To Smithereens!

Writer's block is a common enough topic for discussion. I apologize in advance for anything of a cliche nature. I wish to draw attention to something often missed. 

Let us examine the phrase. I think the first word is straight forward enough. The writers in question are always tragically heroic, sometimes brilliant, and never given to exaggeration. The second word, on the other hand, is unfortunately chosen. What is a block? 

A) a fair to middling rectangular prism of some substance 

B) a rather ineffectual synonym for "parry" 

C) a french-canadian political party with a k attached. Alas, even the k cannot mask its true nature. But that is another story.

Obviously, none of these meanings are quite adequate to describe the deadly serious nature of writer's "block". They ignore the impenetrable fog of dense jungle, the frightening emptiness of vast and uncrossable deserts, the frigid isolation of deep space, all of which approximate the yawning chasm between pen and paper. I propose a rather stronger word:

Blockade.

Definition: a concerted effort to isolate a certain group of people from something of value to them. 

Friends, we are talking about acts of war. We are talking about all out seige. We are talking about nations. Doesn't it feel like myriad forces are conspiring against you? Like some superpower's navy has crammed the ports - the essential harbours for Ideas - so full of cannons that even doughty ol' Inspiration runs up the white flag? I am sure you will agree that "blockade" is a better term than "block". Even its greater length suggests less frequent usage: deliberation is exercised before employing so weighty a word. 

This new word's connotations also provide us with a mindset useful for returning us to our natural state of industrious scribbling. This is war. In the case of a rectangular prism, one might approach writer's block as a trivial nuisance to be hefted idly or turned over and over dispassionately. But passion is the key. Don't just escape writer's "block" - break the blockade! Burst free! Prime the guns! Blast 'em to smithereens! The longer you're trapped, the harder it is.  

PS I suggest a healthy dose of "The Medallion Calls" by Klaus Badelt for the extra-beleaguered.