Have you ever become discouraged when your writing life seems to be taking a downward trend? If you answered No, I am going to say I don't believe you. When rejections pile up faster than the acceptances, it's only human to begin to question yourself.
When Mr. Doubt moves into your house, he can start to take over. He gets bigger and you feel more knocked down than ever. You may get to a point of wondering why you ever thought you could become a published writer. It happens to lots of writers. Maybe that old cliche Misery loves company works here.
Writers are usually emotional people, and I think emotional people tend to beat themselves up, figuratively speaking, more easily and worse than the nonwriters. We tend to be dramatists.
The poster quote above has good advice for those whose writing life is spiraling in the wrong direction. Plain and simple--you have the key to getting yourself back on track. I can't do it for you. Your spouse or partner can't do it. Your kids or editor can't either. You and you alone are the one who has to change your mindset.
So, how are you going to do it? Try looking at the writing goals you've set for yourself. Have you attained any of them? Most likely, you have. Probably not all, but at least one or two. Think back to the writing successes you've had. Whether they were published works or ones a critique group praised or something you felt great satisfaction after writing--all of those things are a form of success.
Try dwelling on the positive things in your writing world. Push the negatives aside, with a resounding smack, if you like. Lift yourself up. Nobody else is going to do it. I once wrote a short essay on this subject. You can read it at Our Echo. If you do, check the comments section to see what some readers had to say.
I am not a writer, but it seems to me that if you have things to write about they are important to you. If your writings are not published they still are of great importance. My Mother used to write things about our family, political views, and many other things. They were never published, but are dear and near to my heart. If only one person is affected by your writings then that is of great importance. You never lose by trying, only by never trying at all.
ReplyDeleteThat's a great way to look at it, thank you for posting this reply. A new view into the 'whys' of what we write. Very neat observation! =)
DeleteFeels like you wrote this post directly to me today, Nancy. It's great encouragement and I'm going to try to put it into practice right now. ;-)
ReplyDelete