

Falling short of words is a problem you can always deal with. Not the case, when it comes to ideas.

Any writer would face this - "The writer's block"! Most of them do. I did. Once. Thrice. Maybe more number of times. Don't know. Chuck!

"It's a phase", would be the words of your fellow writer to console you. A close friend, in usual cases. "Arre chod na... Likhke kiska kya bhala hua hai?" would be the words of some other writer. Usually spoken when you're having a smoke with him or her. If someone comes and tells me about this writer problem, I would clearly not know what to say. An "Hmmm...", perhaps, is the best reaction I would give. Followed by, "Chal re... Thoda kaam hai". Because, I really wouldn’t know how to react. I know it's a phase and all that. But, it's a strange phase. It's like a girl friend you never had. This "block" has the power to annoy you, irritate you, make you drink to think, think to drink, smoke more than usual. It does that. It has the power, bhenchod. Like I said, it is like the girl friend you never had.

After a few months of non-writing, you'd come back to your blog (or diary) and put down some piece of writing that talks about the "block". The most popular titles:

1. The words are back!

2. Words failed me...

3. I missed you blog (diary)

Honestly, I've read so many of them (in blogs). I've been one among the many. Although, it gave me a lot of happiness that I got back to writing. Thinking and writing, that too. It makes you feel good. It made me feel good.

For me, the music has always told me the story. But in a writer’s block, the music doesn’t tell me anything about the story and the words. It’s only the tune that I get hooked onto. That is, if I really end up liking the song. Anyhow, after a point, I realise that I’m just humming the tune and not singing along with the lyrics. I don’t know. It kind of happened with me.

Read along these pointers that I jotted down. See if these help.

11 pointers to get back in action:

1. Try not to think too much. Don’t force yourself. The outcome would be shittier than you thought.

2. Don’t take inspirations from other pieces of writing. The outcome would be shittier than you thought.

3. Have lemon juice. Some connection with the brain, they say.

4. Ask questions. About anything. Drill the people you’re associated with. Something might pop-up.

5. Roam about. More than you did before.

6. Watch movies. Even if you’re not a movie fanatic.

7. Drink. Whisky, preferably. Don’t mix it with lemon juice. It tastes ridiculous.

8. For non-drinkers, have Thums Up. Convince yourself that it is whisky. You can try mixing lemon juice.

9. Take the “block” in the right stride. Don’t let your brain face the music because of a common happening amongst writers.

10. Don’t lower your standards to write down ‘something’. No matter how good or bad a writer you are, you are a writer. If you want to write, just write. That’s rule no. 1.

11. Wait for the idea to come to you, rather than you searching for an idea.

To sum it up, just write. If you like to. It’s fun. It’s needless to say. Still, I say it. Just write. If you like to. It’s fun. You see. It’s fun. So… Just write. If you like to. It’s fun.

“Actually ideas are everywhere. It’s the paperwork, that is, sitting down and thinking them into a coherent story, trying to find just the right words, that can and usually does get to be labour.”

- Fred Saberhagen

p.s. I didn’t follow any of the tips, except for 6 and 7. I was desperate to get back to action.