What makes you a writer? Self-doubt and Writing.

This is inevitably the question asked by every writer out there the most. We are so hard on ourselves, that we barely ever think our writing is good enough to stand on the shelves of Barnes & Noble beside Stephen King or E L James. But even the King of Horror himself, has self-doubt, but over the years he has learnt how to deal with that little voice.  In the attached article, hear from 7 published and famous authors about how they deal with self-doubt.

https://litreactor.com/columns/dealing-with-self-doubt-tips-from-7-popular-authors

But what makes us persevere with our writing, despite that little voice? I think it is the burning urge we have to tell a story, the story that is building inside us, begging to be put onto paper. That urge trumps the doubt. Don’t get me wrong, it never goes away, but writing is a hard slog, it is hard work, and as a writer, I know, I must work even harder to better my craft – the more knowledge I have, the better equipped I am as a writer approaching the monumental task of writing a story. 

The more exposure our writing gets, the more confidence you have in your own story, the easier it gets to deal with self-doubt. Here are ten things I have noticed so far along my writing journey that helps boost my writing, my confidence and my passion.

I don’t talk writing with non-readers. It sounds silly but who less encouraging to talk to, than the person who doesn’t have time for stories, or imagination. The person who cannot appreciate a good book, or who doesn’t see writing as a job.

Not everyone is going to support you. I am talking mothers, fathers, husbands, wives, cousins, family, friends, best friends, colleagues, teachers, etc. It is surprising that those closest to me, are the people who couldn’t care less about my writing, even the moment I got a small article published in a UK based travel magazine with my picture and everything, I was shocked (unsurprisingly) by the lack of acknowledgement of my achievement from not only my family but my closest friends. I think we have a culture in New Zealand, where there is a real underbelly of not celebrating others successes because we are jealous of their success. It sounds so trivial and petty but outside my writing circle, it is noticeably rampant.

Celebrate all successes – even if they seem small. This is incredibly important to my confidence because I am super proud of my own writing achievements, even if the person standing next to me doesn’t get why it is an achievement. I actually jumped around my lounge with a huge smile, so happy with myself, when my article from the UK arrived. No one else was around, but to me, that was such a reaffirming moment.

We over-analyse everything. And THAT IS OKAY. Just accept the fact and move on. Our significant others, family, and friends just have to accept that this is who we are, and we love to tell a good story. I just tell my story regardless if they are listening or not.

The blank page is your friend. I know a lot of writer’s comment that they have been staring at a blank page for weeks trying to find an idea. Well I say, a blank page is a marvelous opportunity. I guess it comes down to mindset, if you think you will fail, you will. If you want to succeed, you will do your absolute best to do so.

Writers block isn’t something to be ashamed of, because every writer at one time or another, suffers from it. Get out, go for a walk, go sit by the water, have an ice cream, I find the best ideas come from people watching. I have an idea: just go park in your car somewhere, with a coffee, where there are lots of people coming and going, and try to make up a reason why they are there, what they are doing, where they are headed to.  It is an amazing exercise I have being practicing for years – in my own head anyways. Sometimes, I do it with my friends or my mum as a goof. But it is effective at triggering our thoughts and imagination.

Editors can be your worst nightmare. Nothing says ‘you suck’ like a declined letter from an editor. But never fear, remain positive, there are editors in this world (I know one at least) that think Stephen King’s novels are not worth the pages they are written on. I obviously disagree, but there are other editors in this world that have turned down some of the world’s most famous authors.  Check out these excerpts from REAL famous author rejections:

Sylvia Plath: There certainly isn’t enough genuine talent for us to take notice.

Rudyard Kipling: I’m sorry Mr. Kipling, but you just don’t know how to use the English language.

J. G. Ballard: The author of this book is beyond psychiatric help.

Emily Dickinson: [Your poems] are quite as remarkable for defects as for beauties and are generally devoid of true poetical qualities.

Ernest Hemingway (regarding The Torrents of Spring): It would be extremely rotten taste, to say nothing of being horribly cruel, should we want to publish it.

Shocking, isn’t it! To think that these talented writers, received such negative comments about their writing. But boy were those editors wrong.

On another note, here is a wonderful video by author and rejection expert Jia Jiang, who talks about the power of rejection. It’s an incredible talk.

Being a writer can be lonely, so having a network of like-minded people is everything. Using social media specifically to reach out to other writers like yourself, can mean a lot, especially to talk ‘shop’, have a laugh, or just connect with others that can relate. It can be extremely isolating when you are writing, and you look up and realise you haven’t seen any of your friends for a while, or you have shut yourself off from the world because you are writing. Life, and living life is also an important facet to being a writer, where do stories come from – LIFE. Don’t let life continue on around you, without you, for too long.

Calling yourself a writer. How can you be confident in your own writing, if you do not call yourself a writer – period. Do you not consider yourself a writer? Then why are you writing? You are a writer if that is what you are doing, if that is what you love to do. You need to stop thinking that writing is just a hobby because when you put pen to paper to tell a story in any written format, you become the storyteller, and what is a storyteller? They are a writer.

Writing is hard work, period. Whether it is conceptualizing an idea, outlining the story, writing the first draft, editing that draft, rewriting, the list could go on. If you feel like writing is just so hard, that you start to wonder if you were cut out to be a writer, or if you are the only person to think it is hard, then stop, because no matter if you are writing a 30-word flash fiction story or a 70,000 word novel, you have the same process, the same obstacles, and face the same challenges. Is it enough? Does it tell the story? Is there a climax? Have I described the setting? Do I have authentic characters? You get the picture. If it was easy, everyone would do it, and then readers would not be so excited when they discover your writing.

Okay, so to wind this up, what are some of the lessons you have learnt regarding self-doubt about your writing, and how you deal with the self-doubt. Do you call yourself a writer, when someone asks what you do for work? Do you consider yourself a writer? If not, why not?

Okay, so to wind this up, what are some of the lessons you have learnt regarding self-doubt about your writing, and how you deal with the self-doubt. Do you call yourself a writer, when someone asks what you do for work? Do you consider yourself a writer? If not, why not?