 |
| Photo credit: meaganmakes on Flickr |
Not too long ago, I received another lovely e-mail from one of you wonderful readers, and in it was mentioned a fear that I suspect most writers know all too well.
Sometimes, when we write something that we’re particularly proud of, whether it’s a paragraph, scene, chapter, short story, poem, or book, we get this little nagging voice that says this is the best you’ll ever do.
Sometimes, when we struggle after that great story or whatever it is, the voice says, you’ve plateaued. Might as well settle for mediocrity, because you’re not going to get better than this.
Sometimes, when the struggle continues, the voice says, you’ll never write as well as that passage again. It’s over.
And let’s be honest. Sometimes, we’re tempted to listen to that voice.
Don’t do it.
The wonderful thing about writing is that it’s a skill that we can always improve. There’s always more to learn, more ways to develop and hone our craft, more techniques and tips that even the top earners of the field are still taking in. There isn’t a final master level and we never plateau.
The thing I love about writing is that much of the learning is subconscious. We learn every time we read a new book, every time we read a tip that resonates with us, every time we sit down and start writing. We learn with every edit we incorporate, every manuscript we evaluate, every tear we shed (figurative or literal) over revisions or getting that line just right.
So whenever you reach a point when you start to think you’ll never write as well as that sentence/paragraph/passage/book/whatever, I want you to stop and tell that voice to shut up.
Because not only will you write as well as that passage—you’ll write better. One day you’ll look back at what you thought was your best and you’ll realize just how much you’ve improved because your work now? It makes that fabulous passage look average.
As long as you keep reading and writing and pushing to improve, I promise you you’ll get better. It may not feel like it, and you may not even realize it at first, but with every scene you write and book you read and sentence you edit, you are improving. You are learning.
You are writing better than ever before.
Have you ever heard the nagging voice? What did you do to overcome it?
Twitter-sized bites:
Have you ever worried that you'll never write as well as you have before? Here's why you shouldn't. (Click to tweet)
Worried that your writing skill may have plateaued? You don't need to, and this is why. (Click to tweet)
19 comments:
For me that voice pops up every time I finish a manuscript, and it doesn't go away until I'm well into a new work in progress. Instead of heeding the fear, I use it to push myself.
Thanks for the post. I've taken your advice and am trying not to include any previously-written content in my book, just to challenge myself to write better :)
I've been writing long enough to know I'll write well again. My frustration is that I can't do it more consistently. Some lines and scenes absolutely shine, while others are meh. How do I banish the meh?
That's a great response to the fear, Michelle. Turning the nervous energy into motivation is a great life skill. :)
You're very welcome, Ghadeer! So glad to hear that you're challenging yourself. I wish you all the best with your writing!
Editing. :)
:)
This used to completely paralyse me! I'm trying to accept that there are some days where the words just won't be as good, and that's OK, because I have many rounds of edits to go! Great post - I definitely needed the reminder!
Thank you, Emma! You're absolutely right about the importance of edits and not needing to write beautifully every day. Revisions are an integral part of the writing process for a reason. :)
Well, of course you'll never write that WELL again. Next time you'll write eve BETTER! Now run with it!
Great post! The way to write better (or as good ^^) is to write more and keep writing. Write different things, write the same things, write something that'll never see the light of day. It's fun!
Yes! Great way of looking at it, Debby. :)
Thank you, Jen! I agree entirely—the more you write, the better you get.
I have the opposite nagging fear sometimes -- that I will write better in the future and look back with some embarrassment at what I have put out int he world today. It's ridiculous, I know, so I mainly use that as a cudgel when I'm rewriting, and I get lazy enough to say "Ah well, this chunk is GOOD ENOUGH..." which means it likely isn't. So I use that little fear to to get myself to take a hard look at things and say: "How can this be better? How can this be so great I'll still be proud of it ten years from now?"
That's interesting. I don't think there's too much we can do about looking back and seeing how much stronger our writing is now than it is then, but I would think that as long as you put your very best work out (whatever that is at the time), you've little reason to be embarrassed looking back.
Thank you so much for posting this--what great timing for me to stumble onto it. I'm about to dive into the first draft of the sequel to my novel, and I have to be honest: I'm overcome with fear and insecurity and finding it much more difficult to tell my inner critic to shut up this time around.
I'm sure some of it has to do with the fact that I've been neck-deep in revision for these last few months, so my inner critic was free to run around and say whatever she pleased--but beyond that, I also find myself wondering, "What if I won't be able to find that magic something I found the last time around?"
So thank you for these words. I'll read these over and over when those insecurities are getting the best of me.
You're so welcome, Jennifer! Starting a new draft is equal parts exciting and scary and I completely understand that fear that you won't be able to replicate the magic. It's a fear I see writers of all stages talk about—from new to published several times over. But the good news is as writers, we can only improve. We learn from everything we write and revise and edit, and while your first draft may not be as sparkly as your recently revised draft, but it's not supposed to be. (That's what editing and revision is for).
I wish you all the best with your writing!
Thanks! I used to think the exact same way, but luckily I saw this post when I needed it most. I was beginning to write my latest book when I started hearing that voice. But nowadays, I think positively and tell myself I can do it. I really can't thank you enough!
Aw, thank you, Kobe! I'm so glad to hear that this post helped you get through those doubts. You can most certainly do it, and I wish you all the best! :)
Post a Comment