By: Maahliqa Qureshi

It happens to the best of us. One minute you’re typing away, a mile a minute, the next, you’re ready to tear the hair from your head. I wouldn’t wish writer’s block on anyone, and, yet, in the course of a writing life I can guarantee that it’s the one thing you will experience. The words flow, then they don’t, and suddenly you’re doubting why you ever thought you could do this to begin with. It happens while writing a novel, and it happens while writing a college essay. Writer’s block doesn’t discriminate. 

As a writing counsellor, I see it all the time. Deadlines are imminent, a student has multiple deliverables, and inauspiciously, that is the moment the words stop, and with them,  the student’s world. 

So, what is a young writer to do? 

Whenever I’m faced with writer’s block (which, by the way, is a lot of the time) I like to turn to the words of better, more seasoned writers, to see how they dealt with it. While there is no generic advice that I can offer you, what I will say is this: it’s okay not to know the words that come next. And while pushing through the block is sometimes the best course of action, at other times it is not. Sometimes, it is advisable to pause, take a short break and sip a cup of tea, before getting back to the arduous but rewarding task of writing. All writing advice is not equal, because all writing advice is not generically tailored to the needs of all writers. The trick is figuring out what applies to you. 

E.L. Doctorow once said that “writing a novel is like driving a car at night. You can only see as far as the headlights, but you can make the whole trip that way.” You might not be writing a novel, but the same advice applies to an essay, or even to life. Take it one sentence at a time, and, if need be, one word at a time. You’ll be surprised what happens when those words come together to create one glorious whole. 

See, the thing about writing that no one tells you, is that it’s difficult, even when you love it. Especially, when you love it. After all, when you write you’re setting out to do the hardest thing, which is facing your vulnerability. And the reward is not in the form of a trophy or medal, but in the internal satisfaction you get from completing a job well done. Writing is a tricky business because you’re building a complex structure from the crudest and most basic tools a human being has– words and ideas. And while you may only be able to see as far as your headlights allow, just know this: the journey, difficult though it may be, will be well worth the struggle.