7 Things That Will Destroy You as a Writer

Entertaining Doubt

The only thing I remember about the cult movie The Little Shop of Horrors is that gigantic Venus flytrap that eats people whole. Point made.

Copycat Mentality

They did it and it worked for them so I’m going to do it. Will cut you at the knees every time. I know some people promote mimicking an author you admire until you grow your sea legs, but I’m not a huge fan of that. We are constantly infusing author influences into our work without even trying to. More important to carve your own path by testing and experimenting with your own voice.

Calling Yourself a Writer without Writing

I come across this more often than you’d think. Label must be earned.

Giving Up Too Soon

Mature writers understand that the true beauty of the craft isn’t discovered via rewards, awards, and reviews. It’s found in quiet moments when fingers are tapping away madly at the keys, when the mind has slipped subtly into the zone. Think journey, not destination because, as with so many things, once you reach one landmark of achievement you’re likely to set your sights on the next one.

Believing There’s Only One Way to Be Successful

Especially within the past five years there’s been a surge of new ways to go about finding success. I’ve made a commitment to encourage fellow writers no matter which path they choose to go down. And I’ve witnessed these same authors celebrating career milestones having traveled north, south, east, and west on the publishing track.

Wallowing in Your Stuck-ness

It’s almost guaranteed to occur. A lull. A blocked dam. Brain freeze of the imagination. Changing perspective when this happens can make a world of difference. Instead of allowing this slow time to eat away a massive hole in your progress, alter the way you encounter this time. View it as time for your story or characters to develop. Invest in another creative project. Don’t waste the stuck hours. We only have so many here on earth.

Overconfidence & Attitude You’ve Arrived

Always a journey. Pride looks ugly on people and authors who act like they’re superior come off like fools. Adopting an attitude of learning and humility transforms the writing process into an incomparable enriching experience beyond anything the ego could possibly produce.

Can you think of anything else that could destroy you as a writer?

 

Top Ten Joy Stealers for Writers

If you’ve been writing long enough I don’t have to expound upon the following joy stealers much. You know them and you know them well. Writing is not for the feeble, the quick quitters or the wishy-washy. 

Writing is for those with malleable hearts, insatiable curiosities, and ironclad resolve.

Because there are joy stealers lurking and ready to rob you from the unexplainable joy writing can inspire.

And they are…

Disillusionment

When you hold up the picture of what you thought the writing life would look like and it doesn’t even vaguely resemble what writing actually is.

Distraction Deluge

When life hits you with a bombardment of commitments and you’re squeezed dry of time and energy.

Disbelief

Somewhere along the way you lost the majestic wonder that motivated you when you began writing. The confidence and belief that you were meant for this shrinks to the size of a mustard seed. (Hmm…a mustard seed.)

Dry Spell

Ideas disappear into thin air like genie smoke, triggering a season of drought. You find yourself flirting with the belief you were wrong and that you’re ideas won’t ever grow green and vibrant again.

Daggers

Criticism comes your way without a shred of anything constructive in it.

Derelict Characters

You’ve gotten so caught up in the story you’ve forgotten who’s writing who. Until one day your characters rebel and attempt to throw you entirely off course. Worse than a rabbit trail, this is a career direction detonator. (A key time to listen because characters always have something interesting to teach us, but ultimately to also remember whose boss.)

Deceptive Deathblow

Rejections, people who promised to be you’re biggest support but who fail to meet your expectations, the love of writing shriveling like embers turned to ash. Somewhere along the way you mistakenly substituted love of craft for so many other seductive loves—approval, acceptance, validation, timing, attention, etc.

Deadline Drift

Date looming and your mind draws a big fat blank. You feel like you’re writing for the man. A machine. The romanticism of the craft is stripped away.

Dead end Delusion

With writing there is no end in sight. It’s all about exploration and learning and discovery. But there’s nothing like the publishing industry to fool a writer into entertaining these familiar thoughts:

“I’ll be happy when…

I finish my novel

I get an agent

a house buys my book

I see my book in print

or my formatting is done for e-book

I meet my sales goals

I sell another book…”

& so the dance begins again.

Debilitating Doubt

I can’t. Therefore I won’t.

 On the flip side, Joy Planters are:

Dedication

Commitment to write through the highs and lows.

Determination

A “I’ll write no matter what I feel” attitude that presents opportunities for you to learn far more about yourself during the process than at the outcome.

Decision

Because it always comes back to choice.

You have a choice in this. Freedom to keep at it or to chuck the whole thing.

As for me and my mouse (bad computer humor), we will surf the lore.

What have you found to be a joy stealer during your writing journey? And a joy planter?

*photo by stock.XCHNG