Find the 'spark' again

[Evil Tim]

I don't know if it's just because I've been tired a lot lately or maybe I'm strung out, but lately I've lost my creative spark.  A lot of times now I've sat down to try and write a response to a story and I stare at a blank page for about 30 minutes before just giving up and moving on to something else.  Does anyone have any suggestions for how to get the creative spark back?

[RedPhoenix]

Don't force it. It will come back eventually. Distract yourself with something else. I think everyone goes through this...for some of us it lasts months lol.

[Sindra]

Don't force it. It will come back eventually. Distract yourself with something else. I think everyone goes through this...for some of us it lasts months lol.

Agreed!

I recently went through this and found it rather frustrating.  The more stress I put on myself to get my posts up, the less progress I actually made.  I took a couple days to myself and did other things to relax and let the spark return on its own. 

As RedPhoenix mentioned, almost everyone goes through this and I think most people would be very understanding if you needed to take a break.   

Good luck and I hope it comes back soon for you. 

[Nadir]

A method I use when the muse is hiding, is to find something I enjoy - playing a game, watching a TV show, etc, and I play/watch 20 minutes of it, then I stop and I write. have to earn the next 20 minutes of the game/programme by writing at least 100 words. Change it up to what feel best for you.

[Vampdrake19]

I've been down that road many times before.  What gives me back my Spark is usually listening to my favorite music, playing a video game, reading a book (genre never matters), or (one of my most recent doings for the past three days) reading a favorite manga.  Sparks never come on demand, this I know for sure.  When it comes around, it comes with either a tap or a bang.

[LostInTheMist]

If you find that it lingers, something that I find often helps (as a last resort) is just writing through it. Normally, you don't want to force it, but sometimes you just have to, because you're jammed and the only way to clear a jam is to push through it. Your post may not be the most inspired thing you've ever written, but ideally, things should come easier from there on out.

Another thing you might want to try is to find something in a genre close to what you're writing, a good movie, a good book, another roleplay, and watch/read it. When I have trouble writing for Star Wars (other sites), I find that playing Knights of the Old Republic or watching the Original Trilogy (not the prequels) really helps inspire me. When I'm writing fantasy, I find that watching (or reading) Lord of the Rings or Game of Thrones really helps inspire me.

EDIT: Further, try having it be the last thing you think about as you fall asleep. I find that I often wake up with ideas that I didn't have the night before. Your sleeping brain WORKS to solve problems while you're sleeping.

[Thesunmaid]

Take an rp break..There is nothing in the forum that says you have to write and if your partners are good ones they will understand that your burnt out and need to take some time for your self. I have had to do so in the past and most people are understanding. And really if they can't understand..well they might not be worth keeping.

Also that's what the apologies and absences thread is for. Take some time and let your muse take a nap...and maybe join him/her cause naps are awesome :)