How to Get Past Writer's Block: Ways to Get Creative Again and Inspired to Write

It’s been a while since I’ve felt creative. There are reasons for this, methinks. It’s not like I’ve always been the most creative person around, but my bit of creativity has suffered over the past year.

Why? Well, one reason is that I was so busy trying to make a living that I didn’t really have time to stroke that creative spirit (hey, those words were kind of creative!). I was teaching two classes online, two classes at the University of Arkansas, plus doing an assortment of freelance writing gigs. I was concerned with just getting done what I needed to get done. So the creativity suffered.

Another reason? I stopped writing poetry for a year. There was a reason for this. I got accepted into Hubpages’ Apprenticeship Program last August (yes, the same time I was doing all the teaching and other freelancing). One of the requirements is writing really fleshed-out hubs about useful, evergreen topics. Poetry was not allowed. Neither were tutorials about HubPages, or anything too personal such as what I’m writing about right now. I like writing poetry, even though I’m no Epigramman. And I liked writing about HubPages on occasion, too. So how do I get back to that? I haven’t even felt a poem in me for some time now. And I feel a bit out of touch somehow with HubPages.

Don’t get me wrong. I still love HubPages, and I plan to always write here in some capacity. And the AP was very helpful in many ways, as it forced me to make sure I published quality hubs, with plenty of photos, videos, polls, tables, and all that jazz. I wrote about teaching and social work, cooking and recipes, saving money, holidays, and other topics. I had written about all that stuff before, but I was used to interspersing them with poems, tutorials, and other random hubs of my choosing. I feel that I've lost a little of myself and that my busy schedule has forced my losing touch with some of my HubPages friends.

So, how do I get back the pittance of creativity I once had? Well, here’s what I’ve come up with so far.

Write in my journal. That has worked before in getting my brain flowing and creating. Once it led to a hub about following and achieving your dreams.

Read others’ creative works. Perhaps by reading what other creative people are writing, including poetry, I can again get into that mode and possibly eke out a poem. I sure hope so. I’ve been feeling pretty dry.

Reduce the negativity in my life. I’ve been reading some about negative thoughts, negative people. I recognize some of that around me, and it bogs me down. This goal is easier said than done, but I’ve got to work on making my surroundings more positive.

Write at Bubblews. Yep, I’ve been bubbling around with some other bubblers. I know that many of you have heard about this site. I tried it out and am really liking it so far. The site is all about short posts, and I feel I can write just about anything. It’s fun to bubble around to see what other people are writing, and more ideas are coming to me all the time on what to write about. I’ve written 8 short posts in five days and have earned around six bucks. And I’m having fun with it. I do feel more creative since joining Bubblews, so I’m hoping my writing there will bleed over into other writing endeavors. I may share more about Bubblews after I've been there for more than 5 days.

More ways to be creative? I don’t know. Maybe they will come to me.

For now, I’m going to start with the few I’ve listed and hope that the creative desire gets stronger.

If you have your own ideas, I would love to hear them in the comment section.

P.S. This was the most enjoyable hub for me to write in a long time.