If you’re a writer then you probably know about writer’s block, if you are a designer, you probably know about designer’s block. Now, for regular folks, they might not realize what this is all about, but this ‘block’ is for real. Well this is when a writer or a designer feels uninspired and cannot do any decent work. I think it will be fair to say that we all have experienced this ‘block’ at one point or another. Whether it’s a full block or just a partial block it’s always a nuisance when you suddenly feel that you can write a decent sentence or draw a straight line.
So what should you do in case you have writer’s or designer’s block? Well for one you can always do mind exercises to get your creative juices flowing. If you having a hard time creating concepts in your head then you might want to try a few of these strategies to get ‘em going.
MIND MAPPING
This is a diagram used to represent ideas into words and graphic links to a central idea. This one is a brainstorming idea and this also helps in planning and categorizing tasks on hand.
STORYBOARDING
This is most effective for graphic designers and illustrators who want to visualize animation or even a motion picture. Illustrations are organized in sequence and as such the story progression is seen and plans on elaborating design is constructed as well.
FREE HAND WRITING
This is a good exercise for writers. You get a piece of paper and write down everything that’s on your mind. It can be sentences, a word, a collection of words perhaps even some drawings. This will help you unclutter your mind so new ideas can pop through.
LAYOUTING
You can sketch layouts from all your inspiration, mix and match colours and fonts until inspiration strikes and you are directed to where you want to go.
You can use the methods noted above to get through a block and formulate your concepts when inspiration is lacking. The idea is to create a variety of choices before choosing the most feasible one for you and for you client of course. So after you’ve come up with your design concepts, talk them through with the client and so you can pick a few that you can develop further.
