Overcoming Writer's Block: 5 Creative Strategies That Actually Work ✍🏾🧠✨

The page is in front of you. The pen is in your hand. All you have to do is choose the first word. That shouldn’t be hard. But somehow, your hand and your brain feel stuck. 😵‍💫

Every writer knows that feeling. And for many of us, especially women of color, writer’s block shows up differently. Sometimes it’s the environment around us. Sometimes it’s everything we’re carrying emotionally or mentally. Sometimes it’s just the long list of things we haven’t finished yet. 

If you’ve been feeling blocked, know that your creativity is still with you. You just need the right spark to bring it forward. Here are five strategies that help me reconnect with writing, whether I’m working on poetry, journaling, or trying to get back into a creative flow.

 1. Take an Imagination Walk 🚶🏽‍♀️🌿🦋

Step outside for a short Imagination Walk. While you walk, silently give names, personalities, or stories to the things around you—trees, squirrels, flowers, people passing by.

For example: “Hello, Mrs. Ladybug! You look nice today, and that leaf looks amazing. Is it delicious?” 🐞🌱

This playful practice helps wake up your creativity. It turns observation into inspiration and can gently lead you back to the page.

 2. Borrow Things 📝🧠💬

One of my favorite poems is Maya Angelou’s “Human Family.” I’ll borrow a line from it to begin a new poem of my own. This is part of a technique called found poetry, where you use words from other sources to start something original.

I’ve taken quirky lines from professor emails, headlines, and conversations, and let them spark new ideas. Then I freewrite or write without editing or judgment to explore what’s there. This kind of open, honest writing usually produces a line or phrase that I like, which I then use for the next page. I keep repeating this until something emerges that resonates with me, or until I’m my hand starts to hurt! Smh lol 💡

 3. Talk to Text 🎙️📱🗣️

When I’m busy, traveling, or surrounded by noise, I grab my phone and use the talk-to-text feature. I might pace in a quiet-ish corner or go for a walk and start talking through a story idea, character, or feeling I’ve been thinking about.

It helps to say things out loud, especially when writing feels hard. Once I see the words on screen, even with the weird autocorrect errors, I feel ready to shape them into something powerful. 🧩

Here’s a site I use when I’m on my computer: Text From To Speech – Voice to Text (https://www.textfromtospeech.com/en/voice-to-text/). Or you can just use the voice feature on your phone.

 4. Freewrite Without Rules ⏱️🖊️📓

Set a timer for five minutes. Write anything that comes to mind. No editing, no overthinking. Just write. Start with how you feel. Start with a dream. Start with something someone said to you that you haven’t let go of yet. 💭

This kind of writing clears space. It invites honesty and helps ideas find their way to the surface. It’s also a fun way to include others in your Writer's Block relief efforts. Invite a trusted friend or family member to write with you, and then share what you wrote, or not. Either way, you’re back writing again!!

 5. Honor the Season You’re In 🌙📆🌸

Some seasons of life are more creatively fertile than others. If you’re in a chapter where writing feels hard, that doesn’t mean you’re not a writer. It just means your process might look different right now.

Use the tools and time you do have. Be gentle with yourself. Try one technique, or try them all. Then return to the page with grace, humility, and permission to begin again.

Final Thoughts 💖📣

Writer’s block can be attached to feelings of self-doubt, burnout, or the weight of expectations. But writing, at its best, is an act of returning to yourself. These techniques are just ways to help you find the path back.

Your voice matters. Your story matters. And there is a way forward, even if it’s just one word at a time.🪷🫶🏾