This exercise is somewhat opposite to Part I. It's best done on a weekend, when you can sleep in after!
Set your alarm for some time in the middle of the night. Two a.m., three a.m., whatever you like. Give yourself enough time between going to bed and the alarm to sleep for at least 3-4 hours. When the alarm goes off, get up, turn on one small lamp, pick up your pen and paper or go to your computer and write.
To start with, what's it like to be up in the dead of night, sitting in your small circle of light, writing while the rest of the world is sleeping? If you don't want to focus on the feeling of being awake when you normally wouldn't be, focus on somewhere in the world where people are going about their day right at that moment. What time is it in Switzerland? Tokyo? Finland? Pick a person or two and characterize them and their lives. Where do they live? What do they long for? Who do they love? What are their quirks, their talents? Or, if you already have a project you're working on, go with the first thing that pops into your head when you think about the piece.
This exercise can shock your writing mind into bringing forth the immediate heart of what you most want to write about (and maybe didn't know it). It's so dark and so quiet, and it's such an abrupt switch in consciousness - moving from sleep to being awake - that you can often get deeply into the writing before the fear factor or the self-editing machine can kick in. If you're lucky, both blockers will sleep right through the exercise!
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