How do you cope with a sudden loss of motivation?

[MOURN.]

Brooooooo. This shit's been happening so frequently and it actually makes me want to screech at the moon—I'll just be in the middle of a response for one of my roleplays, and suddenly, I don't feel motivated in the slightest to finish it. Like, all of my energy is...depleted within a few seconds, or less, and it does take me by surprise. I'm on a roll the first few minutes of typing, and then I fall on my ass for no reason.

What makes this worse is that even after a few days, I still can't bring myself to actually sit down and finish the response, and it'll be sitting in my drafts for a few weeks. I love each and every one of my roleplay partners, to say that they give me amazing responses to respond to is a goddamn understatement—if any of you are currently reading this, I love you and I'm really sorry.

It's almost like my mind is partially blank, and I know it's alright to pace yourself, but I hate to make people wait for weeks and months because I'm struggling to pull myself out of a slump. I really despise making empty promises as well, like—"Hey, I'll have a response out by tonight"...and then I still haven't pulled myself out of the slump within a few hours, I don't get the reply out to them when I said I would, and then my anxiety is through the fucking heavens because I didn't give them what I personally promised and now I just like, actually lied. I don't really want to rush myself either, because the quality of my responses does matter.

How about you? What do you do when you experience a loss of motivation for absolutely no reason? I need to shower myself with good coping mechanisms, and maybe even writing exercises so that I will be less brain-dead within these sad times of motivation loss. (*´-`)

 

[Elle Joyner]

We all struggle with writers block or a lack of motivation. It's perfectly normal, if not frustrating. A lot of people toss out things like 'writers block isn't real, ignore it' or 'just write anyway' but I personally find that advice horribly unhelpful. Maybe it's true, but it's like telling someone their illness is all in their mind - it doesn't make the symptoms go away. It doesn't quell the problem.

My advice is twofold. Firstly, step away. Take ten minutes to do something else. Staring at the problem and allowing yourself to sink deeper into it is only going to exacerbate the issue... Sometimes just giving your brain time to catch up is enough to shake the funk. Sometimes it isn't. But a watched pot never boils, ya know?

The second bit of advice is to find something else to write before you try to return to the post. A writing prompt, a goofy flash fiction... Anything to boost creativity without the pressure. Reading also occasionally works for me. I try to pick a genre similar to what I'm writing. Watching a movie or show falls under the same idea. Anything to give a little spark to your imagination.

And as a bonus - if you're in a time crunch, stupid as this sounds, try flicking your eyes back and forth (right to left) for a few seconds. This is scientifically proven to stimulate the connection between your creative part of your brain and the logical part. Can help inspire creativity!!

 

[Kuno]

Man...I am definitely in the same boat as you. I can't remember the last time I have ever just sat down and written out a reply to a roleplay in one swell swoop. I always get bored and lose steam halfway through. It's inevitable.

I'll tell you what's helped me. One of the things I tend to do now is listen to music whenever I'm writing a post. Doesn't matter if it's rp-theme related or not - just whatever fills my head with bg noise so I don't get distracted from my writing. It helps me not to focus on how long I've been sitting at the laptop typing out a post, as well as drowning out any other shenanigans going on in the background. Does it always work 100%? No. But it does help tremendously...at least for me.

I agree with Elle about taking a break. No need to keep pushing on relentlessly if all you're doing is driving up against a wall. Sometimes something as simple as just going to grab something to eat and coming right back is enough to reinvigorate the ol' brain. My only caution is not to step away for too long. I've fallen into that trap before. I end up losing the muse and not returning to the post until days later xD

Why not use your rp partners for help? We've all been stuck in a rut before. At times, all we really need is another person to bounce ideas off of, and your rp partners can provide. Try and message them your thoughts about what you're writing. You may find your motivation comes back quicker than normal when there's someone there in the wings hyping you up :^)

tl;dr: music, many snacks, annoy your skrub partners

 

[Maggie]

Lethargy. Drains. Everything I have inside. But how I get rid of it? I go do fun things with people I like, or just chill and read/ write my own things. Blare music in my ears, take a walk, punch a tree in the face. You know, typical stuff. But lately I'm just one lethargic bastard allllll the time. Maybe after I start my job it'll go away..

 

[Loveless]

I've been dealing with this lately, burned myself out with a very demanding group RP and now I'm struggling to get back on the pace.

For me, it helps to do something I truly enjoy before, in-between or during the replies. Youtube, if you don't let it consume your day, it's a good thing to do, maybe watch an old stream (I like GTLive a lot) maybe a funny video like a reddit compilation, maybe just animal videos, but something that's pleasurable to watch and will momentarily take your mind out of it. I also put vocaloid music in the background starting by the one I've assigned as the character's theme song if I did assign them such a thing, otherwise I just go with a close-ish feel to what I'm doing. Most people get too distracted with song that have lyrics... I don't, well, maybe in the start, but eventually, I'll be so into the thing I'm writing that I'll have stopped singing along, and singing at the beginning will have helped me relax and get in the mood.

Sometimes you're so stressed these won't work, so you can go play a game that you haven't in a while and that you really like. If you're good at it, it will give you that rush of 'I DID THIS, I'M AWESOME!' and it really helps getting out of a dump. A shower helps too, I get under the showerhead and suddenly I'm just thinking of how to reply to everything like really fast, and get back with this drive to do things.

Other thing I really like is doing art, but art from scratch is something that takes a lot of effort, so I opened a graphics/picture edit shop right here on Iwaku. Hasn't been that full of requests, but when they come it's like really helpful to do something art-related that I love and then use that extra bit of energy towards a reply. Works with other replies too, like something new you're dying to do? Reply to that one first, then use the rush of accomplishment to do the thing you've been stuck at.
There are a couple discord servers where we've installed Tupperbox too, which is a bot that lets you make profiles to your account and reply with them. Long story short, casual RPs, just for fun are something that has been helping me a bunch lately after the burnout. At the same time that I'm doing some really grinding task, I do these to keep the creative juices and feelings of satisfaction and fun flowing.

Okay but what if you've tried all of those and you're still stuck?
Well, then It's time to push through it. One thing that gives me strength is stubbornness or even defiance. 'I WANT to do this thing, so I SHALL do this thing TODAY!', 'YOU'RE DOUBTING ME?? I'M GONNA PROVE YOU WRONG!'. Sometimes you gotta be petty, you gotta put your foot down and say 'NO, I MAKE THE RULES! NOT YOU!'
Have something new you're dying to post for BUT the strategy of using the accomplishment energy didn't work? Throw a bait. Declare to yourself that you can't do the new thing until you get X, Y or Z done. If it won't be naturally, then it shall be by force.

Will you hate the process? Probably. Will you hate the writing? Maybe, most likely. But, sometimes you're so desperate that you gotta do something, anything just to move again, just to take a step forward. It's... not ideal, but it's what I do when I've run out of options and in all honesty? I'll hate it at first, but when I come back to it later, after I've cooled down I'll often be unable to pinpoint what it is that I hated about it. Because, it's not a bad post (I'm a perfectionist, I don't do things half-assed, ever), maybe it's not a super inspired masterpiece, but the problem wasn't the work itself, it was having to grind to get it done...

But, well it's life, even if you work with what you like, there will always be something you have to get done that you're hating. Yes, this is a hobby for fun. But even that, sometimes it's like you... forget why you really liked something until you do it again. It happens to me a lot at least... I never wish it to get to this point, BUT, there are people waiting and I'd hate to leave them hanging for too long unless it's a very serious problem.

A little force once in a while to get moving again isn't bad per se, as long as you don't wear yourself too thin. If you need a one-month break, take that break and don't be ashamed of it, people will absolutely understand. This should be the biggest takeaway from this, IMO.

((Also I'm totally trying to reply to something I haven't in months now on a different website so, wish me luck >w< In a way, this post was also to myself XD))

 

[The Mood is Write]

Lawd.

Yeah, I've been there. Too often.

There are several methods that you can go for to try to get past it, and I'll list each one I'm aware of for ya.

Do something else.
This one is easiest. Literally do something that isn't writing. Do it for five to ten minutes on a timer, and then take another look.

Can you write now? Hopefully, but if not, you still have more options!

Write something else.
Start work on another post. Write something for a prompt. Write a character bio as though someone wants to draw your character. Write a rant, even!

Then, come back to what you were writing before and try again.

Hiatus time.
Take a few weeks and don't EVEN think about your RPs. Force yourself to think about other things instead. You'll feel lost for a bit, trying to remember what other hobbies you have, but it could help a lot.

After that, come back in, excited to write! This works best if you actually succeed at not letting yourself think about the RPs.

Give up.
No, I don't mean give up on your stories or RPs or anything like that. I mean give up on making your post good. Don't say "let's do this!", say "fuck it!" and write shittily.

Don't get it right, get it written.

You can edit it once it's written, but giving up on quality can do some great stuff for your ability to be creative.

Hype session time.
Start talking to your partner. Fling memes and 'what-ifs' at them, and ask silly questions. Get your mind on the RP in a way that makes you excited to do it.

Timers and physical activity.
Write for ten minutes, stand up and move for five, then write again. You can vary the writing and break times, but moving your body increases circulation, increases brain oxygen, increases ability to think. Plus, it gets you away from harsh monitor light!

Change your theme.
Graphical theme, I mean. If you're on a light mode, switch to dark, and if you're dark, go to light, but I suggest avoiding using pure-black-and-white, as those can cause eye-strain that might be hard to notice until you have old person eyes (like mine). Discomfort in the eyes is going to distract you, even if you don't realize it.

BLINK, motherfucker, BLINK.
Seriously, rehydrate them orbs. Stop writing, lean back, and just blink a few times. Shake out your hands a little, too. Can't hurt. Loosen up. Also drink some damn water and eat something if you haven't.

 

[VengefulPeanut]

Everybody has offered really good advice so I'll just offer this: shower time. Seriously, half of my RP ideas/inspirations come to me in the shower while listening to some fitting music. I'm fully convinced my girlfriend thinks I'm some sort of a serial killer as a consequence but the idea of being in a relaxing environment and just letting your brain wander is really helpful for me. It might help you too. Doesn't even have to be the shower. Just get yourself into a space where your ideas can flow freely and your brain can wander. You might even come up with something you'd never considered before which will fling you full force back to the RP.

 

[Sorrelfur]

One way I've found to get my muse back is just step back from my roleplays and honestly have a me day. Just watch some of my favorite movies, read some of my favorite books or fanfics, just give my head some space to clear itself. Sometimes you get so deep into role-playing that you burn yourself out it happens to the best of us and there's nothing wrong with that.

Another thing I found helpful was talking to some of my longterm rp friends about my loss of muse, it's helpful to hear what they do to restart their muse.

 

[Lisianthus]

For me, whenever I find it hard to write, I would stop. And put it aside, but not exactly. I just won't stare at the blank screen. I feel like, it'll make me feel more demotivated. Instead, I'll just let the response play in my mind while I do something else. Like, really imagine their actions, their words, their intonations. Not really focusing on it, but just let it play in the background. That usually helps me to formulate a response in which I'll have ideas to write for.
Sometimes though, I force myself. It doesn't matter if it's short. (Min of 6-7 lines at least) or if you feel that your writing is crappy. As long as you write, I think you'll get the groove of it back.
The other is, formulate the best first sentence you can. This is an advice from my mother and I find that it works, for me at least. Look back at your first sentence. How did you write it? Did it flow well enough with the rest? Is it flowing well enough on its own? The tempo of your first sentence can set the tempo for the rest of your writing. If it's a little disjointed, it can affect the others.