Like (what seems like) 99% of WordPress, I’ve now been buggered over by WordPress’s Blocks Editor.
I’ve always resisted WordPress’s various Editors behind the Classic Editor; it does what I want and it’s familiar with all the tools I want at my disposal*. It’s like they try and bring out a new Editor every couple of years or so that everyone resists and they bring out various “updates and improvement” to iron out issues, leaving us all in a state of “trying to keep up with the changes when all we want to do is write a post and keep our train of thought.”
Up until now I’ve had my ways of sticking to using the Classic Editor; at times they made if difficult but fortunately my Firefox browser kept a URL in its history that I could use and quickly land in the Classic Editor.
But I started my post yesterday, the one about Planes, and immediately I was thwarted and shepherded into the new Block Editor (although Shepherded seems too gentle-a-term). I sort of knew this day was coming, I had it coming for a while, ever since they introduced it with one of their “We’re implementing this cool new thing, would you like to try it now [or have it rammed down your throat later]?” notices. I thought I’d still be able to back out of it, and many Google searches seem to give hope, but no; they are either outdated or apply to those not using WordPress.com
I tried to give in and create a post with the Block Editor and it buggered me about; firstly, the [+] thing hovering about was distracting me (they claim the Block Editor has less to distract!), then I typed up my post as I normally would.
I even found out about the Classic Editor Block, and I felt at home.
This merely lulled me into a false sense of security. What I typically do then, after typing all the text and getting the waffle of my chest, is to add in pictures here and there. But no, I couldn’t do that because I’d typed my entire post into one block and pictures, it turned out seemed, needed to each be in their own blocks, and you can’t put a block within a block (I have since been corrected on this; see the Comments section below*).
What seems to be the correct method is to know where you’re going to be putting in your pictures (i.e. be thinking about that while you’re working keeping your words flowing and your fingers typing). Bugger that.
My solution:
- Create a new Post with it’s title
- And then, before going any further, save a Draft copy and then head into your list of Posts.
- Mouse over your newly created Draft and choose the Classic Editor option.
- Voilà, you’re back in the land of bliss and creativity.
Another option is to type your post into your text editor/Word application of choice and then copy and paste it into the Block Editor piece by piece, block by block, placing images (in Image Blocks) as you go.
Some people have proposed a third solution: leaving WordPress.
[Further issues encountered]:
- If you view one of your published post you’ll probably land on the non-classic editor and be buggered by blocks again.
- The Blocks editor page takes longer to display/load than the Classic editor; that’s some progress.
Brian's Blog 
beetleypete has had similar frustrations and there are some further tips on his one of his recent posts.
see: https://beetleypete.com/2020/10/03/old-editor-grateful-for-help-and-tips/
Brilliant, thank you! I now have a usable URL that lands me in the Classic Editor.
I usually resist updates and upgrades as long as I can because they always seem to break something or take something away that I love using. Well, this weekend, I went ahead and updated WP, along with all my plug-ins and add-ons and I have to say that I’m really glad I did this time. I’ve found some nice features already.
It’s great when you can appreciate and find benefits in updates. A lot of the advice I found was aimed at those with a WordPress site, such as yours, rather than a free blog like mine, since you have access to various helpful plug-ins and add-ons.
Thanks for that Drafts Tip, Brian. WP must be a poorly managed company to think that ANY editor not conforming to MS-Word standards (tool bar at the top with the ability to INSERT blocks at will within a larger body document) is wise. The fools.
I complained. The lame response was “use our classic block.” Fuck you, WP.
Oh….so glad to read this. I love the classic editor and it has all I want to use to write my posts. I hate the block thing and it took me quite awhile to figure out to just click on my sites, go to WP admin and then…..then, I could get to add post and find the way to use the classic editor. It seems like WP loves to complicate things. I like your solution better than mine Thanks!
Thanks katelon, I’m glad you found it!
I also hate the new version. Why can’t they leave good enough alone??
Hi there, you said, “I’d typed my entire post into one block and pictures, it turned out, needed to each be in their own blocks, and you can’t put a block within a block (feel free to correct me if I’m wrong).” Correcting then. 🙂 If you look on the right in the top row of tools in the Classic Block toolbar, there is a Add Media button (camera in front of some notes). Clicking that let’s you add Media to your Classic Block. No extra blocks needed.
Thank you; I stand corrected, there is indeed a button to click to Add Media to an existing block! I see your blog is also I handy resource for further information on this topic.
You’re welcome. 🙂
I know the feeling. For once though, I attempted using the Block Editor when it first arrived. After much cursing and eating of chocolate I went back to the Classic. But I knew the change was inevitable so I began working with it again. (More cursing ensued. As well as more chocolate eaten.) Then I just resigned myself to it. Recently there have been some new changes making it easier to work with. Although, it seems there some bugs still to be squashed for it to function more smoothly.
It is good to hear there is some progress being made; I’ll be sure to stock up on chocolate ready for when I take the plunge!
😀