Set limits. One of the most difficult parts of writing is figuring out what to write about. There's a universe of possibilities out there! Giving yourself artificial limits can help narrow the scope of your focus to something a little more manageable. One of my biggest struggles is figuring out which genre to write in, since I enjoy so many. But it's important to remind myself that at some point I need to focus on one until I actually finish something. There's always time to write that other genre later. Other people may need to set limits in terms of subject matter, characters, or twists and turns the plot can take.

Clarify objectives and priorities. Sometimes it can help to clarify what you're trying to achieve. Believe it or not, some people analyze a problem so much they get lost in the weeds and forget what the original objective was! It's always helpful to take a step back and ask yourself what your goals and priorities are with a piece of writing. Is it to get it published? Enter a contest? Get some feedback from people? HINT: all those things require you to actually finish the writing first, so the answer to "What is my objective?" is often, "Finish this piece of writing so I can..."

Remind yourself that nothing is perfect. Your work will never be 100% flawless. Many books, even professionally published ones, have a typo or two. And even if there aren't any technical problems, I guarantee that almost every author, if given an older piece of their writing, would want to change something about it, be it a subplot, a scene, or even a sentence that they feel could be improved upon. While there's nothing wrong with wanting to make your work the best it can be, perfect is the enemy of good (Voltaire originally coined this phrase as "better is the enemy of good"). In other words, don't let your quest for perfection stop you from ever finishing anything or reaching your goals.

Take small, iterative steps. If you're tackling a big project like a novel, sometimes breaking the process down into smaller steps you can revise a few times is helpful. For some authors, that might mean outlining a story a few times. For discovery writers, it might mean accepting the fact that there are going to be several drafts so they shouldn't sweat about the details or specific language in the first one. For me, I've found it helpful to experience the writing process (brainstorming, writing, revising, completing) as a whole to remind myself how much I enjoy the process and how satisfying it is to finish something. A short story or poem can be a great short-term project to get me back in that zone.

Change the number of options. Changing your number of options from all of the things to a more limited number can be extremely beneficial because it limits your scope of focus from going in a million different directions to only a few very specific directions. Used in this manner, it's essentially the same as setting limits described above. But there are also times where simply changing the calculus can help and considering more options can give you freedom too. If you've convinced yourself to write a private investigator mystery story, for example, you may find yourself stuck because you can't figure out a satisfying, unique take on a P.I. mystery story. So what if you changed the options to a mystery story about a private investigator OR a career criminal OR an ex-soldier? What if you changed your options so you're writing a mystery OR a romance OR a sci-fi epic? Use this technique carefully though; you don't want to give yourself so many options to consider that you end up paralyzing your creative decision making again!

Add or remove emotion. If you're not already pumped up about your writing, get pumped up about it. Figure out what you need to add to the story to get emotionally invested. If you have an emotional attachment to something, you're going to care more about writing it and finishing it. Alternately, it's entirely possible to care too much about what you're writing and be so close to it that you have a hard time working on it or putting it out in the world. In those cases, gaining some space and objectivity can help you look at it more for what it is (a single piece of your writing) than as this super important thing that you absolutely cannot fail at. You can always rewrite it later.

Talk about it. Sometimes it helps to just talk things through with a friend or fellow writer. This can take the form of talking about the actual thing you're trying to write and getting a second opinion ("I think you should do that!" or "I like that option best"), or it can be as simple as discussing your struggles with the process so they're out in the open and not something you're forced to struggle with just inside your head. My wife is a great person to talk to about my writing struggles because I'll go on and on about how frustrated I am with all the different things I'm trying to write. And eventually she'll just ask me, "Yeah, but when was the last time you actually finished something?" It's like getting splashed with a bucket of ice water (in a good way). People often having a hard time seeing the forest for the trees when it comes to their writing and it helps to get some perspective. In my case it's usually, "stop thinking about writing and start actually writing."

Make the best decision possible. At the end of the day, a decision needs to be made one way or another. But there comes a point where you need to simply make the best decision you can at the time. It may not be a perfect decision, but chances are it'll be one you can live with. If you've ever shopped for a car, or a computer, or another high dollar value item, chances are you've been through this process because you want to make sure the thing you're going to be buying and using for years is the right thing for you. You've agonized over the individual specs, compared multiple models, read countless reviews from other consumers, etc. (If you're one of those people that can just walk in and buy something without overthinking it, I don't know how you do it! ). But at some point, you've had to just make a decision otherwise you'd be visiting car lots or electronics stores for the rest of your life. Writing is the same way. Sometimes you just have to tell yourself that you've done enough soul searching and need to pick a path forward. Chances are it's going to be something you can live with.