Outlining As An Aid To Writer’s Block
I had serious writer’s block not too long ago. For an entire week, my writing mood was somber and I could barely string a dozen words together if my life depended on it. Yet, I managed to remain somewhat productive during that time. Sure, I was plodding, grinding and crawling my way through it, but I did manage about 70% of my usual output. Far from perfect, but not too shabby either.
How did I pull it off? By applying the time-tested technique of outlining.
Being stripped of the creative ability to fashion words that flutter off the tongue, I was restricted to coming up with painstakingly put together sentences that communicated my ideas clearly. Sure, the results may lack my typical wit and style, but it’s perfectly readable and made complete sense to my readers. Sometimes, good enough is all you can bargain for and outlining is a perfect companion for that.
You can try it yourself the next time you find yourself severely challenged to write:
1. Write your thesis statement at the top of the page.
2. Below it, list down your supporting points. Just work on writing down each one first, even in notations only you can understand.
3. After you’ve got them all down, rearrange the points into a logical order that best supports your thesis.
4. When that’s done, begin adding subtopics on each point to clearly detail how you would argue each one.
5. Once that’s finished, all that’s left is actually stringing each group into sentences and paragraphs, adding your introduction and conclusion, and using a trusted writing software to effectively clean up the entire work.