Besides Fear, What's Holding You Back?

By Karen Albright Lin

There are many reasons we get stuck. We lack confidence, develop a fear of failure or, ironically, fear of success. What other obstacles stand in your way? 

huffingtonpost.com

Lack of writing skills: It’s a rare author who has raw talent and the sponge mind to read others’ work and instinctively “get it,” subsequently pounding out a first book that hits the publishing jackpot. If one hasn’t attended classes, critique groups, workshops or retreats, or hired a personal writing coach, it may be time to seek education just as someone needs to learn coding before becoming a software engineer.

Ambiguous motivations: If publishing is on your bucket list, why? Are you writing a memoir to get revenge on your high school nemesis? You want to lecture but not entertain? Are you expecting fame and fortune, showing off? Are you seeking catharsis instead of allowing that to come naturally in the process? These may be valid. Or they may be restraining you. Dig down deep, identify what’s really motivating you, and it may help you move forward or decide to start a different project.

Unrealistic expectations: There are many myths about being an author. Mention that you are a writer and people venerate. What an easy job! They expect you to have success with Stephen King money and fame starting from book one. Instead we are crushed by negative experiences. Our critique groups don’t pile on the praise; we don’t meet our minimum words per day; we find that life and writing patterns take sharp turns into brick walls. Setbacks are part of the process, so reopen that file but this time with a pragmatic mindset.

Impatience: One reason to have realistic expectations is to allow for the long writing apprenticeship. “Overnight successes” are rarely that. Ask authors about the three books or film scripts in their drawer. This is not a career meant for someone who can’t stand in a line at the movie theater. Your goals may be unrealistically grand. You may need to take smaller bites. It helps to celebrate every time you meet a benchmark.

Lack of writing sanctuary: How can you leave your insecurities at the door if you don’t have one? You create one. You may live in a small apartment without an office but you can reserve a little corner in the bedroom or living area exclusively for writing. If hubby is watching Monday night football, use earplugs. If you write better out in public, find that coffee shop or restaurant that welcomes loiterers. Buy something, nurse it over your laptop. The white noise might allow you to be a part of the world but without the burden of having demands placed on you.

Loneliness: Often writing in a coffee shop isn’t enough to conquer that feeling of isolation. Most professions involve interacting with coworkers. We writers also need social stimulation to refill the writing well and to be satisfied in general. Most places have writers’ communities you can reach out to: regional writing organizations, critique groups, conferences, retreats. You can pair up with a beta reader, collaborate, or create a support and accountability group. Report progress regularly. If you can’t or don’t want to schmooze in person, try one of the on-line communities. General and genre-specific critique groups and forums abound. Families don’t typically understand the happy dance you do after having your essay published in a magazine that pays you two copies. Being part of a writing community allows you to celebrate with a crowd that understands.

Writing by committee: Though it is good for your writing to get feedback from beta readers and critique groups, be careful not to allow your voice to be combed out of the book. Let your readers know what you are looking for. Be as specific as possible: believable dialogue? consistent characterization? skillful transitions? If you were happy with your plot and characters before seeking input be careful not to take your pile of written feedback and start amending without putting every comment through your own filter. Every idea may sound fun. Not every thought will be appropriate, especially not a salad of impressions. Listen, make note of opinions, then think each over before applying it. A decision to let an idea go is not repudiation; it’s allowing your book to tell you whether it needs a particular change.

Magical thinking: Some wait for their muse to come along and drag them to the keyboard. Multi-published authors will tell you that the best way to call the muse is by getting your butt into that seat and your fingers moving. Get going on that “shitty first draft” as Anne Lamott calls it. Momentum is your muse. Just like luck, wonderful words come your way through hard work.

Take inventory. If you are stymied by any of the above obstacles, tap into your strengths and determination. Confront them head-on, triumph over them, so they won’t have the power to hinder the progress on your writing project.

About the Writer: Karen is an editor, ghostwriter, pitch coach, speaker and award-winning author of novels, cookbooks, and screenplays. She’s written over a dozen solo and collaborative scripts (with Janet Fogg, Christian Lyons and director Erich Toll); each has garnered international, national and regional recognition: Moondance Film Festival, BlueCat, All She Wrote, Lighthouse Writers, Boulder Asian Film Festival, SouthWest Writers Contest, and PPW Contest. Find out more at www.karenalbrightlin.com

Break Free From the Mindsets That Make Writing a Struggle

By Alissa Johnson

A writer recently told me she had plenty of ideas but rarely got past the first few pages of a story. She got into fights with her characters because they wanted to do one thing and she wanted to stick to her original vision.

One time, determined to finish, she jotted down the basic points from start to finish, intending to add details later. But having finally gotten to the end of a story, she couldn’t bear to make changes. What if she got it wrong?

As a writing coach, I hear these stories frequently and they lead to one consistent conclusion: Maybe I’m not meant to be a writer. Perhaps you know the thinking: Real writers write every day, finish what they start, and don’t get stuck. I’m not a real writer.

I don’t buy it. True, writers write. But struggle isn’t a sign of failure. It’s most often one of three false mindsets at play:

infinitemindset.com

Mindset #1: I Don’t Know

This mindset is like a song stuck on repeat: I don’t know if I can pull this off. I don’t know what happens next. I don’t know the ending. I don’t know if the story will be as good as the idea. I don’t know if anyone will like it.

When characters “misbehaved” for my writing friend, she didn’t trust the new direction. And because she couldn’t force the story go the way she wanted it to, she got stuck.

To get unstuck, try turning “I don’t know” into “I’ll figure it out.” Let writing be a form of exploration. If you sit down to write one thing, and it turns into something else, why not go with it? It might be better than your original idea.

Mindset #2: I Know

When you have a hard time changing a story, there’s an underlying assumption at work: you know how it’s supposed to go. But talk to any “real” writer, and you will hear stories about revision after revision after revision. The idea of a perfect first draft is a myth.

But what if writing could be an act of discovery? Try reading your work for what you actually wrote, not what you think you wrote. You’ll see that it’s often quite different. You’ll also see what you can add, what you can take away, and the parts you really like. Your writing will quickly improve.

Mindset #3: I Must Protect My Work

The writer above struggled with mindset #1 and #2, but it didn’t take long to learn that her troubles stemmed from a bad experience with a reader. In college, she showed a story to a friend in her dorm and he trashed it. Now, she felt like she had to get it right before she shared her work.

It’s tempting to think that you are protecting your work by showing it to someone you know—an acquaintance, a friend, a family member. They respect you, so they’ll respect your work. Unfortunately, the people closest to you don’t always know how to give feedback. I have seen far too many writers stopped in their tracks by inexperienced readers. Instead of protecting your work, honor it by selecting someone who understands your vision and can give you honest but respectful feedback.

The good news is that these mindsets are simple to identify and shift. A couple of weeks after my conversation, my writing friend emailed me. She’d practiced these new ways of approaching her writing, and she was in the middle of a story, letting it evolve as she went. She liked the story, and most importantly? She was actually having fun.

About the Author: Alissa Johnson helps writers finish what they start, including essays and short stories, screenplays and memoirs. As a "writer's confidante" and "story whisperer", she helps them release doubt and uncover the story that needs to be told. Learn more at writingstrides.com.