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Unstuck: 101 Doorways Leading from the Blank Page to the Last Page
A Most Anticipated Book of 2026 from LitHub
“Ramona Ausubel has poured so much humor and wisdom and practically useful counsel into this extraordinary book, a guide for both writing and living.” —Karen Russell, author of The Antidote
Unstuck: 101 Doorways Leading from the Blank Page to the Last Page is about staying in love with your feeling excited, mischievous, productive, and hopeful—the opposite of being stuck.
Critically acclaimed, award-winning author and beloved teacher Ramona Ausubel offers 101 exercises that promise to welcome you back to the page again and again; to reinvigorate your process and help you see your writing through to the end. Full of personal stories and hard-earned wisdom of a veteran writer, Unstuck is written in the first person, human to human, writer to writer. Practical, clear, and welcoming, Unstuck offers immediately useable strategies for beginning, continuing, and finishing a piece of writing.
Organized into doorways and keys, Unstuck turns problems into possibilities, offers keys to put into use right now, all designed to lead the writer back to the art, not toward an outside idea or formula. With Ausubel’s steady, encouraging advice—find your doorway, unlock the lock, and get writing again.
“Ramona Ausubel has poured so much humor and wisdom and practically useful counsel into this extraordinary book, a guide for both writing and living.” —Karen Russell, author of The Antidote
Unstuck: 101 Doorways Leading from the Blank Page to the Last Page is about staying in love with your feeling excited, mischievous, productive, and hopeful—the opposite of being stuck.
Critically acclaimed, award-winning author and beloved teacher Ramona Ausubel offers 101 exercises that promise to welcome you back to the page again and again; to reinvigorate your process and help you see your writing through to the end. Full of personal stories and hard-earned wisdom of a veteran writer, Unstuck is written in the first person, human to human, writer to writer. Practical, clear, and welcoming, Unstuck offers immediately useable strategies for beginning, continuing, and finishing a piece of writing.
Organized into doorways and keys, Unstuck turns problems into possibilities, offers keys to put into use right now, all designed to lead the writer back to the art, not toward an outside idea or formula. With Ausubel’s steady, encouraging advice—find your doorway, unlock the lock, and get writing again.
- GenresWritingNonfictionCrafts
267 pages, Kindle Edition
Published April 14, 2026
About the author
Ramona Ausubel
12 books441 followersRamona Ausubel is the author of a new novel, Sons and Daughters of Ease and Plenty (on sale 6/14/2016) as well as No One is Here Except All of Us, winner of the PEN Center USA Literary Award for Fiction, the VCU Cabell First Novelist Award and Finalist for the New York Public Library Young Lions Fiction Award. Her collection of stories, A Guide to Being Born, was a New York Times’ Notable Book. Her work has appeared in The New Yorker, Tin House, The Paris Review Daily, One Story, Ploughshares, The Oxford American and The Best American Fantasy. She is a faculty member of the low-residency MFA program at the Institute of American Indian Arts in Santa Fe, New Mexico.
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Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews
September 26, 2026
This book is filled with practical, actionable tips for drafting, revising, and the writing life in general. I particularly liked the emphasis on the importance of finding joy in the everyday moments of writing. I’ve read many books on writing, and this has to be one of my favourites. Everything in it was so useful!
I’ll definitely be revisiting this book, and I recommend it for any writer. No matter where you are in the process, there’s something helpful in here for you.
I’ll definitely be revisiting this book, and I recommend it for any writer. No matter where you are in the process, there’s something helpful in here for you.
May 31, 2026
so so helpful, easy to read and great inspiration and ideas to help you develop and think about when you feel stuck! will deffo be coming back to this book a lot!
September 23, 2026
This colorful case laminate book (no dust jacket) is as bright with ideas on the inside as the cover is on the outside. Between 2011 and 2014, I reviewed in my blog one New Yorker story of hers I do not care for and one that I do. Both are quite imaginative, and that is one of the great qualities Ausubel brings to her book written to help creative writers get unstuck. She structures the book with four sections: Part 1, Doorways In: Beginning; Part 2, Doorways Through: Continuing; Part 3, Doorways Up: Getting Perspective; and Part 4, Doorways Out: Later Drafts and Moving On. Ausubel’s format is quite easy to follow: Each doorway is about a page or page-and-a-half in length followed by a paragraph or so titled “Key,” in which she lists a prompt so that you can carry out what she’s described. But don’t be fooled into thinking that this format makes the book an easy read. I find that after plowing through about ten Doorways, I must stop for the evening and let my mind absorb what she’s suggesting. I conclude my reading with every page having at least one underline or annotation!
In Part 1, Doorway #24, Ausubel instructs you to do a Save As for something you’re working on with word count; mark it 50%, because you will eliminate half of your document (elements not needed). Then you do it again and mark it 25%. You do this until you’re down to one word. Don’t worry about your cuts; you place them in a separate folder in case you want them back! Ausbel explains: “You are not here to write a one-word story or poem, though. The first half of this exercise is meant to discover what the piece is by defining what it is not (my italics)” (63). The second half of the exercise asks you to rebuild the piece with a clearer sense of what you’re doing.
Doorway #33 of Part 2 is designed to get the writer out of their “known world.” She claims that write what you know does not mean write only what you know (85). Also write about your curiosities. In her Key section she asks you to start your own list, and these are some of mine I wrote in the blank space of page 87: 1) How do lonely people (or single people) meet someone new, especially old gay men? 2) How many bird species still survive in North America, the world? 3) What happens to all the stuff people don’t get rid of before they die? And 4) Can AI be used exclusively for good (curing cancer, reducing warming of the earth)? Why must evil always exist as an “equal” to good? Is it? Now I must try to quench my curiosities!
In Part 3’s Doorway #65 Ausubel asks writers to re-type a draft (yes, like in the old days). “Your goal is to go slowly, to listen to sentences and change them so they feel and sound right. Add new lines, move pieces around. Adjust images. Rewrite dialogue. Let the retyping become a generative process of its own” (173).
My favorites are Doorways #86-88, called One Thing at a Time 1, 2, and 3. In the first one she explains that in revision she concentrates on careful examination of one “thread” (e.g. character, theme, setting, emotional texture) at a time—straight through to the end. She begins with her characters by examining each one and trying to deepen or sharpen them. The important thing is that you can design your own threads (no more than twelve), starting with bigger items, ones that provide backbone to your piece. Then shift to smaller “lacier” elements: body language and gesture. Finally, Doorway #88, she asks the writer to use their Neon Paintbrush to “make sure every page lights up . . . by the end of the draft, there should be a line, moment, or image on every page that pops or sparks. Something odd, funny, mean, noisy, bright” (231). Ausubel is the first writer/instructor I’ve ever read who suggests such a complete list for revision. It is so . . . logical, thorough, procedural! The writer is not merely using intuition to finalize the MS but is employing a creative and yet coherent approach. Even though I thought I was “finished” with a collection of short stories, I plan to subject my MS to many of Ausubel’s doorways to see if I can’t polish the sheen yet a bit more.
In Part 1, Doorway #24, Ausubel instructs you to do a Save As for something you’re working on with word count; mark it 50%, because you will eliminate half of your document (elements not needed). Then you do it again and mark it 25%. You do this until you’re down to one word. Don’t worry about your cuts; you place them in a separate folder in case you want them back! Ausbel explains: “You are not here to write a one-word story or poem, though. The first half of this exercise is meant to discover what the piece is by defining what it is not (my italics)” (63). The second half of the exercise asks you to rebuild the piece with a clearer sense of what you’re doing.
Doorway #33 of Part 2 is designed to get the writer out of their “known world.” She claims that write what you know does not mean write only what you know (85). Also write about your curiosities. In her Key section she asks you to start your own list, and these are some of mine I wrote in the blank space of page 87: 1) How do lonely people (or single people) meet someone new, especially old gay men? 2) How many bird species still survive in North America, the world? 3) What happens to all the stuff people don’t get rid of before they die? And 4) Can AI be used exclusively for good (curing cancer, reducing warming of the earth)? Why must evil always exist as an “equal” to good? Is it? Now I must try to quench my curiosities!
In Part 3’s Doorway #65 Ausubel asks writers to re-type a draft (yes, like in the old days). “Your goal is to go slowly, to listen to sentences and change them so they feel and sound right. Add new lines, move pieces around. Adjust images. Rewrite dialogue. Let the retyping become a generative process of its own” (173).
My favorites are Doorways #86-88, called One Thing at a Time 1, 2, and 3. In the first one she explains that in revision she concentrates on careful examination of one “thread” (e.g. character, theme, setting, emotional texture) at a time—straight through to the end. She begins with her characters by examining each one and trying to deepen or sharpen them. The important thing is that you can design your own threads (no more than twelve), starting with bigger items, ones that provide backbone to your piece. Then shift to smaller “lacier” elements: body language and gesture. Finally, Doorway #88, she asks the writer to use their Neon Paintbrush to “make sure every page lights up . . . by the end of the draft, there should be a line, moment, or image on every page that pops or sparks. Something odd, funny, mean, noisy, bright” (231). Ausubel is the first writer/instructor I’ve ever read who suggests such a complete list for revision. It is so . . . logical, thorough, procedural! The writer is not merely using intuition to finalize the MS but is employing a creative and yet coherent approach. Even though I thought I was “finished” with a collection of short stories, I plan to subject my MS to many of Ausubel’s doorways to see if I can’t polish the sheen yet a bit more.
August 25, 2026
Years ago, I heard a YA writer speak at our local library. He had written several books and had one optioned for a movie during his time here. I won't name him other than to say he came across as an egotistical asshat and said anyone who ever suffered from writer's block just wasn't a writer. There was no such thing as writer's block, just fake people, he said. Of course, after reading a couple of his novels, I saw that, yes, he never had writer's block. He wrote like he was dumping an outhouse basement.. It just glopped and flowed and was there.
He should have read Ramona Ausubel's Unstuck. It may have helped his prose and motivation.
We all want to write a book, but most have not. I've always thought in some twisted way that you sit down and start writing in a chronological pattern. Then, just recently, I began thinking of different scenes I could write that, while not in order, would work later. I picked up Unstuck and saw she offered similar ideas. She breaks down the writing process in an honest view. It's not pretty. It's difficult. Writers often have the "imposter syndrome."
This is a great motivational book for writers who want to really focus on character in their novels. Ausubel goes as far as thinking what their characters' browsing history is on the internet and what their playlists include to better know their persons and give a more realistic reaction to anything that comes up with that character.
It's very thoughtful and easily read. There's 101 ideas. Maybe just one of them would have helped the YA writer maintain his asshattedness.
He should have read Ramona Ausubel's Unstuck. It may have helped his prose and motivation.
We all want to write a book, but most have not. I've always thought in some twisted way that you sit down and start writing in a chronological pattern. Then, just recently, I began thinking of different scenes I could write that, while not in order, would work later. I picked up Unstuck and saw she offered similar ideas. She breaks down the writing process in an honest view. It's not pretty. It's difficult. Writers often have the "imposter syndrome."
This is a great motivational book for writers who want to really focus on character in their novels. Ausubel goes as far as thinking what their characters' browsing history is on the internet and what their playlists include to better know their persons and give a more realistic reaction to anything that comes up with that character.
It's very thoughtful and easily read. There's 101 ideas. Maybe just one of them would have helped the YA writer maintain his asshattedness.
April 22, 2026
Unstuck: A Writer's Guide (Ramona Ausubel, 2026) is a craft-oriented writing manual structured around 101 exercises designed to address one of the most persistent problems in creative work: interruption of momentum. Rather than treating writer’s block as a singular obstacle, Ramona Ausubel reframes it as a recurring condition of practice, requiring multiple entry points rather than a single solution.
The book’s structural conceit, “doorways and keys” functions as both metaphor and method. Each exercise is positioned as a re-entry mechanism into the writing process, emphasizing continuity over perfection and iteration over fixed outcome. This design reflects a pedagogical philosophy grounded in accessibility and repetition, allowing writers to re-engage the process at different stages of creative resistance.
Stylistically, the work adopts an intentionally conversational tone, aligning itself with lineage traditions in writing pedagogy that prioritize demystification of craft. The inclusion of personal reflection alongside practical exercises reinforces its orientation toward lived process rather than abstract instruction.
Its strongest contribution lies in its reframing of creative blockage as a structural feature of writing practice rather than a failure state. In doing so, it positions itself as both a motivational and procedural toolkit for sustained creative production.
The book’s structural conceit, “doorways and keys” functions as both metaphor and method. Each exercise is positioned as a re-entry mechanism into the writing process, emphasizing continuity over perfection and iteration over fixed outcome. This design reflects a pedagogical philosophy grounded in accessibility and repetition, allowing writers to re-engage the process at different stages of creative resistance.
Stylistically, the work adopts an intentionally conversational tone, aligning itself with lineage traditions in writing pedagogy that prioritize demystification of craft. The inclusion of personal reflection alongside practical exercises reinforces its orientation toward lived process rather than abstract instruction.
Its strongest contribution lies in its reframing of creative blockage as a structural feature of writing practice rather than a failure state. In doing so, it positions itself as both a motivational and procedural toolkit for sustained creative production.
April 19, 2026
I once read that it is important not to imagine one’s creative energy as a well which you draw from. The reason is that the nature of wells is to run dry. Rather, we should imagine our creativity as an endless ocean—one with low tides and high tides—but always abundant. A similar technique, of seeing stumbling blocks as stepping stones, is one of the central techniques in Ramona Ausubel’s Unstuck. Ausubel instructs us to reframe dead ends (those dreaded blank pages and stalled paragraphs) as provisionally locked doors, portals we can step through once we possess the keys.
I was hoping for actionable advice and Unstuck has that in spades—what I didn’t anticipate was how enjoyable and stimulating I’d find Ausubel’s writing. She is a fine writer who infuses this instructional with humor and heart. I couldn’t help but feel reassured about myself and my creative work after reading this book. In Ausubel’s own words “The universe did not feel inadequate when all it had was an explosion in space from which all life would emerge.” This is less a grandiose statement and more a reminder to move with confidence through (to borrow a phrase) the swampland of primordial slush.
I’ve read dozens of creative writing books over the years and Unstuck has already claimed a place among my favorites.
I was hoping for actionable advice and Unstuck has that in spades—what I didn’t anticipate was how enjoyable and stimulating I’d find Ausubel’s writing. She is a fine writer who infuses this instructional with humor and heart. I couldn’t help but feel reassured about myself and my creative work after reading this book. In Ausubel’s own words “The universe did not feel inadequate when all it had was an explosion in space from which all life would emerge.” This is less a grandiose statement and more a reminder to move with confidence through (to borrow a phrase) the swampland of primordial slush.
I’ve read dozens of creative writing books over the years and Unstuck has already claimed a place among my favorites.
July 1, 2026
Reading this book felt like sitting in a cozy, whimsical writing workshop hosted by Ramona Ausubel. The book is packed with inspiration and creative energy, and it did a fantastic job of getting my mind moving and my own creative ideas flowing. I really enjoyed getting to know her through her personal experiences and the stories of her fellow writer friends, and the user-friendly structure makes it a book I can see myself referring back to whenever I need a spark.
A few things I had a hard time with were, at times, the prose became so whimsical and abstract that the concrete advice got buried, making it difficult to understand the takeaway. Also, several of the "doorways" felt redundant, leading to tangents that had me skimming pretty often just wanting her to get to the point. A tighter edit could have easily combined or cut some of these repetitive sections.
Overall, it is an easy, enjoyable read full of helpful advice—perfect for anyone looking to boost their creative energy, even if it gets a little lost in the clouds sometimes!
A few things I had a hard time with were, at times, the prose became so whimsical and abstract that the concrete advice got buried, making it difficult to understand the takeaway. Also, several of the "doorways" felt redundant, leading to tangents that had me skimming pretty often just wanting her to get to the point. A tighter edit could have easily combined or cut some of these repetitive sections.
Overall, it is an easy, enjoyable read full of helpful advice—perfect for anyone looking to boost their creative energy, even if it gets a little lost in the clouds sometimes!
June 25, 2026
June 25; if there has ever been a book that resonates with how I progress and feel as a writer, than this is it. It almost feels like Ausubel is peeking in my head through some sort of obscure Roald Dahl device and notices what is going on in my life and she writes it down in a little notebooek. Of course, I know this book is from 2023 and we are in 2026, but that device I was talking about? It can also look in your brain in the future, just a fair warning.... !
July 1. I'm halfway through this book, I'm writing at the same time while I'm reading other books. A deadly mix I noticed as it affects my choice of words and changes my story as I am writing. I'm glad it's only a first draft and I hope to have the story finished when I have finished this book. Ausubel has a wonderful way of bringing this book to life! Despite the misandric undertone here and there I feel that a writer's guide should look like 'Unstuck'. Plenty of current books about writing provide a ton of examples from existing books and I consider that filler policy to help the book. Ausubel does nothing of a kind and her examples make a lot of sense and are most of the time not even necessary. Ausubel uses the 'key' concept whereby she gives a clear instruction on what to do and I was a bit overwhelmed at first, thinking: I should have a list of things when I edit or review. But I have come to the conclusion that not all of her pointers would apply to first drafts. Whatever she describes/suggests: it might already be there.
July 4
I finished this book yesterday evening and I know I said it before: I have had so much training in writing but never something as personal like this and I absolutely love it! I have an older unpublished first draft and I decided to hold my copy of Unstuck close by while I revise the first draft. Or 'half draft' as Ausubel calls it.
July 1. I'm halfway through this book, I'm writing at the same time while I'm reading other books. A deadly mix I noticed as it affects my choice of words and changes my story as I am writing. I'm glad it's only a first draft and I hope to have the story finished when I have finished this book. Ausubel has a wonderful way of bringing this book to life! Despite the misandric undertone here and there I feel that a writer's guide should look like 'Unstuck'. Plenty of current books about writing provide a ton of examples from existing books and I consider that filler policy to help the book. Ausubel does nothing of a kind and her examples make a lot of sense and are most of the time not even necessary. Ausubel uses the 'key' concept whereby she gives a clear instruction on what to do and I was a bit overwhelmed at first, thinking: I should have a list of things when I edit or review. But I have come to the conclusion that not all of her pointers would apply to first drafts. Whatever she describes/suggests: it might already be there.
July 4
I finished this book yesterday evening and I know I said it before: I have had so much training in writing but never something as personal like this and I absolutely love it! I have an older unpublished first draft and I decided to hold my copy of Unstuck close by while I revise the first draft. Or 'half draft' as Ausubel calls it.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
This book is perfect for the writer who is struggling to get started on a project or work through one. This is perfect for the writer whose imposter syndrome is holding them back from getting started. Ausubel presents the writing process in all its relatable messiness and uses her unique voice to explain the process in ways that feel approachable and achievable. I was so inspired by the doorways she discusses that a writer walks through while writing. Her tips were also very helpful. I generated a lot of ideas from reading this book. It is aptly titled. It will help you get unstuck. One of the best craft books I have ever read.
Thank you to NetGalley and Zando/Tin House for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Thank you to NetGalley and Zando/Tin House for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
*Review of Advanced copy received from Net Galley*
This is a great book for writers of many levels. I have been writing for a while for fun and some of the advice in this book I already knew however there was still so much knowledge I gained from it. It has very helpful tips that are meaningful, and helpful when struggling to get it down on paper.
The most helpful was the clunky parts of writing that do not come as easily as your own story. Having a structure of all the pieces you need to actually get writing is so helpful. Definitely keeping this in my pocket as I continue to write as it has been so helpful already as I worked through a chunk of my most recent works where I had the beginning and the end but no middle.
This is a great book for writers of many levels. I have been writing for a while for fun and some of the advice in this book I already knew however there was still so much knowledge I gained from it. It has very helpful tips that are meaningful, and helpful when struggling to get it down on paper.
The most helpful was the clunky parts of writing that do not come as easily as your own story. Having a structure of all the pieces you need to actually get writing is so helpful. Definitely keeping this in my pocket as I continue to write as it has been so helpful already as I worked through a chunk of my most recent works where I had the beginning and the end but no middle.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
I think this is my new favorite craft book for writers. Organized as a series of "doorways" into which the reader/writer is invited, the book offers practical tips, inspiration, and encouragement, along with explicit exercises ("keys") at the end of each chapter/doorway. I know this will become a reference book I'll return to frequently, at all stages of writing, whenever I need an exercise to help me move forward. I've already used several "keys" as daily writing exercises. Ausubel is a wonderful guide through these doorways, warm and encouraging, like your favorite teacher or coach. To my mind, this is an essential book for any writer's shelf.
Thank you to Tin House and NetGalley for the Advanced Reader's Copy in exchange for my honest review.
Thank you to Tin House and NetGalley for the Advanced Reader's Copy in exchange for my honest review.
May 31, 2026
Just purchased this last week, and it's already been immensely helpful in getting me unstuck! I particularly love the idea of "writing the islands" of scenes in a first draft, trusting that the bridges and connections will become possible in a second draft. Practical, conversational, and very helpful! This, along with Susan Griffin's Out of Silence, Sound, Out of Nothing, Something, is one of my favorite recent books on craft. So glad I heard her interview on Mitzi Rapkin's First Draft podcast and bought the book.
--Amelia
--Amelia
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
The descriptions of all the odd shapes writing takes before the final product was just what I needed to hear. This book truly helped me unstick my brain and get out of writers' block. It addressed the doubts that were holding me back. This craft book has the whimsy that you can find in Ausubel's fiction. I'd highly recommend this to any writer.
Thank you to NetGalley and Tin House for the eARC.
Thank you to NetGalley and Tin House for the eARC.
June 16, 2026
This is a lovely collection of mini-essays with prompts for diving deeper into your story and writing projects. Unfortunately, I found it a bit too long. Maybe because I was trying to get it back to the library, but I found myself skimming aggressively toward the end. I probably needed to just read a few each day or when I was feeling stuck. I did pull a number of good tidbits and ideas from this book, but it’s not one I am desperate to have on my shelf and revisit.
September 30, 2026
Preordered and received in April 2026
Skimmed but didn't dig in until the author spoke at Bud Werner Memorial Library September 2026
I regret that I didn't get into it sooner! I loved hearing Ramona discuss this book and walking the audience through sample writing exercises - I wish I lived closer and was able to take her courses at CSU!
I loved her candid personality and encouraging demeanor! I look forward to reading some of her fiction, as well as using her wisdom to create some of my own.
Skimmed but didn't dig in until the author spoke at Bud Werner Memorial Library September 2026
I regret that I didn't get into it sooner! I loved hearing Ramona discuss this book and walking the audience through sample writing exercises - I wish I lived closer and was able to take her courses at CSU!
I loved her candid personality and encouraging demeanor! I look forward to reading some of her fiction, as well as using her wisdom to create some of my own.
September 27, 2026
This is a really helpful and insightful guide for writing and how to get over writers block and write deeper scenes and characters. This book is full of great advice and exercises to get to know your characters better and as a result write more compelling characters and their stories. Highly recommend!
May 21, 2026
A must-have to sit beside your favorite craft books. Pick a door, Ramona's got a key for you. It doesn't excuse you from doing the work, but through her shared experience you'll be a more sure-footed writer.
May 24, 2026
Amazing book! For beginner writers or writers at any stage. I wish I could have this book sooner! The keys and exercises are so valuable. The shared experiences makes you feel less lonely in some writing blockages and that this too is part of a creation process.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
Received an advance copy for review, will have full review up once it’s been published!
Review of advance copy received from Goodreads Giveaways
This book will be valuable for many, especially newer writers. For anyone who’s studied the writing craft for a while, though, you’ve probably heard all of this before.
Read
May 18, 2026DNF. I have to stop reading books about writing.
June 22, 2026
Gave this to a friend, and she found it very useful.
September 8, 2026
A good book about how to get started writing. The chapters are short and impactful.
Currently Reading
October 7, 2026Got to page 115, but now the library wants it back! I hope to finish it another time.
Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews