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How to Defeat Writer’s Block · The Daily Writer

• 0:00
  SPEAKER_00: Hey my friend, welcome to The Daily Writer, where we help writers become authors of their own lives.
• 0:07
  SPEAKER_00: Well, I just finished watching the Sopranos TV series for I think the third time, and of course it took me a few months to get through just watching it intermittently here and there.
• 0:16
  SPEAKER_00: Did you know that the creator of the series, David Chase, based much of the series on his personal life experiences, particularly his troubled relationship with his mother?
• 0:26
  SPEAKER_00: In other words, the TV series wasn't just another job.
• 0:29
  SPEAKER_00: It was really, really personal to him.
• 0:32
  SPEAKER_00: Now, David Chase was not a member of the Mafia, of course.
• 0:35
  SPEAKER_00: He was a longtime screenwriter, but the emotional themes of the Sopranos came directly from his own life.
• 0:42
  SPEAKER_00: You know, sometimes we dismiss our own experiences in life because we think they're mundane or that other people won't find them very interesting.
• 0:50
  SPEAKER_00: And I think that nothing could be further from the truth.
• 0:53
  SPEAKER_00: In fact, your life is the very best place to look when you're feeling stuck in your writing.
• 0:58
  SPEAKER_00: Whenever you feel stuck, write about whatever it is that you've gone through or you're currently going through.
• 1:04
  SPEAKER_00: This will fix your writer's block 100% of the time.
• 1:08
  SPEAKER_00: For example, about a week ago, I sent out an email and did a podcast titled Writing in the Middle of the Storm.
• 1:15
  SPEAKER_00: And I wrote that and did it as a podcast because I'm going through a personal situation that I would consider a pretty big storm.
• 1:22
  SPEAKER_00: And I wanted to share some tips for writing whenever life is sending you a few extra challenges.
• 1:27
  SPEAKER_00: Well, the good news is that you can do the exact same thing.
• 1:30
  SPEAKER_00: You can use your own storm that you're going through.
• 1:33
  SPEAKER_00: And if you're human, you're probably going through a big storm of some kind right now.
• 1:37
  SPEAKER_00: You can use those experiences to overcome writer's block.
• 1:41
  SPEAKER_00: And here are some questions to get you started.
• 1:43
  SPEAKER_00: What are you thinking about these days?
• 1:46
  SPEAKER_00: What kinds of problems are you dealing with?
• 1:49
  SPEAKER_00: Where have you failed or succeeded lately?
• 1:53
  SPEAKER_00: What are you afraid of?
• 1:55
  SPEAKER_00: What are you frustrated or angry about?
• 1:58
  SPEAKER_00: And what is bringing you joy or happiness?
• 2:02
  SPEAKER_00: You get the picture, of course.
• 2:04
  SPEAKER_00: Whatever you're thinking, feeling, or experiencing right now in life, that's amazing raw material for your writing.
• 2:11
  SPEAKER_00: When you're not sure where to turn in your writing, turn inward to your own experiences.
• 2:16
  SPEAKER_00: Your successes, your failures, and your learning points can really be an incredible blessing and a benefit to your readers.
• 2:23
  SPEAKER_00: Hey, thanks so much for listening.
• 2:24
  SPEAKER_00: Keep writing, keep showing up, and I'll see you tomorrow.