How Meta-Cognitive Strategies Cured My Writer’s Block

“It’s none of their business that you have to learn how to write. Let them think you were born that way.” ~ Ernest Hemingway

Meta-cognition, very simply put, is thinking about your thinking. I won’t bore you with my long-winded definition and ponderings, but I will warn you it’s one of my favorite cognitive constructs to talk about. And implementing meta-cognitive strategies in my daily writing practices has helped me in many ways; but mostly by increasing the quality and quantity of my word count.

Meta-cognitive processes help you reflect on your thoughts and actions, allow you to implement a plan, monitor your plans and actions, and make revisions based upon your own assessments of your thoughts, actions, or productivity.

Here’s how this type of intellectual self-monitoring helped me say goodbye to writer’s block.

1. Daily Journaling

Morning Journaling: Implementing a morning journaling exercise into my writing practice has been a game changer in more ways than one. Since I start my day with coffee and a reflection exercise- 3 things I am grateful for, it helps shift my thinking and mood to a positive place. Although I love the idea of handwritten journals, I write much faster and more freely when I type, therefore my morning journaling is done in a word document. After listing the 3 things I am grateful for, I set my timer for 15 minutes and I do not answer text messages or emails during this time. This practice allows me to start my day gratefully, and has me producing words at the start of the day. The content or quality of the words matter less than the fact that I am getting thoughts onto the page. It sets a great tone for the day no matter how I am feeling. The goal here is free association, information dumps; anything and everything counts. Meta-cognitively, this exercise is an opportunity to reflect and consider your own thoughts and feelings.

Project Journaling: When I start a book, fiction or non-fiction, I start two word documents. One is the rough outline of the book, using bullets and phrases that I will use as the primary writing document for my book. The other is a journal for that project. I had so much success with this during my first novel, that I use it with each new project. When I hit a roadblock or didn’t feel like adding words to my manuscript, I could journal about my blocks, my thoughts, feelings, question my character motivations, etc. I have taken passages directly from my journal and used them in my novel. I have also used the insights for social media posts and ways to share my process in blogs like this one.

2. Having Multiple Writing Projects Going

When I first started writing, I was unable to focus on more than one writing project or book at a time. I firmly believed that my efforts needed lazer focus to be productive. My fear was that if I had multiple projects going, I would never finish anything. The problem became, if I was stuck, or wasn’t in the mood to write that story, I stayed stuck. I didn’t write on those days. Now, when I am not able to produce words for one project, I have my journals or a second or third project I can easily shift to and still be productive. I can see how writers churning out books on deadlines might not find this helpful. But as a writer just hitting my stride, I find journaling, blog writing, and a mix of fiction and not-fiction projects helpful.

3. Brainstorming and List Making

When putting sentences, paragraphs, and pages together isn’t in the cards, there are still ways to be productive. I keep a notebook handy where I list topics for future blogs and keep ideas for future novels or projects. Sometimes I just want to give my daydreaming some structure, or get those ideas down about a future story, before I forget them entirely. I reference this notebook when I need ideas or inspiration.

4. Reading & Annotating (With an emphasis on the annotating)

We all know that writers are voracious readers. And although there is nothing wrong with picking up a good book when you are in a writing slump, I never felt that it fueled my actual writing. Sure, it inspired my writing, but once I added the annotating, it helped me write. By simply using the brain/body connection, making notes in the margin, highlighting, and adding sticky notes to my books, it has allowed me to begin making meaningful connections and helps turn my thoughts into words. Those notes and words, ultimately fuel my writing.

5. Organizing My Writing Life

Now that I have daily journals, multiple writing projects, and lots of documents open, its completely necessary to keep my files and projects well organized. The meta-cognitive trick to using this strategy is the practice of reflecting on what works for you. Why have certain organizational plans failed in the past? What matters most is finding a strategy that works for you and one that helps you be more productive. You may need to revise what isn’t working. You may need to change your organizational style as your writing evolves. It’s a feedback loop, always in the works. If you can quickly access documents and have files organized in a way that makes referring back a breeze, your writing life will thank you.

I am always searching ways to improve as a writer and am forever fascinated by fellow writers and the writing process. Follow my writing journey here or on Instagram.

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