August 18, 2025 by D. Paul Graham

Ever curious and always amused by the quirks of life, join D. Paul Graham each Monday for more M5T pondering.

**“Pearls” photo by D. Paul Graham, The Sanctuary, Kiawah Island 2025**

It’s nearly midnight on the West Coast. After a week of shooting the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance, my memory cards have been downloaded, and now I find myself staring at blank computer screen like it’s daring me to flinch first. Starts, stops, and a graveyard of half-sentences later, I realized writers block could win and I might miss my first Monday 5 Things in almost 14 years. Then it dawned on me. If I can’t write around the block, why not write through it and write about the very thing blocking me? And with a few hours to spare, this morning’s M5T discusses the shadowy foe known as writer’s block. I win.

1. A BLANK SCREEN IS LOUDER THAN YOU THINK. A blank screen doesn’t just sit there. It looms, like the Pacific fog rolling over Cannery Row. It’s louder than the high pitched ke-ke-ke of seagulls or the menacing barking of sea lions protecting their territory down on Fisherman’s Wharf. The longer you stare at the screen, the more it whispers like a Pebble Beach Concours judge, mocking, taunting you with “weren’t you going to restore that story to perfection? Charming attempt.” And the cursor that isn’t moving? It’s like a full-course yellow flag at Laguna Seca, reminding you that nothing changes without a green flag.

2. RED BULL WON’T WRITE FOR YOU. Ah yes, Red Bull. Sugar-free of course. My faithful liquid assistant of all things Monday. You convince yourself that a second 20-ounce can of elixir will open the floodgates of genius. But all it opens is your browser to Google things like “jellyfish live cam Monterey Bay Aquarium” or “how to be productive while mesmerized by otters.” By can three, you’re vibrating at a frequency only dogs can hear, and your writing consists of exactly one brilliant metaphor followed by thirty-seven semi-coherent parentheticals.

3. PERFECTION IS THE EASEL THAT REFUSES YOUR FIRST BRUSH STROKE. The paralysis sets in because you’re chasing flawless sentences before you’ve even typed a flawed one. Perfection is like a Carmel-by-the-Sea gallery owner in a linen jacket, tilting their head at your work and murmuring, “Interesting, but is it coastal enough?” Perfection sits across from you like an impeccably groomed poodle on Ocean Avenue, smug and unblinking. Imperfection is the toll you pay to stroll past the fairytale cottages toward brilliance.

4. PROCRASTINATION BECOMES RESEARCH. When the words won’t come, suddenly everything along 17-Mile Drive feels worthy of consideration. You start thinking that the Spanish Bay’s bagpiper has something profound to teach you about rhythm. You wonder if Fanshell Beach Overlook’s crashing waves could be a metaphor for “plot tension”. The Lone Cypress itself becomes a philosophical metaphor for resilience that has something to say about your M5T. You go onto Realtor.com and convince yourself that researching the prices of Pebble Beach mansions is a good use of time. Perhaps, as you forgo another Red Bull, you pour yourself a glass of a good California red. Just like the movie Sideways, the detours are the story, and procrastination isn’t failure. It’s just a different route.

5. WRITER’S BLOCK IS JUST FEAR OF SITTING IN A SUPERCAR WITHOUT THE KEYS. At its core, writer’s block isn’t about running out of ideas. It’s about being petrified that the ones you do have won’t perform once they’re on the road. It’s like being handed the chance to drive an F1 car, gripping the wheel and thinking, “What if I can’t even get it out of the pits?” Or staring at a $20 million Bugatti Brouillard convinced your words will sound more like a tired Corolla than a 1,578 horsepower W16 powerhouse of an engine. The carbon-fiber cockpit might feel thrilling, but hesitation keeps you parked. The cure is brutally simple. Fire up the engine, lurch through that clunky first lap of a sentence, and trust the rest will find grip and accept that even a shaky out-lap is better than never leaving the garage.

Here’s to a week of meeting your blocks, whether they’re made of words, work, or life itself, not with dread, but head on and with curiosity.

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Paul worked through his writers block to finish this M5T.

Please share this with someone you think would like to step-up their Mondays. Thank you!

You can reach Paul by email at dpg@imagegraham.com

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