curious...could writer's block be associative to aspies?

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more than other disabilities or even NTs, at least?
i keep running into problems with my music, even finishing projects (well that latter part's a tad unrelative) but anyway, does anyone have a clue?

I don't know really. Everybody else that I now who writes or creates is an NT, and they all get writers block just as much as I do, or so it seems. My main difference is that I can't seem to sit still and pace relentlessly when I am writing or creating, and this can drive NTs a bit crazy!

What generally helps for me is to get a change of scenery - get different inputs into my system. I go for a walk or take a drive somewhere. That often gets my wheels turning again.

I have that problem too....way more songs that I haven't finished - there's a stack of paper with ideas and mostly written songs that need editing.

Brian Wilson's / Beach Boys SMiLE was like a "lost" album for decades and only just recently was released.


I don't know if it's more of an AS thing....although music is one of our special interests, right?...So I would think when we're ready, we can brush them off and finish one of these days. Personally, I feel like I need to be in the proper mood for certain songs, and especially for writing lyrics.


When I get stuck and really want to finish something:
Stuck on lyrics? read poetry for inspiration
Stuck on the music part?, listen to music for inspiration



Can I ask a personal question?:
Do you ever like a certain song and then listen to it like 100X in a row? I was wondering if that's a trait. Also when I'm working on a mostly recorded song, I listen to it non-stop to continue getting ideas to finish it.

From what I have read and observed with my son, writing is definitely an issue for Aspergians. Though not all, here is quote and link to this very issue. My son writes beautifully but he can sit for hours before even one paragraph is done.

This was a huge issue for him in High School and not resolved either, sad to say. Wrecked his GPA, but I digress...

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

And one more link, tips for writing, you have to scroll down to see the posts, that is where the tips are

http://blogs.plos.org/neurotribes

Cory Doctorow's post, and this guy writes one page a day:

Cory Doctorow
Author of With a Little Help, For the Win, Makers, and Down and Out in the Magic Kingdom

I have trouble with writing. If I try to write anything longer than a post to a message board my mind freezes up and goes blank and I don't know what to write and anything I do end up writing sounds stupid to me.

The last time I wrote a paper (like for school) must have been when I had to do an essay for my ged. I actually got the same topic that was in my practice book and wasn't too worried about it because I knew I'd pass that part just from the multiple choice part even if I got the lowest possible score for the essay.

This would be a huge problem for me if I ever tried to go back to school since I can't/won't write papers.

Many of my fellow tech writers (who seem to be NTs) experience writer's block now and then. Even the most famous writers have, as well.

Writer's block is not strictly an AS/ASD thing.

Most ASD people have ADD, look there.

In my experience, there is a difference between what I would term "writers block" and ADD. Lucky for me, I deal with both! But for me, writers block is more a matter of not being able to come up with ideas or even with wording. ADD and other attention issues, on the other hand, are more about the inability to concentrate.

For me, I can have an idea fully worked out in my mind and still take forever to execute it due to concentration issues. I would describe it as what feels like a rather intense, almost painful build up of energy and/or anxiety that I have to release by getting up, walking, or doing anything but writing at that moment. And it can be hugely distracting and cause me to take far longer to complete a given project.

Yet when I do manage to concentrate, I am incredibly focused and insanely productive. It it always a matter of finding a way to get in that zone and stay there long enough to finish something.

I get writer's block sometimes, but I think I'm doing it wrong. I generally don't have problems when I'm actually writing; I just find it very hard to get started. I am easily distracted. Once I actually start, I can find it hard to stop.

Two bits of advice I find helpful - first, if you're stuck with something, the block may not be that you can't solve the problem, but that you're trying to solve the wrong problem. If a scene is simply not working, it might be the wrong scene entirely. Cut it. Replace it. Attack it from a new angle. If you're out of other options, rip it out entirely and start that section again.

Second, sometimes a block is simply the engine seizing up. You need to keep writing regularly and get into the habit. When that happens, write anything. It doesn't have to be on your main project. Write a letter. Write a short story. Write a poem. Hell, write gibberish (which is actually harder than it sounds). Sometimes just getting something down, even if you're going to delete it all later, is enough to start up the mechanism again.

Writing is often done in an NT style for the purpose of communicating with NTs.

My son will read a book and remember obscure facts. He doesn't know how to weigh or combine those facts in a cohesive manner. He doesn't know how to communicate those facts to an NT reader. The result is that he is stuck trying to figure out what to write.

It is not traditional writer's block, which is when a skilled writer suddenly cannot write. The issue my son has is more a matter of translating the abstract thoughts in his mind into a form that is accessible to the outside world.