26. Writer’s Block and Your Brain: How Your Processing Style Shapes Creativity

About this episode

🎙 Episode 26 Writer’s Block and Your Brain: How Your Processing Style Shapes Creativity

Why does writing advice work brilliantly for some writers… and completely fall flat for others?

In this episode of Write the Darn Book, we’re diving into a powerful reframe for writer’s block — one that has nothing to do with discipline, talent, or motivation.

Instead, it has everything to do with how your brain processes creativity.

If you’ve ever:

• Felt like the words were “in there” but just out of reach

• Tried outlining, free-writing, visualising, or pushing through — and none of it quite fit

• Wondered why writing feels harder than it should

This episode will help you understand what’s really happening beneath the surface.

 

What You’ll Learn in This Episode

In today’s conversation, Maddison explores:

• What NLP modalities are (and why they matter for writers)

• The four primary sensory processing >

  • Visual – writing through imagery

  • Auditory – writing through voice and sound

  • Kinaesthetic – writing through sensation and emotion

  • Auditory Digital – writing through internal language and structure

• Why friction in your writing process is feedback — not failure

• How your dominant modality shapes your entry point into story

• The role of secondary modalities (and how they support flow)

• Why writer’s block is often a processing mismatch rather than a discipline problem

You’ll walk away with practical, modality-specific shifts you can apply immediately to reduce resistance and create momentum.

 

Writer’s Block Is Often a Wiring Issue

One of the most important reframes in this episode:

Writer’s block is often not about motivation.

It’s about sensory processing.

When you try to write through a channel that isn’t your strongest, friction increases. That friction can show up as:

• Procrastination

• Overthinking

• Mental fog

• Emotional shutdown

• Feeling scattered or stuck

Creative flow tends to return when you enter your story through the sensory doorway that feels most natural to you.

 

Discover Your Dominant Modality

Not sure which modality leads for you?

Ask yourself:

• Do you see scenes first? (Visual)

• Do you hear dialogue or narrative voice? (Auditory)

• Do you feel the emotional core of the scene in your body? (Kinaesthetic)

• Do you think in structured internal language about plot and logic? (Auditory Digital)

You use all four modalities — but most writers have one dominant channel supported by a strong secondary channel.

Understanding your blend allows you to create more deliberately, instead of accidentally.

You can also take Maddison’s free Writing Modalities Quiz here:
👉 maddisonmichaels.com/quiz

 

What to Do With This Insight

Once you identify your dominant modality:

• Visual writers: Clarify the image before demanding words.

• Auditory writers: Let voice and dialogue lead.

• Kinaesthetic writers: Ground your body and connect to emotional truth first.

• Auditory Digital writers: Create enough structure to feel steady before drafting.

You don’t need to become a different kind of writer.

You simply need to begin through the doorway that feels most aligned for you.

 

Coming Next

In the next episode, we go deeper.

It’s not just about which modality you use — it’s about how that modality is structured internally.

You’ll learn:

• Why some mental images inspire you while others intimidate you

• Why certain internal voices energise you while others undermine you

• How subtle internal shifts can change your creative state quickly

If this episode gave you clarity, the next one will give you tools.

  💗 Ready for Deeper Support?

If this conversation sparked something for you — if you’re ready to stop circling your book idea and start making real progress — Maddison offers one-to-one writing coaching for both fiction and non-fiction authors.

Together, you’ll:

• Build a clear roadmap for your book

• Strengthen structure and writing rhythm

• Work through the mindset blocks that pop up along the way

You do the writing. She walks beside you as your guide and accountability partner.

Book a Clarity Call here:
👉 maddisonmichaels.com/coaching

 

If this episode resonated, please consider leaving a five-star review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. Your review helps Write the Darn Book reach more writers who are ready to honour their stories and trust their creative process. 💗

 

Until next time — keep working with your wiring instead of against it… and let’s write the darn book.