Conquer Blank-page-aphobia

One of the biggest problems I used to have with writing was staring at the blank page. Sit me down in front of a blank page or a blank screen, and my mind would soon be blank, too. Writer's block!

I remedied it by never sitting down to a blank page again. No, I didn't give up writing (obviously). Instead, I started collecting prompts. Now I start my writing day by writing to a prompt. It serves as a great warm-up, and then I can move on to whatever writing projects I'm working on.

And don't think of prompts as just practice. They are a great warm-up, but they can also turn into stories. I keep a file of all my prompt-responses, and I've turned quite a few of them into stories (including the novel I'm currently working on--it started from a simple, one-line prompt).

If staring at a blank page causes you to freeze up, trying a prompt from one of these sites:

Toasted Cheese Prompt Calendar

Writer's Digest Blog: Promptly

Writer's Digest Writing Prompts

Writing.com Daily Flash Fiction Challenge

WritingPrompt.com on Twitter

Writing.com The Writer's Cramp (Daily Writing Prompt & Challenge)