Facing Fear of Writer's Block

Let's look at the fear aspect of Writer's Block. First are those people for whom fearing creative constipation becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy. They've heard of Writer's Block. They want to be a writer. They are afraid they will get blocked, especially because in the beginning the most common perplexity is, "What shall I write about?" followed quickly by, "How do I [whatever you're struggling with]?"

Educating yourself about writing structure and processes takes care of the latter question. Listing ideas and/or instituting a goal system handles the former. But what about the basic being so afraid you'll "catch" Writer's Block that you build a block for yourself?

I had to haul out my old 12-step handbook to find the scribbled aphorism for fear:

F = false
E = education
A = appearing
R = real

Fear is false education appearing real. Yes! It simply isn't true that all writers experience temporary interruptions in the creative flow or that it happens frequently or every time writing is attempted. You may have a long and full career and never once feel truly blocked. So don't believe in false information so strongly that you stop yourself before you even get started. How do I face fears? Another aphorism springs to mind: courage is being afraid and doing it anyway.

Fear is an emotion--one of the basic big four that humans experience. You are more than your feelings. You're also a thinking individual. Don't allow fears to derail your desires and railroad your resolve to write. Identify the fear you feel and act on that knowledge. Part of your action can be to write about it. Then keep on writing.