Writer’s block – a condition guaranteed to drive writers to distraction or, worse, to open the games menu and play Solitaire in the vain hope thinking of nothing will persuade them to think of something and the novel, short story, poem or article will take off again.

Thankfully, it’s a condition that has befallen even the most famous: William Golding, Douglas Adams and Ian Rankin have all succumbed and recovered.

Take heart; it can be cured. Author N E David (or Nick to his friends) joined members of the Airedale Writers’ Circle to explain how. He suffered from the dreaded block some years ago, but by giving himself a tool kit to use, he was able to deal with it.

“Prepare to confront whatever it is you’re afraid of and then work out a plan,” he said. “The longer you run away from it, the harder you hit the wall mentally.”

At no time did he suggest it was easy, but instead stressed the importance of developing a positive mental attitude by looking at past work and accepting you’ve done it once so you can do it again.

Start to believe in yourself. Stop questioning whether your writing is good enough and stop looking for perfection. It does not have to be perfect, only the best it can be within a reasonable time scale. Let the first draft be awful; it can be edited later.

Acknowledge that however you feel, it will mean writing every day. Discipline yourself to do this. If you are looking for publication – traditional or self – keep in mind it is a job not a hobby. If, on the other hand, it is a hobby, then let it be enjoyable rather than a chore. Find a place where you’re comfortable and write. Leave the ironing, the cleaning and the decorating until later; they won’t go away.

Prepare yourself the night before by visualising what you intend to write the next day, and when the next day dawns, don’t let the mind wander. Turn off the games, pick up pen and paper or open up the laptop to the work in progress, and start.

Finally, focus. Focus – my agent’s favourite word. I can hear her saying it now as I write this: “Focus Lesley, focus.”

Mmm. I wonder if Nick has met my agent. They would get on well together.