Everyone at GVSU has to take WRT 150 and two SWS courses, meaning that almost everyone will experience some level of writer’s block. No matter what the paper’s topic is, writer’s block can be a serious and frustrating issue for beginning and advanced writers.

Coming up with ideas isn’t as easy as we’d all like it to think it is. Even if we do end up coming up with a great idea, it’s hard to think of examples that support that topic enough to make the paper 1,500 words or even a few pages.

The good news is that writer’s block isn’t the end of the world, or the end of your paper. The even better news is that it’s easily cured – and sort of fun – to work through. There are a few ways to get past writer’s block and find a great topic that you’re passionate and willing to write about.

If you have to write a research paper and you get to pick your own topic, be sure to pick something that you are really passionate about. If you think talking about water conservation is boring, then don’t subject yourself to writing a 10-page paper about it. If your professor determines your topic, then try to get excited about it. Nothing is worse than writing a paper about something you hate. It’ll also be easier to think of creative ways to get your point across.

Now, if you’re struggling to pick a topic, just sit and think for a few seconds. Is your paper for a science class? Walking around your house can give you a ton of ideas. Is it more sanitary to live alone? Does showering for long periods of time in hot water do long-term damage to your skin? Even looking at simple objects around the house can help you form ideas in your head.

If that still isn’t working, Google it. If you type in “interesting topics to write about” into Google, a ton of websites will pop up with lists for different topic ideas.

Once you’ve got your topic, you’ve now got to find examples that will support your main argument. This will be easier once you have your topic because you can brainstorm ideas. The misconception about brainstorming is that everything you write down has to be relevant. That’s not necessarily true.

Write down your topic, and then write down the first 10 things that you think about after you think about the main idea. It could be that you’re hungry, it could be that you miss your dog or it could be that you hate writing papers. Just getting your mind into the thinking process will help speed things up.

Your brainstorming ideas could just be key words or they could be entire paragraphs. Whatever gets you thinking and writing will eventually help you center your focus on your real topic and begin to make headway with the assignment.

Writer’s block can actually spurn great ideas, you just have to keep your mind open and think of everything you see or hear as a potential topic.