#207: 10 Ideas to Escape Writers' Block (Breakthrough Series)

Welcome to Kingdom Writers, where we help equip and empower Christian writers of all genres to share your unique gifts with the world. We're your hosts, C.J. and Shelley Hitz.

This podcast is filled with spiritual encouragement as well as prayers to help you overcome the resistance you face as a writer. Your story matters foreign.

Hey, Kingdom writers, this is Shelly Hits. Welcome to the Breakthrough series. So this is going to be a series of 12 episodes that we're going to dive in deep to the obstacles that you face as a Christian writer. We covered all of these topics in our online prayer meeting episode, and now we're going to dive deep into some practical things and some scriptures that that can really help you. So I hope you enjoy this series. We did record it live on Facebook and so you may hear us say, you know, comment here or we're gonna have some Q and A at the end. But just know that you can always join us live over on our Facebook page, Christian Book Academy. And we also wanted to provide this on our podcast so that you can listen to these as many times as you want to help you receive Breakthrough. As a Kingdom writer, have you ever faced a writer's block? As a Christian writer, maybe you've come up against that resistance or you said, I'm stuck and nothing is flowing. Well, if so, today's podcast is for you. We're going to talk about 10 ideas to escape writer's block. I'm Shelly Hitz, and I'm here with my husband cj.

Great to be with you another week, folks. We're excited to dive into this one.

Yes. And this is part of our Breakthrough series. So if you've been joining us, we've been diving deep into the obstacles that Christian writers face, the resistance that we face as writers, and helping you overcome them with the power of scripture and prayer and as well as practical tips. And so that's what really makes this series different from most training for authors is we're coming at it with both the spiritual part, but also the practical steps. So I'm excited to dive right into the topic. And if you're here live with us or watching a replay where you can comment and interact, please do. Nothing encourages us more than seeing your comments, your feedback, what stood out to you, what God said to you through the broadcast. We're going to start off with a scripture today that stuck out to me as I was reading Zechariah 8, 9 the other day and I wrote it down. I was like, have to share this because, you know, as a writer and as we're writing books. Part of the goal is to finish the book. Right. And yet so many times the writer's block or the other resistance holds us back. And so, you know, the Scripture says, be strong and finish the task. And it's not being strong in our own strength. It's being empowered by God, by his spirit. And yet we want to help give you 10 ideas today to escape writer's block so that you can be strong in the Lord and finish the work.

Yeah. And before we get into those 10 ideas, I had a couple things that come to mind as well, just regarding Scriptures. And the first One is Psalm 45. One. And this is the NIV translation, which says, my heart is stirred by a noble theme as I recite my verses for the King. My tongue is the pen of a skillful writer. And I also wanted to read from the Passion translation. How many of you have heard of the Passion translation? It just really puts things in even a more fresh perspective. But I absolutely love how the Passion translation puts Psalm 45. 1. It says, My heart is on fire, boiling over with passion bubbling up within me. Are these beautiful lyrics or words as a writer, as a lovely poem to be sung for the King. And I love this, my favorite part of the verse. Like a river bursting its banks, I'm overflowing with words spilling out into this sacred story. How many of you want to be in a place where your words are spilling over, almost like a river bursting over its banks and sort of in a good way, flooding everything around you? As the Lord uses you to encourage others, and as you're writing this, as the verse says, for the King, you know, the writer of this particular psalm, it was essentially the sons of Korah, you know, they sort of interchanged with David, you know, in terms of the Psalms. And they were writing this, you know, for the King, and you and I are writing for the King of Kings. We have an opportunity to write things and bubble forth the things that he puts on our hearts. And yet we also realize that, yes, writer's block can be a thing. It can be something that certainly the enemy uses, or we get hung up ourselves. But I also love, you know, a passage in John chapter 7, and this is Jesus speaking. It's John 7, 37 and 38. And this is the new living translation. It says, on the last day, the climax of the festival, Jesus stood and shouted to the crowds, anyone who is thirsty may come to me. Anyone who believes in me may come and drink. For the Scriptures declare, rivers of living water will flow from his heart. How many of you would like rivers of words that you can write to flow from your heart? You know it's flowing from the Holy Spirit. You know that God is inspiring you. And. And how many know there is no end to the words that God can inspire? We only limit ourselves, but with God, we're unlimited in the supply of words that we have. And so as we spend time with Jesus, and this is going to be key right here, I want to say this right off the bat, that we each have to spend that time with the Lord. And as we do that, we are refreshed, we with his living water. And we're actually even able to then be an outsource of that flow of anything that the Lord's bringing up within us. And so the first thing we want to say is, are we each connecting with the King of Kings? Are we connecting with the God of words that wants to inspire us, that wants our banks to overflow? And so that's just right off the bat. And guess what? We haven't even gotten into the first idea yet.

We still have 10 ideas for you.

And so the first idea we're getting into it now is that writer's block could possibly be a spiritual block that requires a deeper time of prayer and fasting. And I think of Daniel, chapter 10, verses 12 through 14, when I think of this. And those of you familiar with Daniel, you know he had all these visions, but in this particular case, he had this vision. He had been praying and fasting for weeks, and all of a sudden he gets this vision, and I'm going to pick up in verse 12. And this is the person, an angel that had come to him and basically said. Then he said, don't be afraid, Daniel. Since the first day you began to pray.

For understanding and to humble yourself before your God. Your request has been heard in heaven. I have come in answer to your prayer. But get this. But for 21 days, the spirit prince of the kingdom of Persia blocked my way. Hey, there's that word again. Blocked my way. Then Michael, one of the archangels, came to help me, and I left him there with the spirit prince of the kingdom of Persia. Now, I am here to explain what will happen to your people in the future. For this vision concerns a time yet to come. Can you believe we actually have access to a story like that? We actually get to see what's happening, like in the spiritual realm as we pray and fast. Now, this particular instance was in Daniel. And I'm not saying that, you know, when we do the exact Same thing, the exact same kind of vision is going to happen. But what we do is we get a glimpse of what's happening with Daniel as he humbled himself in prayer, in fasting. And for 21 days, there was a block. Like the angel that was coming to share was with him words of life that would inspire all of us in scripture.

He couldn't get there because there was a spiritual battle taking place. And what I want to say is, in our lives, there could be a very real spiritual block preventing us from moving forward with the very message God wants to put on our hearts. It may require some deeper prayer. A time of fasting for a day, two days, three days. I don't know how long that's between us and the Lord. But the bottom line is there are blocks in the spiritual realm preventing us sometimes from getting out those messages. And so that's the first idea that we want to present.

Yeah. And going along with that, a lot of you, if you've been following me for any amount of time, know that I recommend every Christian writer form a small, private prayer team. Now, a lot of you have resisted me on this. You're like, I don't want to be asking people for prayer. I don't want to be acting needy. This is not like posting publicly on your Facebook wall. It's asking two to three close friends, people who support your work, support your ministry, support your writing, ask them to be praying for you on a consistent basis. I think I have about 15 people on my prayer team, and I send out very specific prayer requests every week. And that way, you have other prayer, too. Like, we need to be in prayer and fasting. You know, we are at times fasting. Not all the time, but we need to be in prayer for our writing. But also, we are the body of Christ, and it's intended for us to support one another. And one of our academy members, she really resisted me on this.

And.

And then finally she did it, and she reached out to a few people, started sending out the requests, and she sent out some praises, too. Like, God answered this prayer. He did this. And one of her prayer team members wrote her back and was like, thank you so much for allowing me the privilege of being on your prayer team. I was praying and asking God to help me to develop my prayer life, and he sent you to me. She was an answer to that girl's prayer because she asked her to be on her prayer team. But then you get to share the praises. People's faith increases, and it's really, really powerful. And so in the resources for today, in the notes, or if you're on the video, in the description, is a link to a further training I've done on how to form and do, like a prayer team.

Yeah, and, you know, another example of how much the enemy hates when we actually begin something or undertake something. Maybe you're starting that book for the first time or you're sitting down to write that blog post that, you know, God's inspired you to write. Well, just read the book of Nehemiah. It's a fairly short book, but it tells the story of how this man Nehemiah got permission from his king. You know, the. The Israelites were still in exile at this point, and so the exiles were starting to come back to Jerusalem. And when they got back there, the wall around Jerusalem was. Was torn down. It was falling apart. And Nehemiah and others were just broken over this because this was a pride for them. This was a pride and joy, this city. And. And so when they began to undertake the work of rebuilding this wall, guess who showed up? An enemy that didn't like it, didn't like the. The Jewish people, and came against them and tried to discourage, discourage, discourage right from the get go. If we can discourage this work and thwart it, then maybe they'll give up and just go their separate way and that'll be in the end of this wall that serves as a protection. And so Nehemiah and his workers, they kept at it, but, man, they received opposition in the beginning. And you and I, when we're undertaking a work for the Lord, in our writing, man, we're going to receive opposition. But.

How long that is, you know, I don't know. It could be a day, it could be an hour, it could be three weeks. Going to vary, but you and I have these stories in Scripture to show us that we can bust through those obstacles with the Lord's help. And they completed that wall in 52 days. Okay? Now, this was a miracle in itself with the amount of workers they had and with the opposition around them. But what I'm saying is you'll accomplish more with the Lord's help in a day, as Shelley's recently even said, than we can even in a year in our own strength, right? So with the Lord, we're going to bust through these obstacles. And so that's just again, number one, the idea, number one, is that there could be very real spiritual attack blockage that needs to be busted through spiritually.

Yeah. So idea number two to escape writer's block is I encourage you not to start with a blank page. So how many of you have ever just gotten out your computer? You open up a blank document or you're getting out your notebook and you have that blank page and you just stare at it and the blinker's like taunting. It's like a taunting. It's taunting you. It's like, okay, now it's time. And you're just like frozen. Ah, I don't know what to do. I know there are many of you that will resist me on this. And you're like, shelly, I'm not a person that likes an outline. I just want to tell you whether you are a detail oriented outline type of a person or you're a fly by the seat of your pants. A lot of times in the writing world it's called a panster. Whatever realm you fall on having some kind of an outline, however simple, even if it's just three little things, it gives you something to start with. So you're not starting with a blank page, you're not starting with an empty notebook, but you have some idea of where you're going. And I always say the more detailed your outline can be, the less you're going to face writer's block. Because you always know what's coming next. You're like, okay, now I'm going to be talking about this story.

You.

Now I'm going to be expanding on this point. Now I'm going to be doing this. And so it really helps you when you sit down to write, to have something that you're starting with.

Yeah, excellent. And number three idea, number three is schedule writing time. I mean, it's a no brainer, but sometimes we allow our schedules to run wild and when we think, man, I don't have any time for the writing. Well, I love, you know, William Faulkner, that great poet and writer from Mississippi back in the early 1900s. William Faulkner said, I only write when I am inspired. Fortunately, I'm inspired at 9 o' clock every morning.

And so that was William Faulkner. You know, he had his time, his sweet spot that he could write. And you know, setting aside undistracted time blocks can be helpful, whether it's 15 minutes or three hours. So setting aside that time where you put it in your calendar and you said nothing else, unless it's an emergency, is going to interfere with that time. And I love, you know, some of you are familiar with Donald Miller, a writer who has written books like Blue Light Jazz, among other classics. Donald Miller says basically that he blocks off all of Monday now He does have the occasional speaking engagement where they just don't have any other options other than Monday. And so he'll have to adjust his day that week. But for the most part, he does everything possible to protect Mondays as writing day. That's where he says that is where my bread and butter is. He does other things. Those of, you know, Donald Miller, he does things like Story Brand, he's got a company, he's, you know, quite a businessman, but he's also a very creative writer. And that's the very thing that he realizes he has to go back to. And so he sets that time aside and nothing infringes on that. And that's what we have to do. You've got to schedule those time blocks. For me personally, I need about four hour time blocks. And so a lot of times I like to work in the afternoons. And so it could be 1 o' clock to 5 o', clock, 12 o' clock to 4 o', clock, whatever it might be. By that point I'm pretty well woken up. I've had a cup of coffee or two and I'm ready to, I'm fired up, ready to go. But I block that off, I'll put it in my phone calendar and it'll just say writing. And I know nothing else, unless there's an emergency, is going to hit on that time. So consider that regarding really getting serious and disciplined about your schedule.

Yeah, so idea number four is to consider a writing retreat, either by yourself or with others. And so what do I mean by a writing retreat? It's kind of like blocking off time, but instead of having a specific chunk of time each week, some of you are super busy. Like you have jobs and families and demands. And so it's really hard to even fit daily or weekly writing time in. And for those of you that are in that kind of a position, or if you just want to get a ton done, you can schedule a writing retreat. And that's how CJ and I wrote one of our early books called Forgiveness Formula. We went away on a writing retreat. I remember I had all my research and all my notes. I spread them out onto the floor of one of the rooms and I literally wrote my section of that book in a weekend. Because I was still working as a physical therapist, we were traveling and speaking around the country. I mean, I just didn't have a lot of time. And so we've also hosted Colorado writing retreats here in Colorado, where they're in person retreats. And then you can also just do them by Yourself, where you block off a chunk of time and you're like, check yourself into a hotel or borrow someone's home or do something. And we also, in Christian Book Academy, we have productivity parties every month. That's like an hour writing session together. And we're coming up in September, we're going to be doing a two day virtual writing retreat. So we're going to be meeting together for two days. But you're also going to get the encouragement, the coaching, the mentoring, your answers, your questions answered. And so that's another tip is to maybe consider writing retreat.

Yeah.

And so then idea number five, we've talked about this in a few of our episodes of the Breakthrough series is I always say pomodoro equals productivity. And so if you haven't been on one of our other broadcasts or if you're not familiar with the pomodoro technique, this is what I use when I'm dreading any task or if I do need to really get some writing done. It really helps me in that it sets a deadline for my brain. So how it works is you set a timer for about 25 minutes. You turn off all notifications. You just focus on one task and then you take a five minute break. You do that for two hours. Then you take a longer break of 30 minutes, or you can do 50 minutes, 10 minutes, you know, however you work best. And we actually have a worksheet that you can download for free that my graphic designer created. It has all the instructions of the Pomodoro. It has a place where you can mark it off and you can, you know, track your progress and all of that. So. So make sure to go Download that@trainingauthors.com Breakthrough yeah.

So number six, idea number six in handling writer's block, how many know that it can take 30 minutes sometimes after you sit down to write, how many? You know, it can take 30 minutes just to allow our spirits to calm. Oh, yeah, right. You know, it's like you throw a rock out onto a calm pond and there's ripples and it takes a little while for that to get completely glassy again. Or you think of a swimming pool where kids are swimming around and they're jumping around and all of a sudden, you know, the lifeguard blows the whistle. Everybody out. 15 minute break. Well, in that 15 minutes, it's like the water gets glass. Lassie again. And then of course, whenever the lifeguard blows the whistle again, it's all about the first kid that gets to break the water, you know, and stir it up again. And yet in our own spirits, we can actually have all of this noise that we come to our writing session with. And so don't beat yourself up in the first 30 minutes. Just allow that to even be a time where your spirit is calming down and you're just focusing on the Lord. You're even just praying. You're saying, lord, please calm me. Please allow the storms to calm in my life. You know, as Jesus said, you might even just want to repeat, peace, be still. Peace, be still. Peace, be still. And gradually, the noise just begins to quiet.

Yeah.

And I think for us to get into a groove sometimes or a flow, we've got to allow that grace in that 15 to 30 minutes where we just. We need the noise to calm down in our lives. Otherwise it's really hard to focus. And as writers, we do need to put words together in a focused manner. And it doesn't have to be perfect, though.

We, you know, we talked about that in our perfectionism episode.

But I've got another illustration regarding this. Some of you are runners. I'm an avid runner. I love running. It's my form of exercise. And what I've Learned in my 11 years, since I came back to running after 20 years, away from it since high school. But in the last 11 years, what I've learned is that I should never bail on a run in the first two miles. Now, there have been many runs where I feel horrible or I just don't feel it. My body's just sort of, you know, feeling extra old that day, whatever it might be. But I've learned that if I'll give it two miles, that I generally begin to start feeling better. I get warmed up, the joints and the muscles become loose. And I'll tell you what, I've had runs where it's 5, 6, 7, 8 miles, where by the end of it, I felt fantastic. I almost felt like going for another three, four miles. And so in the beginning, don't bail.

In terms of your writing, you know, the first part of it may feel a little bit sticky. It may feel stiff. And yet, if you'll give it time and you'll give the Lord that opportunity, I think things can begin to flow. Now, maybe it's only a hundred words, maybe it's only 200, 300. Whatever progress is made before you take another little break, as we mentioned in the pomodoro technique. But don't bail in the first part, just like in my running, you know, don't bail in the beginning because by the end, you may Realize, oh, my goodness, I am so glad I stuck with it because some things started to flow one after the other.

And then also, like your mindset, you're not getting frustrated with yourself. Because when you start getting frustrated and then you want to start forcing or it's not coming, then it's just like it's sabotage. Right? And so Melody says, yeah, ha ha. A warm up period for writing sessions makes perfect sense. Yeah. I mean, and so if you can go in with a mindset of, I'm going to give myself this warm up, I'm not going to expect myself to pound out 2,000 words, going to give it a warm up, maybe play some worship music or just journal. One of our mentors in Christian Book Academy, Heather Hart, she says when, anytime she feels stuck in her writing or writer's block, she just starts journaling out her prayer. So you could just even start journaling. It's words, right? It just starts getting the flow. You're praying, you're connecting with the Lord, whatever it is for you. We're all different. We're just giving you ten ideas today.

Today.

But when I was writing my book, procrastination of publication, I created a graphic and it was this dog sitting at a computer keyboard. And the graphic says, the first rule of writing is to sit. The second rule of writing is to stay.

And so we need that time, you know, to get the flow going, to give ourselves grace, to have that warm up period. And idea number seven is to consider starting with some journaling or even a writing prompt to get your writing juices flowing. So just like I said, Heather starts journaling her prayers. Maybe if you just feel stuck and you're not even sure where to go, start journaling. My mom has helped us with the meals at our writing retreats the last three years, and she came to the last one and she wasn't even planning on writing a book. And she had no idea, she had no outline. I saw somebody asked a question earlier. What do you do if you have writer's block on your outline? Well, this is an idea of something you could do. So she didn't have any outline, she didn't have any idea of any book. She just thought, I'm gonna sit out on the porch, look at the mountains, and I'm just gonna journal. She started journaling, and within a page, all of a sudden, all of a sudden she was warming up. God gave her an outline for a book, and she almost finished the first draft of that book on that writing retreat. And so sometimes just getting started Getting that flow, maybe with a writing prompt or journaling or writing out your prayers, something just to get the words going. And what I find is that as I'm obedient, like my mom did, she just started writing and journaling. And as I'm obedient just to start writing, God begins to show up. And my friend Shay Vines, she says, you know, God can't direct a parked car. Hear that? God can't direct a parked car. So sometimes if we just start going and we just start journaling or, you know, maybe there's a story that you want to write about or anything, writing out a prayer, and it gets the. The forward motion going, and then God can begin to direct those words as we write.

Yeah. And just along with that, I think, you know, we can become the best writers that we can be by also becoming avid readers. I think it's just natural that writers probably love to read and have their favorite authors or books that they. They love to go to. I think just reading another, you know, book can actually inspire thought. As you're reading, something hits you, and you quickly jot that down. It's just a note, but you jot it down. And then you can build around that idea later. But as you read, have pen. Have your own pen and note paper ready to. To have those prompts written down. And then number eight, idea number eight. You know, is there a specific place that you love to write? I think location can actually. And, you know, atmosphere. That's huge for me. I have to sort of change up atmosphere every now and then. I do have some of my favorites, and for me, I do sometimes love, you know, a busy coffee shop. I don't know why.

Whereas I like to be at home in my pajamas, riding, you know, so.

So.

And no one around me, you know, no noise. So you have to be you, you know, do what's gonna work best for you. And in our writing challenge coming up, I don't know how many of you are already signed up, but if you are, let us know in the comments. But it's@writingweek.com we're gonna dive in even deeper to some of these things that you can track, and we're gonna give you a journal to do that and really find out what's gonna work best for you.

Yeah. And so even along with your favorite location to write, and it might be a favorite room in your house, or, again, it might be that coffee shop. It might be the local library. I mean, hey, you know, you could be inspired by, you know, being surrounded by Lots of books.

Yeah. I was speaking at an event one time, and a guy came up to me. He said his favorite place to write was this certain picnic table at the zoo.

In his zoo, it was, like, hidden back behind and he could, you know, kind of tuck back there as long as it wasn't raining or something. He loved to write there, and he got a lot of writing done. So, I mean, one of the ladies, I heard, she wrote her entire book in her van in her driveway because she has a bunch of kids and she just could never focus in the house, so she wrote it in her van. Like, where there's a will, there's a way. Amen.

Yeah. And there's also routines, you know, along with location, you might have a certain routine. Routine. Like sometimes I do like to go and make that. That. That cup of coffee, go through that process. I think as I'm doing that, it, you know, it's a good prompt or it's a good ritual that gets me prepared for the writing process. For some of you, like Shelly, she likes to make that cup of tea. You may have a ritual that you. That you get into. You know, basketball players, when they get to the free throw line, they actually have their rituals. I used to love watching all kinds of different players. What did they do with the free throw line? Some of them, you know, spin the ball, bounce the ball three times, spin it, you know, I mean, they all have the routines that prompt them. Like, I'm about ready to shoot this free throw. This is my mental side of things. And maybe you have a ritual that gets you into the mental routine of writing. So location and routine number nine. Number nine is exercise. Okay. You know, I know that word sometimes strikes a little bit of fear, you know, and yet even a simple, brisk walk, yes, just a simple walk can help stir thoughts. I mean, science has been clear that when we have more oxygen to our brains and fuels creativity, it gives us ideas when we're out. I mean, how many of you can agree with this, that you've had some of your best ideas come when you were in the midst of breathing hard in exercise? Whether it's a run, a walk on that elliptical at the gym, whatever it might be, you're stirring thoughts. You're getting the blood flowing to the brain, which means oxygen again. It's sort of like that parked car, you know, illustration, you know, a car that sits a long time. It's probably not a very healthy car. But when we can just get up, whether it's in the morning or we can go for that brisk walk in the afternoon or that run, Just something that spurs some extra oxygen to the brain. Ideas can flow from there. I know. I've heard Shelly many times talk about how she got these great idea on just a gentle run where she wasn't going fast. It was just up and down the street, and all of a sudden something came or there was a breakthrough. Somehow I believe it can happen with all of us.

And that's what happened actually, where, God, I feel like almost gave me a download of the exact curriculum in the Writing Week challenge. It happened on a hike, you know, and so, so many times we can get some of our best ideas because we're quiet, we're not doing anything else. And Cal Newport, he's the author of the book Deep Work as well as Digital Minimalism. He talks about how just taking a walk every day. And then when you're on the walk, don't be listening to music, don't be listening to podcasts, but actually take something that you're working on where you're stuck. So if you're stuck in your story plot in a certain area, or if you're stuck in your book on.

What illustration to use or what to take that specific problem on the walk with you, and then work it out as you're walking, work it out. And I would say, pray it out, right? Pray and ask God. And then I like to have my phone and my notes app, and I'll just jot down ideas in my notes app. And so it can just be a simple walk. Julia Cameron talks about this in the artist's work way, how creatives like us, we just need, like, that time to go on a walk, clear our mind every day. And I know that a lot of you are not into exercise. You're not runners. That's okay. Go for a walk even in the winter, bundle up or get on a treadmill somewhere. It's really, really, really good for your creativity and for your writing. And so the last idea is, idea number 10 is accountability can help. And so, you know, we've talked about this in a previous episode, but again, you know, just having someone that can keep you accountable. You can either meet together in person and, like, write together, as long as you're not distracting each other and you're maybe using the pomodoro technique and, you know, doing that writing. Or I've heard another writer, very successful writer, say that she just will text someone and. And she has an accountability partner and she'll text them. I'm starting to write I will Check in with you in two hours and let you know my progress. So she knows in the back of her mind I'm gonna be checking in with her again. When we do our virtual writing retreats or our productivity parties in Christian Book Academy, you have a chance to check in. And it's not a competition. There's no competition in the Kingdom of God. Amen. It's not about, you know, productivity. It's about progress. And we love to celebrate every word with you. And so that's also available inside Christian Book Academy. So those are our 10 ideas. And if you're not signed up for Writing Week yet, I encourage you to sign up. It's a free seven day challenge open to writers of all genres. We're going to be writing together if you can commit to at least 15 minutes a day. It's going to start August 19th and you can join us@writingweek.com but CJ, why don't you recap those 10 ideas for escaping writer's block and then we will close down today with some prayer for you.

Yeah, so number one, writer's block could be really a spiritual block that is preventing you from moving forward. That might require a deeper prayer and fasting.

Number two, you know, don't start with that blank page. Start with an outline that can actually, you know, be something you can build around. Number three, schedule that writing time. You've got to schedule that and be very disciplined in keeping that, that appointment. Number four, consider a writing retreat by yourself or with others. Number five, the pomodoro, which Shelly mentioned, you know, equals productivity. You know, the pomodoro technique, short bouts of writing with the brakes. Number six.

Just give yourself some grace and warm up time. Thirty minutes maybe, you know, allow that noise to die down.

Number seven, consider starting with journaling or a writing prompt, you know, to get the writing juices flowing. Number eight, maybe a location that you love to write. And also having that ritual routine that kind of prepares you that says, okay, I'm putting on my game face, you know, I'm getting ready to write. Number nine, exercise. Know to get that oxygen to the brain. And number 10, accountability. You know, meeting together in person or virtually so that others can, can sort of hear your goals and, and hear you say those things out loud to provide a little bit of that accountability and encouragement. So we're at the point now where we want to recap the, or.

Mention the key truth. You know, we mention at this point based on John 8:32, then, then you will know the truth and the truth Will set you free. Well, today's truth. I'm going to read that beautiful rendition of Psalm 45:1 in the passion translation and listen what it says. It says, my heart is on fire.

Boiling over with passion bubbling up within me. Are these beautiful lyrics as a lovely poem to be sung for the King. Like a river bursting its banks, I am overflowing with words spilling out into this sacred story. And so all of us can have those rivers that are overflowing the banks as God helps us get into that flow, that helps us push through that writer's block or whatever is, is is the obstacle between us and that writing that God's put on our hearts.

Yeah. And so just as a reminder, we have a couple resources for you in the description or if you're on, if you're listening on the podcast, just swipe up. It's our three reasons every Christian writer needs a prayer team as well as the Pomodoro worksheet. And so I hope that this has been helpful. If you're here and you're able to comment, tell us which idea really stuck out to you, which is something that you think you may implement even today or this week. Share with us in the comments. And then CJ's gonna close us in prayer.

So, Lord, we just thank you so much for each and every one of these writers. Lord, I want to ask that you would help them break through any of any writer's block that's been occurring in their own lives. Lord, I just pray that you allow them to just get into a flow. I ask, Lord, that you would allow each of us to spill over our river banks into the lives of other people with what you inspire in us. May rivers of living water come out of us, creativity come out of us, and may we be a blessing as writers, knowing that you're inspiring, you're empowering us, you're giving us what we need. You're putting the words in our mouths. You're guiding our pens or our fingers as we type. Lord, I just pray that each of us would be able to experience what it means to escape writer's block, to bust through it. And we'll give you the glory, Lord, knowing that as Christian writers, we lean on the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords. We don't lean on our own strength because we know in our own strength we're not going to produce a whole lot that's of eternal value. So, Lord, would you do it in us? And in each one of these that are listening or watching live, or they're going to watch the replay. Lord, would you just use these words in such a powerful way that it connects with each of them and allows them to even have some aha. Moments of wow. Okay, I hear you. I hear what you're saying. And Lord, as always.

May it be you speaking and not us. May your spirit do the work within us. And we ask this in Jesus wonderful name. Amen.

Amen. All right, thank you guys so much for being here. I hope you'll join us for Writing Week. Come join us@writingweek.com and we will see you next time.

God bless you guys.

Bye Bye.

Thank you for listening to this episode of Kingdom Writers. We believe that you, as a Christian writer, have a specific role to play in the Kingdom of Heaven to impact lives for eternity.

And because of this, we choose to pour out our lives into encouraging writers like you to not only tell your stories, but to take the courageous step of self publishing your stories in books that will outlive you and leave behind a powerful legacy. This podcast is sponsored by Christian Book Academy, where we help you give birth to your books. We invite you to join our community of Kingdom writers.