Writer’s block: the dreaded death of inspiration that has hit every writer at one point or another. Everyone who writes--from bestselling authors to students struggling with the essay due tomorrow--has experienced the feeling of a blank mind.

It can be a very discouraging thing to sit down at your desk, completely motivated to write, and not have anything to say. Writer’s block is one of those things that almost everyone has experienced, yet there is no surefire way to get rid of it. It’s different for each person, but you never know what random idea might spark your muse and get you writing again.

Here are some tips for getting started or perhaps for changing the way you approach it.

1. Start writing, even if it’s terrible.

Don’t let anyone read it—no pressure. Don’t force yourself to face rejection, and get rid of the fear of perfection! Sometimes the simpler cases of writer’s block come from thinking too much about what people will think. Push that aside, write something for yourself, and soon enough you will be writing well again.

2. Find inspiration when it won’t come to you on its own.

Listen to/watch inspirational videos, podcasts, speakers, etc. Sometimes all you need to get writing again is a little inspiration. It can come from anywhere at any time, but when you feel like you’re in a dry spot and nothing has struck you for a while, you have to go looking for it yourself. Prompts can also be especially useful for getting started. Use a sentence that strikes you and go on from there.

3. Take a nap.

Your brain works even when you’re sleeping, so if you’ve been thinking about what to write for a while and take a break to go sleep, you may just wake up with a new idea. This doesn’t always work for everyone, of course, but your brain loves to always be working on solving a problem, even when you sleep.

4. Take a walk.

Sitting in the same place for hours can stifle your ability to create well. A change of scenery can help give your brain a rest or even come up with new ideas. Letting your mind wander as you go tends to be a good thing in these situations.

5. Listen to music, or stop listening to music.

A change of “mental environment” can be helpful too. Personally, I enjoy listening to music while I work. But the truth is that I can’t actually get much work done if I’m listening to music with words. I get distracted by it too easily, and it becomes much more difficult to think.

6. Subconscious stream writing.

Give yourself 10 minutes and don’t let your pencil ever stop moving, even if you have to write “now I don’t know what to write so I’m gonna keep going and hope something happens.” Even if everything you’ve written is garbage, at least you’re going in the right direction. This can yield new ideas and thoughts you didn’t realize you had.

7. Edit your previous work.

Edit things you've written before or maybe just read it though again to spark your creativity and flow of consciousness. Maybe you haven’t read the beginning of what you’re working on in a while. Maybe you haven’t gone over your notes or your research recently. Reviewing things you’ve pushed aside can encourage you to keep going.

8. Take a long break.

Writing can be very difficult, and taking a break from that can be a good idea. If you’re not writing under a deadline and you have time to spare, put that project away for a few days, weeks, or whatever unit of time you need to stop thinking about it. When you come back to it with fresh eyes, you may see it in a completely different light.

9. Be creative.

While you’re taking a break, do other creative activities instead. That can often make you feel just as productive and fulfill your need to write. Draw, read, decorate, or do anything else to get your mind of writing but still be working creatively.

10. Avoid getting writer’s block in the first place.

As Ernest Hemingway said, “The best way is always to stop when you are going good and when you know what will happen next. If you do that every day, you will never be stuck. Always stop while you are going good and don’t think about it or worry about it until you start to write the next day. That way your subconscious will work on it all the time. But if you think about it consciously or worry about it you will kill it and your brain will be tired before you start.”

11. Write about writer’s block.

That’s what I did with this article. Sometimes, the last resort is to give up on anything else and write about the frustration of writer's block instead!