Goodreads asked Elinor Lipman:

How do you deal with writer’s block?

Elinor Lipman I try not to recognize a block. I aim to write 500 words a day, minimum. I've been known to tie myself to the chair (not with rope, with a scarf, I hasten to add) which keeps me from jumping up and (quite often) looking up recipes or emptying the dishwasher. I read something by Fay Weldon once that was very helpful: if the story is stalled, it's not you--it's the story. Something's missing. It needs something else. Add a character! Add a plot line. That's been a big help.

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