Suggestions To Tackle The Writer's Block

Short Response Essay: Suggestions to Tackle the Writer’s Block
As I sit down to write this essay, I feel at a loss for words. I know what to say. I have thoughts in my head, but I find it difficult to express them in writing. Often I shy away from putting my ideas on paper, because I can’t think of the right sentences to express them. I am afraid of writing badly. Upon several discussions with my peers and even the highly published faculty, I find that I am not the only one with this problem.
The “Importance of Writing Badly” by Bruce Ballenger and “I Know What I Want to Say, but I Can’t Say It” by Barbara Fine Claouse, both address this issue. The latter article mainly lists different techniques to tackle the writer’s block, whereas, “The
Importance of Writing Badly”, as the title suggests, discusses how we should not bother about the language of writing in the initial stages of a written piece. Although Ballenger’s idea of importance of writing badly is fine, the main importance lies in idea generation, which is also supported by the text written by Barbara Clouse.
Many students, like me, find writing daunting because we are afraid to make mistakes and write badly, but Bruce Ballenger addresses this not as a concern but as an important step in writing. I largely support his idea as I can relate to the article easily. Bruce Ballenger starts with a relatable anecdote, which precisely describes what I feel about myself while I write. Further, the analogy of red pens as Huey helicopters brings smile to reader’s faces thus keeping the readers interested in the article. The readers relate well to the article as a result of the authors personalized yet generalized examples. His description of Mrs. O’Neill reminds me of my teacher, Ms. Veena, a middle aged woman, who would always have this playing on repeat “you should be sent back to primary school to do your grammar classes again”. Right after this, his narration of losing faith and apprehension of writing makes me wonder whether the article was tailored for me. Ballenger’s description of essay-writing phobia stricken students, who end up waiting for the deadline day to start their essay, makes the article more engaging and also nurtures a bond between the writing and the reader.
Further in the article, Ballenger further highlights the idea that thinking freely is more important than focusing on style and language of writing.
He adds on by saying “the students quickly find their voices again, and even more important they are surprised by what they have to say. They can worry later about fixing awkward sentences” (Ballenger 33) while many may I agree to this, I disagree to it in a few aspects. I have faced the same problems addressed in the article, and I believe that language should be given equal importance from the start. There have been times when I have had ideas, but I have still submitted empty answer sheets because of my inability to express those ideas. This inability to express the ideas roots from the problem of writing badly. People who have not taken their grammar classes properly find it difficult to frame sentences and put down their ideas on paper. In addition to this, bad writing also fails to convey the thoughts successfully. The writer may have the best ideas but if he is not able to pen them down in error-free sentences then the idea will not be interpreted in the same way by the reader. The ideas may get cluttered and then the writer, himself/herself will find it challenging to structure it neatly later. We can emphasize more on generating ideas neatly. Before penning down the ideas we should filter them in our head, to avoid the muddling of thoughts, followed by expressing them using simple but error-free style. This will let us express our ideas effectively and will avoid the red marks on our papers
too.
This notion is further supported by “I know what I want to say but I can’t say it” in various ways. The article is less personal than “importance of writing badly”, essentially it has a list of methods, which can be helpful to unblock the block. It uses less examples and gives direct advices to tackle the mind block. Out of the many methods, I believe in three of them. Return to Idea Generation being the first one. Mainly, it is suggesting to get one’s ideas clear rather than moving on with an unclear idea. It reasserts the point of filtering the ideas during idea generation, so that the arguments of a writing are communicated effectively. Likewise, Write an Outline and, recommends a similar impression of organizing thoughts before a piece is written. Use A Natural Style, also encourages the writer’s to use simple language to begin with, in order to retain the clarity in ideas.
In conclusion, I find myself largely convinced by the suggestions provided by both the articles. Crucially, the articles appealed to me because I could relate quite well to them. Moreover, I find myself influenced by the methods of writing they profess and hope to incorporate them in both creative and academic writing in the future.