… is hard to the verge of impossible. Especially when you are bombarded with Game of Thrones teasers, quizzes and exclusive videos; and when your brain is so fried with the daylight job you cannot come up with a dinner plan, let alone a story idea.

So I decided to resort to two old and tried tools to get me out of the writer’s block/black hole, while keeping me set to the task.

#1. Fan Fiction

Guilty as charged. I did write some fan fiction two days ago and will be sharing it – I don’t believe in writing for the drawer, however often it might happen. Since I have been immersed in the A Song of Ice and Fire world for almost a year, I chose it for my fan fiction story. There is a part of the background story I am fascinated with and simply needed to read. GRRM recently said he is not planning to develop that bit into a prequel, so I thought I might as well write it myself.

There is one distinct advantage to writing fan fiction, which makes it worth your while. It chases the procrastination demons away. If you choose the right story you will be so engulfed by it nothing else would remotely interest you. It’s a blissful moment of bountiful writing. The drawback – at a point I got too impatient, exactly because the story was so interesting. I wanted it written so that I can read it and I quickly realized the quality of writing hit rock bottom by the second chapter. So if dabbling in fan fiction, keep in mind that it guarantees feverish purposeful and satisfying writing , but will probably last for just a day or two.

#2. Writing Prompts

There are countless online resources for writing prompts. I downloaded a free e-book with a 30-day inspiration program, prompting you to write 10 minutes a day on a specific topic and only go over this time limit if you feel like it. I gave it a try and voila – a paragraph, which, although far from great, is pretty neat, focused, and most importantly – introduces a character I never meant to create. Now I am thinking of him as the protagonist in my next story. Hopefully ten days into this program I will have the whole thing thought through (for the humble 10 minutes a day!)

What tools do you use to trick yourself into overcoming writer’s block?