Unstuck: A Supportive and Practical Guide to Working Through Writer's Block

I got fired up about my writer's block a few months' ago, and read several books on the subject, including some that are out of print. This book is by far the best that I've read. Jane Anne Staw teaches you how to get to know your inner writer, how to be kind and compassionate toward that person, and how to mobilize yourself into writing. I've read the book three times now, each time getting more out of it than the time before. I cannot recommend it more highly. She uses examples from all kinds of writers--businessmen writing memos, lawyers writing briefs, grad students writing dissertations, you name it. Staw obviously has an active practice of being a therapist for writers with writer's block, and she shares the nuts-and-bolts ideas she uses in that practice.

I wasn't sure I believed in writer's block, much less suffered from it. After reading Unstuck, I realized how I had been avoiding the scary act of putting my posterior in the chair and writing. Staw's straightforward suggestions are seemingly simple: to be nice to ourselves, to start with only fifteen minute sessions, rewarding ourselves for the work we do, rather than beating ourselves up when we fail. They work: I finished a first draft of an important chapter of my memoir. I highly recommend this book.

Unstuck is a refreshing take on an age old problem. It is a much needed perspective, written in a voice that is accessible, honest, and powerful. This is not a glitzy book with ridiculous theories. This is not a book about self promotion of the author. It is a book about helping people like me find my voice.I thank Jane Ann Staw for this.I am not someone who considers myself blocked, but aren't we all like that. Unstuck made me comfortable with the fact that I have trouble kicking off my creative process, and provided me helpful tools to find my words.I have already referred this book to all my friends of creative spirit because I know the book will help them as much as it has helped me. Though they may be seeking the perfect brush stroke, or an impeccable musical note, just as I am seeking words, unstuck will make a wonderful addition to their library as it has mine.

If you have been paralyzed with a phobia for the activity you love passionately-the one thing that you crave to do with all your heart and cannot; if you loathe and upbraid yourself for your paralysis, then UNSTUCK will talk to you. And keep talking. This author understands that blocked place intimately and compassionately, and this book has shown me how to investigate (not push away) the fear and resistance to writing. For me this book is not so much about "methods" and techniques," although it includes those supports. No, this book is about the broken heart of your talent, and the return to the impulse that begs you to write. It's nice to have all those other writing books, like Natalie Goldberg and Julia Cameron. But they assume that you will be able to write given a creative prompt. They don't understand why you cannot write. I read K.Bright's review. I wonder if he/she perhaps has not been truly stuck. I didn't want or need novelty when I was blocked-I needed help. I highly recommend this kind and skillful book.

I found UNSTUCK to be a wonderful guide to confronting and overcoming the obstacles that get in the way of our writing. For those of us who are tired of being told what to do it is refreshing to hear how it can actually be done. The author's personal story and the many examples from her work with her clients provide familiar scenes of frustration that are followed by the less familiar but valuable descriptions of working through. I felt reassurred that there are ways out of the maze of procrastination. No book is going to give you all the answers but this book shows you how to find the right answer for yourself and gives you the courage to move on.