While the majority of writers out there claim to be suffering from what’s called “writer’s block,” — the inability to write — I’m a firm believer that writer’s block is just a creative excuse not to write. All one needs to do to write is actually sit down and apply the pen to the paper … or fingertip to keyboard, which ever you prefer.

You may or may not have realized it yet, but writing is an art form. In other words, writing isn’t a science. There is no formula or solution to apply, because there’s simply no problem. In order to paint, one merely needs to apply brush to canvas and articulate what they see in their mind’s eye. Similarly, to write one needs to articulate what they see in their mind’s eye into words. There is no wrong. There is only creation.

It really is that simple.

It’s because of this that screenwriting is so difficult to break into — there’s no solution or formula that you can learn to guarantee that your work will be successful. Therefore, there’s no way to tell whether or not you’re doing it right.

While this realization might be one of the major factors causing “writer’s block,” it must be understood and accepted in order to take control and start writing. Once accepted, look on the bright side …

There is no wrong way to write.

Sure, plenty of trades and forms of writing demand different things, but overall, a writer can do no wrong outside of misspellings and grammatical errors (though even those are acceptable in screenwriting).

Once you accept the fact that there’s no wrong way to write, and that writer’s block is just a creative excuse not to write, you’ll find it a lot easier to kick start the writing process at any given time or place.

The best way to start writing is to start writing

Many screenwriters swear by ritualistic writing processes that include hours of kick-start time, but this will come later. Focus on the simple act of writing. It doesn’t matter what you write. Syd Field suggests writers kick-start the writing process with what’s called free association or free writing — an exercise that challenges writers to allow their thoughts and ideas to trickle from their mind down through their hands and onto the page or screen … no matter what. The idea behind this is that by kick-starting the process, you’ll find your voice, idea, or angle needed to write your actual project.

I’m a firm believer that writing inspires writing, just as thinking inspires thinking, and laughing inspires laughing … or if you find this post boring, yawning inspires yawning.

Even as I sit here and write this post, ideas for future posts are flowing with every word, sentence, and claim I articulate into words. Similarly, when ever I sit and write out a scene, additional scenes, lines, visuals, details, and new story ideas flow as I write out the scene.

This is all because writing inspires writing, there is no wrong way to write, and overall writing is an art form. If you’re ready to admit that writer’s block is just a creative excuse not to write, and therefore take your writing career into your own hands, consider this last point carefully, for it’s one that usually weeds out the writers that won’t make it.

Commit to writing every single day – A lot of writers complain that every day is really hard or demanding, but the reality is the writers making that complaint are the writers who aren’t passionate about writing yet. It’s not a commitment when you’re passionate about it … it’s an addiction. Remember the scene in The Sandlot when all Benny wanted to do was play ball, but the others thought it was too hot?

“its 200 degrees outside benny, you cant play ball!” shouts Ham.

“Vote then,” Benny says, “if you want to be a cant-hack-it, panty waste that wears your mommy’s bra, raise your hand.”

The entire team raises their hands.

Of the entire team, Benny was the only one to go on and become a professional baseball player. It was because he was passionate about the game.

If you don’t feel you can make that commitment yet, consider easing into it … but don’t let yourself justify writing once in a blue moon. While its infinitely better than not writing at all, it’s too much of a “can’t-hack-it” schedule.

The point here is that there are no rules when it comes to writing, so there should be nothing stopping you. Don’t say you have nothing to write about … that would be like saying you don’t think. The key is simply to articulate your thoughts into words and transfer them to paper in your own creative way.

Don’t worry about knowing what to write at this point — it’s not about having a story to tell; it’s about throwing a bunch of words together, learning what works and what doesn’t, and repeating the process until you’re ready to articulate your thoughts, words, and perspective into a story. I’ve written about kick-starting stories before, so when you’re ready to tell your story, check out 5 Sources of Inspiration for the Lost Screenwriter for some guidance.

I’ll leave this post with one final thought that left a permanent impression on me as a writer:

It takes 10,000 hours to become an expert in any field … regardless of whether you want to be or not. So while writing for one hour a month might seem like you’re making progress, consider the progress you’re making toward becoming an expert at your day job by working 160 hours a month — at this rate, you’ll be an expert at your day job in roughly 62 months — or 5.2 years. Now apply this same formula to your writing, and see what happens!