Don't Call It Writer's Block!
We like to think of them as Creative Thresholds.
Welcome Back to Hot Book Summer!
There has never been a time in my life when I didn’t want to be a writer. I didn’t always know what it meant, but ever since I cracked into my first Laura Ingalls Wilder book (and if you haven’t yet, check out the incredible Little House reboot on Netflix, produced by our film and TV partner Joy Coalition), I knew that I too had a story to tell.
But knowing you have a story and writing one down can feel like two very different things. The stories I would weave in my head felt indelibly crafted, with vivid dialogue and drama, perfect character development, and the kind of wisdom nuggets one might expect from an 8-year-old Mary Oliver. And then I would take out my pen–or much later, open my laptop–and as Eminem once said, the words won’t come out.
For a long time, I thought that meant I wasn’t a writer. Maybe I was just someone with an active imagination, and yet, the blank page called to me.
When I graduated college, I got my first job in book publishing. Within a year, I was working as an Assistant Editor at Simon & Schuster, and though I have always believed that my only natural talent was drinking alcohol (hence why I got sober at 27), I discovered that I was born with another special set of skills: I was a natural at book editing.
But this too became a double-edged sword for my creativity. Because much like teaching, there is another unfair maxim for creatives that comes out of that industry—those who can’t write, edit. And edit I did—from toxic self-help bros like Dr. Phil and Tony Robbins to incredible writers like Andrei Codrescu and Omar Tyree. Yet I still hadn’t written my own book. Finally, in 2008, I did. I went on a date a week, I wrote a book about it, and published it two years later. That book did everything you would hope a book could do—the “Today Show,” USA Today, LA Times bestseller list, a very much almost TV show with big names!
Over the next decade, I would add dozens more names to my editorial list, editing and co-writing NYT bestselling books for nearly every major publishing house.
It took me the same amount of time to write my second book. In 2023, my sophomore effort finally came to be.
But the page was no less daunting because, as anyone who has written a second book will tell you, the first one is so much easier. The first one pours out of you. The second one asks, what else do I have to say?
But that is the question that every writer must answer when they hit the blank page. They have to ask themselves: what do I have to say? And then we have to craft the story through which to tell it. That, more than anything else—more than social media followers, or an impressive byline, or unshakable talent—is what makes someone a writer.
And that’s what ultimately gets us across the threshold of our own doubts and fears.
Crossing the Threshold
Every story has a threshold.
Odysseus had to leave Ithaca. Dorothy had to step into Oz. Alice had to fall down the damn rabbit hole. We never arrive at transformation without first crossing into unfamiliar territory.
And writing isn’t any different.
We all know the term “writer’s block”—we’ve been sold this idea that if only we could bulldoze our way through, we would be on our way to creative freedom. Over the years, I began to see that I would run into the same “blocks” time and time again:
Confusion over what I wanted to say. Disconnection from the story I was trying to tell. Distraction from the page because life is life is life. Apprehension about who I was to even say it. And procrastination because there was always something more important on the to-do list than realizing my most important life goal: to be a writer.
But what if those things that stop us from writing aren’t blocks at all? What if they’re actually our creative thresholds? What if they are the vision quests we have to pass through to finally believe in our story, find our words, and dance with the blank page in ways we haven’t be able to before.
What if the threshold is the space between the brilliance in your head and the brilliance on the page? When I started to look at it that way, I began to see that instead:
Confusion can ask if we’re willing to trust what we already know.
Disconnection can ask us if we’re willing to believe someone needs our story.
Distraction can ask us if we’re willing to choose our creativity over everything clamoring for our attention.
Apprehension asks us if we’re willing to tell the truth, even if our voice shakes.
Procrastination asks if we’re willing to put ourselves first.
Those thresholds weren’t actually blocking me from the page, they were inviting me to cross over into it. This week, instead of trying to defeat your creative threshold, we’d love for you to get curious about it. And begin to ask yourself, what does this threshold have to share with me - and what does it want me to say?
What do you have to say?
Your Writing Invitation
Before you begin writing, don’t choose the prompt.
Choose the threshold.
Read through the five below and notice which one makes your shoulders tense, your stomach flutter, or your brain immediately say, “Well...it’s definitely not that one.”
That’s probably the one. Stay with it for the week and let it teach you something.
1. Confusion - The Threshold of Clarity
Confusion has a funny way of convincing us we need one more class before we can begin. One more notebook. One more podcast. One more journal entry. Maybe even one more year.
But the blank page waits for no one (and everyone). Blank pages are whatever we want to make of them.
Your Invitation
Before you ask what you should write, spend twenty minutes remembering why you ever wanted to write in the first place.
Write without stopping.
When did writing first feel magical?
Where do you feel most like yourself when you write?
What story keeps returning, even when you try to ignore it?
If nobody could interrupt you, what would you begin today?
Finish this sentence:
The story that has been waiting most patiently for me is...
2. Disconnection - The Threshold of Belonging
We hear writers say they don’t know who they’re writing for, but we’ve started wondering if that’s the wrong question. Maybe the better question is...
What book would make you feel less alone?
Books don’t have to reach everyone. They just have to reach someone. And the best someone to start with is often you.
Your Invitation
Imagine you are sitting across from yourself. Maybe you now. Or maybe another version of you. Another timeline. The version that did not have it all figured out. Or even less than you do now.
What do they need to hear?
What conversation have you been longing to begin?
What are you finally ready to say?
How might your story help them feel seen?
Finish this sentence:
If this book could have changed my life, this is what I would want to hear...
3. Distraction - The Threshold of Presence
Distraction can wear a lot of disguises—our jobs, our children, our partners, our phones. Sometimes it’s just the laundry or the dishes. Sometimes it’s researching a fourteenth-century poet because you know you heard that line somewhere.
And sometimes it’s perfectionism pretending to be productivity.
Your Invitation
Instead of noticing what pulls you away from writing... Notice what pulls you toward it. Write about:
The last time you completely lost track of time.
Your favorite time of day to write and why.
One habit that’s quietly stealing your attention.
One tiny ritual that might help you return to the page.
Then complete that ritual—not a big one, just one small step towards the page.
4. Apprehension - The Threshold of Courage
Fear is possibly one of the best writers on the planet. It imagines endings that haven’t happened yet—all day long. It invents conversations no one has had—or haven’t had yet, as it tells us. And it somehow convinces us that telling the truth is more dangerous than spending another decade avoiding it.
We’ve all met this threshold.
Your Invitation
Instead of trying to silence your fear... Invite it to speak. Write about:
What scares you most about writing this book?
What makes your heart hurt?
Which book changed your life because someone else told the truth?
When was the last time you shared your story?
Finish this sentence:
The sentence I’ve been avoiding begins with...
Then write it. Even if you delete it tomorrow.
5. Procrastination - The Threshold of Commitment
Oh procrastination—you’re like addiction turned inside out, but instead of telling us to do more, work more, try more, you demand less, less, less:
“I’ll start after summer.”
“After work settles down.”
“After the kids are older.”
“After I feel more confident.”
But confidence doesn’t show up on its own; confidence requires that we go out and just do it (sorry, Nike - don’t sue us).
Your Invitation
Imagine you’ve already begun. Not finished. Just begun. Then write.
What is your biggest dream as a writer?
If your book existed, how might it change someone else’s life?
What’s actually been stopping you?
What are you willing to write now?
Finish this sentence:
Today, I begin by...
Then keep your promise.
Your Writing Practice
Every time you catch yourself saying, “I’ll write later...” Pause.
Put your hand on your heart. Take one breath. And ask yourself,
Which Creative Threshold am I standing in front of right now?
Don’t force the answer. Just notice it. Sometimes awareness is enough to open the door.
Our Creative Wish for You
May your Creative Threshold become a doorway instead of a wall. May you remember that every writer you’ve ever admired stood exactly where you’re standing now. May you trust that the threshold has appeared because you are finally ready to cross it.
Go write now.
Always, always. Keep creating.
Kristen + the Rise Literary Team
What You Might Have Missed:
Author Alchemy is the course we all need!
Are you tired of dreaming of being a writer but are now ready to become one? Whether you’re looking to write fiction, nonfiction, memoir, or poetry, Author Alchemy is about understanding who you are as a writer and who you can become as an author.
What Kind of Writer are You Quiz
What kind of writer are you? We launched a free quiz (with writing prompts) this summer to help you find your writing archetype and break through your writing hurdles.
We are always here if you are ready to write your book - from publishing workshops to inspired publishing, so reach out to us!
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