Good morning/afternoon/evening ladies and gentlemen, and welcome to Open Link Night 108 … smiles.

Have you ever had the sensation of being stuck; stuck in your job, in your life, in your writing? Likely as not you have – it happens to us all at some point in our lives, and for many of us it will happen more than once. If that is where you’re at right now, rest assured that you are not alone.

Anyone who is kind enough to read my poetry blog will have noticed that over recent months the frequency of posts has been greatly reduced. Even when it’s been my turn at the bar, I’ve sometimes struggled to write anything at all. Some writers like to get all poetic about this and give it a name; we call it writer’s block. Others don’t believe in it at all.

There are some fairly common causes that can contribute to an apparent inability to write anything. In one of my favourite books on creativity – Rumors of Water – author L.L. Barkat gives several reasons why a writer might be finding it hard to write, and also makes suggestions about how to overcome these hurdles.

As I look at the times when I’ve found it hard to write, the cause has usually been one of three problems:

i) Lack of inspiration; I simply don’t feel like I have anything to write about. According to Barkat, the cure for this is to play more, get out more or try something new. “Writing begins with living,” she says.

ii) Idealism; sometimes I simply don’t want to take a risk. I think I have a good – even a great – idea, and I don’t want to waste it by writing badly. The result – I don’t write at all.

iii) Lack of belief in my ability; this one is connected to the previous problem. Sometimes I think that there is simply no way that I will ever be able to do justice to an idea or prompt, whether it is one of my own, or one that someone else has given. Again, the result is that I end up not writing.

Here at the dVerse Pub, Brian and Claudia, ably assisted by all the other bar-tenders, are building a community where we encourage each other to write the poems that each of us has inside. One way to do that is by sharing our work with each other – and that’s what Open Link Night is about.

Another way we can encourage and support each other is by sharing our experience of overcoming the obstacles we have experienced in our journeys as poets/writers. So let me ask you, have you ever experienced writers’ block and, if you have, what helped you to overcome it?

My name is Tony Maude, and it’s my pleasure to be your host today. For anyone who is new here – Welcome. It’s great to see you … smiles – here’s how Open Link Night works:

• Write a poem and post it to your webpage.
• Click on the Mr. Linky button below and enter your name and direct url/web address to your poem; one poem per person please.
• There you will also find the list of those participating this week. You might want to refresh this occasionally or check back in as there are people joining over the next 33 hours.
• If it’s your first time here, please leave a comment to say so. That makes it much easier for us to find you and encourage you by visiting your site.
• Read other poets who have linked. Let them know what you thought, how their poem moved you, what caught your attention etc. The not-so-secret formula to receiving more visits and comments on your blog is to read and comment on other people’s poems. Please don’t forget to return the favour of those who have visited and commented on your work.
• Encourage others to participate through social media, promote both your own work and others.
• Have fun meeting and engaging with your fellow poets.