“Writing is easy. All you do is stare at a blank piece of paper until drops of blood form on your forehead.” – Usually attributed to Gene Fowler, journalist and screenwriter.

Fowler died in 1960, so he didn’t have a chance to update to “All you do is stare at a blank computer screen…”

When (not if) you get stuck, the last thing you should do is to stare at a blank anything. Nothing will sap your energy and confidence more quickly.

Here are 10 things you can try instead.

1. Brainstorm a list. List all the possible topics you could write about, from the trivial to the profound. Brainstorming doesn’t allow for self-censorship. If it pops into your head, write it down. Really foolish ideas sometimes lead to really good ideas.

2. Freewrite. Set a timer for three or five minutes, and write nonstop. Never cross out or delete. If your mind goes blank, rewrite the same thing until something else occurs to you. You’ll probably get an idea or two flowing. You may even write one sentence or phrase that gets into your first draft. If you don’t, hey, you’ve spent only three minutes, and now your screen isn’t blank.

3. Go for a walk. This is my personal favorite. If possible, I go outdoors; if not, I pace the hallways. The very act of getting away from that pesky blank screen and moving my body makes the juices flow.

4. Go to where the work is going on. Take a walk to wherever employees are working with clients, patrons, patients, learners. If your organization doesn’t provide direct service, get to the closest direct-service organization or walk down the hall to a colleague who has lately visited one. Take notes.

5. Tap your outrage. This tip is not only for those in advocacy organizations. Most of us in nonprofit organizations or service businesses harbor a deep well of outrage about the state of healthcare or the unmet needs of inner-city youth or whatever. Use it! Nothing inspires vivid writing like righteous anger (even though you may have to tone it down later).

6. Remember last week. In front of a computer or with a pen in your hand, go through the events of the past week until you get to one that evokes a smile or a giggle, a frown or a grimace. Write about the event that brought on the emotional reaction, and then write about why it matters.

7. Make a change. If you usually draft on the computer, use pencil and paper. If you usually draft with a pen on a legal pad, write with a felt-tip marker on unlined paper, or go to the computer. Some people do well with scrap paper, because they feel they’re not wasting anything.

8. Talk to yourself. Some people don’t know what they think until they hear themselves saying it. If you’re one of them, close the door and talk to yourself. Use a recording device if it makes you feel less self-conscious.

9. Talk with someone else. Ask a colleague to bounce ideas around for 15 minutes. Don’t tell him you’re after newsletter ideas. Talk about how the work is going. What’s working and what isn’t? What stirs his pride? What makes him mad?

10. Identify your biggest challenge. Think about the most difficult situation your organization has lately faced. If it’s in the past, jot some notes about how you tackled it and whether the result was a resounding success or a crashing failure. Either can make a great story, because the point is not whether you won or lost but what you learned. If it’s a current challenge, say what it is, write about what you’re thinking of doing, and ask your readers what they would do.

I guarantee that all 10 of these techniques are better than staring at a blank screen. But they don’t all work for everyone. Try the one that sounds most appealing, see how it works, and let me know. If that one doesn’t work for you, try another.

An 11th possibility: Call on Jan. I ghostwrite a lot of my clients’ communications. It takes just 15-20 minutes of your time and, since it doesn’t take me anywhere near as long as it would take you to write an e-letter or a column, it’s surprisingly affordable.