A view from the coffee room…let’s call it creativity rehabilitation break

A little while ago, I was supposed to write an editorial. I had the perfect concept. Ideas cruised in my mind and the best ideas took parking lot in my left cerebral hemisphere and started having a life of their own. I booked time – the whole weekend for myself – psyched myself during the previous week, did reference search and even printed some articles. I had three litres of diet cola in the refrigerator. And then, nothing happened – zero, nix, nada, zip. I experienced a Nietzschean moment; I stared at the white document on my computer screen, and I swear to you, the white document stared back.

I have been around the block quite a few times so to say by the Merriam-Webster definition. So, this was not a new experience to me. Everyone who writes, whether it’s scientific manuscript, thesis, grant application or some other forms of academic writing, has come across this potentially frightening situation. White paper syndrome, blank page syndrome, writer´s block, white page terror … Monochrome eponyms and all so negative. Syndrome, terror and block. This does not sound good.

Writer´s block – the term – was invented by Bergler in 19471 and basically it means inability to write, either to start or continue writing. An important feature in diagnosing writer´s block is that it causes feelings of overwhelming anxiety. Let us familiarize with another term relevant to this topic: procrastination. The difference between writer’s block and procrastination can be traced back to sitting, translated as a continuous period of being seated, especially when engaged in a particular activity. A person experiencing writer’s block is sitting in front of the desk whereas a procrastinator is doing anything else but sitting at the desk2. This is the best definition I could find. Having said that I must acknowledge that standing desks and sit-stand working stations have many health benefits3, 4.

Procrastination is an act – or art? – of delaying or rescheduling tasks until the last minute or past the deadline5, 6. I guess we all know colleagues, who don’t let deadlines or jointly agreed tasks interfere with their existence. I have also noted that these same colleagues are those who arrive constantly late, just 3 to 10 minutes, but late anyway (unpublished observation).

It seems that aetiology of writer’s block is multifaceted. Okay, when is aetiology ever straight forward? Causative factors include perfectionism7 , fear of criticism or rejection8, stress…. The first article on self-treatment on writer’ s block was published in 1974. The case presented by Upper9 is now a classic ground-breaking article in the field of writer´s block in academic writing. I warmly suggest that you read it. Imitation is the highest form of flattery or, as we formulate it in academia; there are three requirements that a scientific article should meet: the article must contain sufficient information for other researchers to 1) evaluate the findings of the study, 2) repeat the study, and 3) evaluate its thought processes. In the wake of the Upper article, several groups and individuals have repeated and verified the findings10-13. They have been further corroborated with meta-analysis14. These articles also provide a unique window to reviewer and editorial board mind sets. In some of the articles, reviewers’ reports are included.

I have touched the subject lightly, but there is nothing to be taken lightly in writer´s block. It is possible to overcome writer´s block. I list here some of the procedures extracted from the literature: take a break from writing, write something different, discuss with others8, realistically evaluate your expectations, give positive feedback to yourself, brainstorm15, make a list1, start writing from your favourite part or start from the end16 and do not follow IMRAD, use an outline17. Talk to your colleagues or supervisor. Your supervisors, with a high probability, have experienced writer´s block, and can give you peer support. My recommendation is: do what suits you best. Of course, you will have to try and find out what suits you best.

Back to my own experience. I decided to call the writer´s block creativity rehabilitation break, to make it sound not so intimidating. Got really excited, I may be on to something here… Then, the story of my life. When I think I have come up with something no one has ever thought of, I do a literature search, just to find out, that I am never the first one. Blah… creative inhibition and creative block1 have already been published. I was not discouraged and kept on doing something else. One could say, I was procrastinating.

I did manage to overcome my writer’s block the next weekend, and completed the editorial, well almost… about 67%.