The End of Writer’s Block: Vomit Writing

While this technique has been talked about by several names, none seems quite as appropriate as “vomit writing”. It’s the best way I’ve found to break up writer’s block.

What you do is set aside some time, 5-10 minutes usually does the trick for me, and just write. Anything. Everything. Whatever comes into your mind.

In my case I find that it’s also therapeutic. Once I’ve written it down, I don’t have to worry about it anymore. So most of my initial flow is about:

… that thing I was really stressed out over at work

… a to-do list for the rest of the day (week/month)

… why I was right and my boyfriend was wrong

You get the idea. Now write. Write as long as you want. Most articles suggest doing this for a minimum of 30 minutes, but do what works for you.

Now throw it away.

That’s the official instructions. Just write a page or two of ANYTHING and then throw it away.

I don’t throw it away though. A lot of times I find that situation that stressed me out actually makes a damn good story – or could, with a little editing. Maybe changing some names and places to protect the guilty…

That to-do list? The best characters have goals. Maybe there is something on your list that could inspire a character for your next story to get up off the couch and do something interesting for a change?

A fight with your significant other? There has to be a story in THAT. Try writing it from the other side. It might improve your love life as well as cure your writer’s block.

Keep in mind, this is a warm up exercise. It can help clear your mind to work on your project, or give you ideas for new projects. But don’t jump on Amazon and self-publish that vomit, okay? Clean it up and make it presentable first!