How To Stop A Monday Mourning

Got writer's block?

I've had writer's block for a little while, now. Looking online, I saw a bunch of stuff about what to do when you have writer's block, such as;
1.) Getting/ Downloading certain writing apps or going to certain websites
2.) Looking at prompts
3.) Going for a walk
4.) Stepping away from your work
5.) Thinking about what could go wrong/ right/ change the story dramatically and making it happen
6.) Take your mind off of it
7.) Draw/ Colour/ Write down general stuff
8.) Read
9.) Clean up
10.) Take time to take care of yourself

These ideas are more extensive online, this is just the bare basic idea of each of the ones I've, personally, tried. For me, none of these things have really worked. At best, they've unclogged my writer's drain for a day before I go back to being totally stumped, usually deleting what little I did write because I didn't like it due to the fact it felt forced compared to the rest of the chapter/ story.
Having writer's block sucks. Especially if you've had it for a while. Some of the things in the list above may just help you better than they did me. If they do, or if you want more information on them, drop me a comment or message asking for an extensive list and I'll make it the next update. However, if you are anything like me, that list will just not work, no matter how many times you try.
From experience, I've found that my own writing can't be stopped because my room is messy, or I've been in the same space for too long, or...anything, really. When I want to write, I write. I write equally as well in an untidy room as I do in a tidy one. I can also stay in the same spot for hours on end, returning to that spot every day, and still continue to write. The only thing that truly stops my writing is when I have too many ideas. Prompts won't help with that, they'll just give me more! I can write half a one-shot, have three ideas left, and have no idea how to incorporate them because, no matter how I write them, they just don't...fit. But, I've found my solution. My problem?

Thinking too much.

You will always have to go back over and reread your writing. You will get bored of it, trust me. It will sound dull and repetitive. One thing to remember is that a reader doesn't have the same issue, as they're reading your work for the first time. So, that's one intrusive thought out of the way.
Another is the idea of there being too much. A piece of writing can never, really, be too long. If people enjoy your work, they should be happy to read it all. If, like me, you update infrequently, a longer piece would be much more appreciated than a mere 500 words. The only, real, problem is if you update every day and manage to reach 10,000 words with each new addition. Then, you're giving your readers too much to read at once, I feel. Some like the anticipation of having to wait for another chapter, so, updating so much so frequently can make them fall behind and not get to experience that sensation. Personally, I try (I swear I do try) to update whatever I'm working on at least once a weak, with my word goal being at least 1,500, and no more than 3,000. This is for my general books. For one-shots, the word count can be anywhere between 1,500 and 6,000, just because I want to keep most one-shots to one chapter, if I can. Of course, I also like cliffhangers and such, so, if the one-shot does get spread across multiple chapters (which is more often than I like), I tend to keep it at around 5 chapters and no more. So, another thought organised.
The last thing that keeps me from writing, and the one that affects me the most, is my mood. It is incredibly rare that I genuinely want to sit down and write something for a long period of time. Usually, I sit down for 5-20 minutes and type something out very quickly on my phone to either publish the next day or leave unpublished for a few weeks before I decide to tinker with it again. On the occasions that I do want to sit down and write, I can sit for 2-4 hours and write to my heart's content, and I've never understood why.
Before I explain why, I want you to consider something.
Is music an important aspect of your life? Do you listen to it often? Would you be completely lost if you suddenly had to live without it?
If you answered "yes" to 2/3 of those questions, we are very similar people. Music is important to me, the most important thing in the world. I listen to it every. Single. Day. I physically cannot leave my house without my phone decently charged and my earphones, it's impossible. I also listen to a very wide variety of music, so much so that my sister wants to get me a 1 terabyte pen drive just to accommodate for all the music I listen to as my phone can only hold around 30 songs at a time, which simply isn't enough for me (I don't like having apps that play my music, such as Spotify, as I also listen to a lot of YouTube-produced music that isn't available there). So, music is an extremely important thing to me, it can totally change my mood.
When writing, for me to think that what I've done is any good, I have to be in a calm state where I'm literally writing as I think (as I am right now) so I can go back to edit later as necessary. Usually, when writing in this state, there is vert little that I edit that isn't a spelling or grammar mistake, meaning that it is the ultimate state for me to write in. However, I also have two - very different - calm states. One being where I'm simply calm and collected, where I do work or relax. The other being when I am calmly creative.
This "calmly creative" side to me is exactly what it says on the tin. I am totally calm and relaxed, but I want to create. In this state, I tend to draw, write, knit, nap, or read. To put it basically, I go back to being how I was as a very young child, maybe about 5/6, where I spent a lot of my time doing those activities. While in this state, I feel no pressure or anxious about what I'm doing, I simply enjoy doing it.
"What does this have to do with music?" I hear you type in the comments as you get bored.
Well, dear reader...for me, it had a lot to do with music.
A while ago, I found a few people on YouTube who like to make videos that have "lophee hiphop" music with simple, calm pictures as the background. Sometimes, the music is simply a melody of sorts that slowly changes and shifts. Sometimes, the melody may have a few repeating words among the chords. Sometimes, the melody has quiet singing all the way through it. I can't fully describe it, but, I suggest you play the video above if you're curious.
The point is, this music is incredibly calming. It puts me in the mood for writing as it puts me in that calm-creative state. It's generally quiet, so it's good to have on as background noise. The background often stays the same, meaning that there's nothing to watch and distract you. Overall, it's incredible, and one of my favourite things to listen to.
So, now you may be thinking: "Great! Lophee hiphop sounds amazing! But...where do I find it? Who must I type in?"
Luckily, I have a list of lophee hiphop and lophee hiphop-like music that I listen to. On YouTube, I have an account called Aqua's Music that has all of these people on. I'll link to it at the very bottom of this in case you're curious as to what music I listen to. But, if not, fear not! I'll simply list the channels and leave my opinions under each name;
Aviencloud
More dance-y than calm, but, good to have on if it's quite quiet. The background does have a few effects on, sometimes, which may attract your attention from time to time. Does both long videos (1 hour) and short (a few minutes), so, it has a good range.
Chilled Cow
My personal favourite. Usually quite relaxed and calm with longer videos of about an hour. Videos usually consist of background music with some words/ phrases here and there. Some do have lyrics later on in the video. Good to have on quietly while you work on stuff as the words can brush past you, it's quite nice. If you do pay attention to what is being sang at some points, it can really make you think.
Cloudx Music
Has a little more beat, I feel, but is still a very calm, nice thing to have on while you work. They have done a "glitch hop gaming music" video which is more upbeat and complex, I feel. Do both long and short videos.
Fantastic Music
Seems to focus more on incorporating weather into their mixes, adding sound effects of rain behind the music at times. Makes for a really calming atmosphere when put on in the background. Personally, I feel that the volume of this one is completely up to the person who's listening as I sometimes like it quiet, then like it loud the next time I listen. The backgrounds also seem to depict more complex scenes while still keeping the calm effect.
Lophee
Very simple, generally white, backgrounds. All videos appear to be 10 minutes long, and the titles to each video are lines that very much link to the music. Again, I feel that the volume is completely up to the listener on this one, as some of the music can have a lot of vocals (not necessarily lyrics, just vocals) in it, which may be off-putting to some.
Syros
My other personal favourite. The titles for these ones end up being a line that is said while the music plays. Usually very calm, often has people having small conversations somewhere within the music that consist of maybe a few lines at a time. From what I've noticed, the conversations tend to tell some type of story, which is a nice feature to pay attention to while you have your head back and are thinking. Music tends to cycle through notes while another track plays and changes over the top, which prevents it from being too repetitive and becoming annoying/ distracting.

If you have writer's block, and are a huge fan of music as a whole, I very much recommend having a listen to some of these. At the very least, I would say that you should listen to Syros if you like beats, and Fantastic Music if you like weather sounds. Another, very good, place to go for some background noise is a sound called ambient mixer. It has a lot of different background noises for you to listen to. You can hang out in the Hogwarts Common Rooms and pretend you're doing an assignment. Chill with the Winchester's and pretend it's research. Hang out with Sherlock and John at 221B Baker Street and feel like you're between cases. Or simply make your own mix to listen to while you tap away. For this one, I very much like hanging around in Baker Street as it's very calm. The sound of John at his laptop makes for good company, and I very easily get lost in my writing while I have it playing.

So, there you go! An extensive explanation about what to do, musically, if you have writer's block! You never know, you might just need something calm playing!

Aqua's Music: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-PdZz1d1MBfYOLGg4gYeCw