Helpful Tips on Varying Writing Habits of Academic Authors
Among the perennial problems facing authors of all kinds, including scholarly authors, is writer’s block. In fact, for many authors writer’s block is the most debilitating and frustrating issue they face. It is one thing to have so much research to do that you are unsure when you will ever be able to sit down and actually write, but it is quite another to have all that completed research in your mind, copious notes all around you, a carefully designed outline at hand, a deadline looming and yet be unable to type the words that will get you started. At the risk of splashing a few drops into a great sea of advice that may create as much opportunity for authorial procrastination as it does inspiration for authorial success, I offer the following tips in the hope that they may prove useful to some academic and scientific authors.

• Try writing at a different time of day than you usually do. Many writers talk about habitual or carefully organised writing habits, but that is because those practices are successful for them. If the patterns you have established for yourself are not working, a change may be in order. Perhaps you usually sit down to write in the morning, but if nothing productive is happening, it might be a good idea to read a little or take a walk before sitting down to your computer. Conversely, if you generally try to do your writing in the afternoon but have not been successful, maybe the events of the morning are distracting your mind and you would be better off writing as the first activity of the day. The mind works differently in the morning than in the afternoon or evening, so unless your schedule prevents it, a change in the time you choose for writing may prove helpful.
• Try writing something entirely different than the text that is presenting such a challenge. Often authors force themselves to sit in front of their computers and keep trying when writer’s block strikes. This can be successful, and certainly if you have a tendency to flee too quickly, self-discipline may be in order. However, it might be useful to write something refreshingly different. If it is a scholarly text that is presenting problems, try writing a personal letter or even a poem. The idea is to get the words flowing and then to apply that flow of words to the problematic text. Alternatively, you can pick the most interesting or inspiring aspect of your research and start writing about it, even if it is unlikely to appear at the beginning of the final document. Starting to write is the primary goal, but what you write may turn out to be that exciting opening hook for your manuscript – after all, if it strikes you as fascinating, it may do the same for your readers.
• Try doing something entirely different. Yes, this may be more procrastination, but if the words simply are not flowing despite all your best efforts, you may need to refresh your mind with other activities. Exercising the body is especially beneficial, so a walk or a bicycle ride can be helpful, and so can anything creative that is different than writing – drawing or painting, for instance. Such activities should not be considered a waste of time. Like sleep (which is also strongly recommended if worrying about writing has been a deterrent to sound rest), they allow your mind to work through the thoughts occupying it, but do be sure to keep a notebook in your pocket so that you can record all those great ideas about how to start writing.