No selfie this week (you're welcome), partially because I forgot, partially because I had a lot going on that led to me doing work in weird places. I went to Connecticut to celebrate my Aunt and Uncle's 50th Wedding Anniversary the weekend before this class, and then Friday right after that class I hopped a train down to NYC to meet up with my partner in Brooklyn after having not seen each other for over a month. On the train ride down, and back up, I was working on a variety of things, but most notably an essay for my Travel Writing class assigned by Dr. Graham, and what more appropriate way to do that than on the train? I took this video on my way down to the City.
Our prompt for the free write in class was how we deal with writer's block, and what are some things that we find difficult about writing.
09/23/2025
Free Write in Literary Composition class:
In my experience writer’s block is typically derived from a place of feeling overwhelmed and/or rushed. Even if I’m well ahead of a deadline there are times where I will start to think “but what if I don’t get this started and then I can’t get it done?” An, admittedly, truly wild way of looking at anything in the world, but sometimes brains just brain. Another aspect for me is I find it difficult to move past a sticking point, much like when you were told while taking a test if you don’t know the answer to a question just skip it and then come back later, for some reason when it comes to writing I have a major issue in doing that. I will sit and stick on sentences, either in a text I’m reading/interpreting or on my own sentence for an unnecessarily long period of time. Sometimes something shakes out of it, other times I just say “screw it” and put in, what I consider to be, some sort of low hanging fruit just to keep the process moving. The problem is, I probably should've taken that action like 30 minutes before I actually take it.
As far as the root causes, I can’t say I know for sure, part of it is definitely my ability to procrastinate in the past and how I try incredibly hard to not allow that to happen again. Even then, when I sit down to write I’m so used to having been on a time crunch that when I’m not I can still have those urgent feelings because it’s sort of how I trained myself to operate in those circumstances over the years. One way I get through it is usually by getting up and walking around, or, if it’s a more intense one, just switching locations entirely. If going outside and looking around and not thinking about my current subject matter for a few seconds doesn’t get me where I need to be, I’ll pack my stuff up and go home, if I’m out, or if I’m home and it’s not super late, I will proceed to go to an alternative location where I can sit and write: coffee shop, library, back office at work, whatever.
One thing I wish was easier for me with writing is understanding how what I’m saying is coming across to other people. There are times I get so caught up in what’s pouring out of my brain that I will just dump it on the page and then go back later to edit it. While I’m editing it I can find that I know what I’m talking about, but getting that across to other people may be difficult. Essentially, I can forget sometimes that other people don’t have all the information that I have.
Analysis/Reflection:
Our most recent reading really had me considering how my writing process looks, as it’s something I haven’t really had to consider for quite some time. Historically if I was writing a lengthy work e-mail (of which, despite being a barber, I’ve sent many), or outlining different processes and programs for the barbershop, how I would outline some things but then find myself veering off in all different directions as a result of the things that were coming out of my brain onto the paper. I’ve been experiencing much of the same thing now that I’m back in school. I have outlined most of the things I want to write, and yet, when it comes time to do the writing I find myself in arenas I never even considered at the start. Part of me felt like I was doing something wrong. But, as it appears in “A Cognitive Process of Writing,” it seems that it is a valid part of the process and a thing that other people experience (maybe even everyone, who knows). As such I’m trying to be a bit more understanding of myself here and the things I’m being tasked with, and not viewing it as a “this is right and this is wrong” process, but rather: This just is the process. I’ve also noticed that now that I’ve really gotten into the swing of writing on what truly feels like a full time basis (hello 4 high level Lit classes) my environment matters less to me, as does what’s playing in my headphones. I’m writing this while sitting in Saxby’s inside Dyson, which is typically a pretty chaotic environment, with my headphones in and Iron Chic (a punk band that I used to tour with) playing and I’m functioning totally fine. I was very strongly convinced there for a while that I needed quiet and that I’d be incapable of focusing otherwise. I’m sure that with lengthier and more heady papers and such that may still be a necessity, but when I’m discussing something I know a lot about (in this case- me, and how I’m acting) I can do that with relative ease almost anywhere.
Theory Application:
While I discuss theories within my analyses, both Elbow's and Murray's theories are more the focal point of this assignment, and I also think they both have points of relation here.
In response to Elbow's ignoring audience, I mention that what I struggle most with writing is that I do that, maybe too well, at times. Granted, Elbow doesn't suggest completely ignoring audience for the entirety of the process, as eventually one does have to consider them, but my larger problem was that I didn't know how to really bring them in after the fact on occasion. Something that would contribute to my writer's block as well, because I didn't even know where to start. One thing that helped me tremendously was visiting the Writing Center at Marist, and the student who helped me, Grace, suggesting that I read my work out loud. I had never considered doing that before. Somehow, once I did, it all started to come together.
In speaking to Murray's "Writing as a Process Not Product," if I had been instructed somewhere along the way on the manner in which I could construct texts I may have been able to break through various periods of writer's block sooner. As aforementioned, even something as simple as a peer suggesting I read my work out loud, while constructing it, by engaging in the process in a, literal, out loud way, I could work through one of my biggest hang ups. This is a testament to how learning the process of writing has only benefitted me along the way.
The title of this post being meta on so many levels it actually makes my brain hurt. "Stuck Between Stations" is the opening track to The Hold Steady's breakout record "Boys and Girls in America." The fact that I was on a train, and obviously, stopping at various stations comes to mind. Fortunately, we did not get stuck. But also the idea that a radio gets stuck between stations (the actual reference the song title is making) much like writer's block has us feeling stuck between stations. Finally, This was a band I discovered during Marist 1.0, before I moved to Brooklyn, and when I eventually moved there, I listened to them religiously. It felt kind of wild to be in my old stomping grounds again while meeting up with my partner. They also make a bunch of literary references in the song. A lot of "full circle" feelings all around.
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