Every writer is in constant search of a solid and useful strategy for their daily battle with the blank page.
Some days, we do completely normal things but let’s be honest, writers do the weirdest of things to get inspiration. You are guilty of it if you’re a writer, and so am I.
Weird habits that writers engage in
Every writer has their strange writing rituals which also bring meaning to their creations. Believe it or not, your famous wordsmiths have adopted the most bizarre habits in an attempt to scribble their words down on paper.
Some prefer a writing position, while some drink a lot. What do you do when you need to write or are out of inspiration?
Take a look at some of the absurd routines that may or may not help you simplify your writing process.
You have weird positions to write
Yes? Can you imagine?? How can hanging upside down help to cure writer’s block?
However, bestselling author Dan Brown believes that it also helps him out and makes him concentrate on his writing. The more he does it, the more he feels relieved and inspired to write. Will you be trying this? Remember, you’re not Spiderman.
SEE: How To Handle Burnout As A Creative Person
You face a wall
Francine Prose believes that writing while facing a wall is the perfect metaphor for being a writer.
When working in a strange apartment, Prose’s solution for dealing with distraction was moving her table to face the window. She found this view monotonous but it helped her to sit and write for long periods.
I don’t think I can try this. My attention span is not that great.
You act out your dialogues
Screenwriters! Fiction writers! Get in here! Are you a writer if you don’t practice your dialogue with yourself or with others?
You never know when you’ll hear the perfect snippet of dialogue. So you find yourself listening in to strangers’ conversations… a lot. And writing down the things they say. It’s only creepy if you get caught, right?
People think this is weird but it is so normal to us. Acting out your story dialogues is good, but make sure that you don’t step over the line and get yourself hurt when you’re structuring your story.
You drink a lot of coffee
Coffee keeps you awake and writers like to feel active! Are you a writer if you don’t take up to 4 cups of coffee in a day??
Why do you think writers love to write in coffee shops?
French novelist Honoré de Balzac fueled his creative writing by consuming around 50 cups of coffee a day. 50 cups?!
Besides de Balzac, another coffee-addicted author was Voltaire. He was known for drinking up to 40 cups of coffee a day.
SEE ALSO: The Ultimate Guide to Start a Successful Blog in 2023
You talk to yourself
Fiction writers, this one is for you. You created your characters and it’s only normal that you talk to them! Who cares if they are fictional? I often find myself making conversation with them anyway.
You read sentences out loud to yourself, outline plot points to yourself, and even occasionally do that thing from the movies where you psych yourself up in the mirror.
Of course, you can have conversations with them but shouting at them for not obeying you and following the plot in your mind??? That’s creepy!
You look for names online
I even go as far as looking for baby names online. Why?
I want my authors to have unique names! What usually happens is that you look for a character’s name and then you move to several pages checking for the etymology of the name.
A true writer would always do this.
RELATED: Journaling: Meaning, Benefits, How to Get Started
Your search history is scary
Every writer has, at some point or another, ended up on the Wikipedia page for something.
Let’s be honest; if you’ve never searched for “How long does a body rot when buried?” or “does cum help your skin glow?” or other things that will make the FBI mark down your IP address, you’re not a writer.
But it’s not our fault; we are just curious and want to know more because of our writing projects! It’s one of the weird things writers do.
As a writer, you might have the internet search history of a very incompetent serial killer. My suggestion is that you always clear it. You don’t want to come across as dangerous to people!
You take longggg showers
How do you explain to people that shower time is just to clean yourself? Us, we love showers because they help us to find inspiration. We either talk to ourselves, listen to our writing playlist for a long or behave as our characters!
What’s our business with water scarcity? We need our long shower!
You stare into blank space
People may think it’s weird. You’re staring at something but what is it? Honey, we’re thinking. We are not present in your world.
Most writers appear to be quiet, brooding people, when in fact they are just struggling to think of various things. Even when I’m out with friends, I stare into blank space, wondering if you should cut that one fight scene, or add a sequel to my book.
This is just one of the weird things writers do.
You don’t know how to spell
Writers are supposed to be scholars right? But they can’t spell most of the time. I can’t even spell the word “coinsidence” or “conshience”. Did I spell them right?
We are so used to writing so many words and we just forget what word needs a vowel or not! The more time you manage to spend writing on your keyboard, the more words start to look like it has no inherent meaning.
You try not to write
That’s weird. A writer should be able to write. But most of our time set aside for writing is grinding away at our keyboard, rewriting a draft for the umpteenth time, or staring blankly at the wall until it’s time for bed.
A true writer makes excuses to not write.
You have a lot of useless knowledge in your head
Well, useless seems a harsh word, but that depends on the context. Because how else can you explain the fact that you know how to saddle a dragon? Or that you have the entire Greek Titanomachy embedded in your brain?
But in retrospect, it wasn’t useless knowledge when you learned it. You actually needed it for something.
You find inspiration in the weirdest places
Every once in a while, though, you’ll find yourself struck by inspiration in the weirdest places! It could be in the market! During a doctor’s visit! Even a fight with a friend inspires you.
It may not make any sense, but you’ll take whatever you can get because the best ideas can sneak up on you in the weirdest ways.
You act out fake scenarios in your head
Any writer that doesn’t do this needs to have their license revoked. Why are you a writer if you don’t stay awake for 2-3 hours every night and let your imagination run wild? Or you see something happen, maybe on the road, and you immediately work out a hundred different ways you’d have handled it.
Weird things writers do: Conclusion
If you do all of these things or half of these things you are a true writer!
Don’t let anyone make you feel bad or weird about it! Writers are also heroes to society. If we don’t do these weird things, people don’t have the best books or television shows to watch.
You’re a hero!
