What to Burn When You Don’t Know What to Burn

It happens to all of us.

You sit down with your burner, a blank piece of wood in front of you, and… nothing. Your mind goes silent. Your creativity, once crackling, now feels like wet kindling.

This is normal.

Creative block isn’t a sign that you’re not an artist; it’s proof that you are. Every maker hits a pause point. What matters is what you do next.

Here’s the good news: you don’t need a grand idea to begin. You just need a way in. Here are some simple, approachable ideas for what to burn when you don’t know what to burn:

1. Burn a Feeling

Start with your mood. Are you anxious? Calm? Overwhelmed? Inspired? Take that feeling and turn it into marks on the wood. Let the emotion guide your pressure, flow, and movement. It can be abstract or literal. Let it be what it is.

2. Trace Something from Nature

Grab a leaf, feather, or small branch. Trace it lightly onto your wood and burn around or over it. Nature offers infinite shapes and textures. It’s also forgiving; no one expects your pine needle to be “perfect.”

3. Use a Single Line

Set a timer for 5 minutes. Burn a single continuous line across your surface. Don’t lift your pen. Don’t overthink. Just move. This exercise is great for loosening up and reconnecting with your burner.

4. Go Non-Dominant

Try burning a simple pattern or shape with your non-dominant hand. You’ll be surprised what comes through when you stop chasing control and let imperfection take the wheel. Be sure that you are being safe as you are working with a hot pen.

5. Copy What You Love

Trace a quote, shape, or image you admire. Copying is not cheating, it’s learning. As you trace, you’ll start to understand spacing, flow, and form. Over time, your style will naturally emerge.

6. Start with a Prompt

Sometimes the brain needs a spark. That’s why we created the 52 Weeks of Fire inside Pyrography Academy. Every Monday, we drop a short, intentional prompt designed to get you burning without overthinking. You can take it literally, symbolically, or turn it on its head. Your fire, your rules.

7. Revisit an Old Piece

Pull out an unfinished project. Add a background. Burn over a part you didn’t like. Create contrast. Often, revisiting something gives it new life and gives you momentum.

8. Try a Pattern Pack

Still stuck? Use one of the monthly pattern packs from the Academy. We’ve designed them to be approachable, satisfying, and open-ended. You can follow them exactly or use them as a launchpad for your own ideas.

The trick isn’t to wait for the perfect idea. The trick is to start.

Burn a dot. Burn a line. Burn a loop or a spiral or a squiggle.

The fire doesn’t judge your first mark. And neither do we.

Join Pyrography Academy and never run out of inspiration again → Join here!