(First read Part 1 of “Facing Your Creative Fears.”) 3. Third, if your fears are real, face them squarely and deal with them. Do you really lack sufficient writing skills? If so, enroll in a course. Study writing books on your own. Analyze the books you love best to see how those authors did what […]
fears
Facing Your Creative Fears
“Every tomorrow has two handles,” Henry Ward Beecher once said. “We can take hold of it with the handle of anxiety or the handle of faith.” I’ve been thinking about this while hostessing the October and November writing challenges and reading between the lines of some questions and comments. It’s a Choice…Really! All our writing […]
Key #2: Think Like a Writer
We’ve talked about the benefits of writing in flow, in that relaxed timeless state, and we’ve talked about the first key to developing this skill: have a reason to write. Today let’s look at Key #2: thinking like a writer. These keys are based on Susan Perry’s Writing in Flow. CHANGE MY THINKING? We all […]
Voices of Self-Sabotage
[This is a repeat post because I’m out of town. I think the message is one we need to be reminded of.] You’ve often heard the phrase “you are your own worst enemy.” Does this apply to you when trying to create a writing life you love? It certainly applies to me! How does this […]
A Life Changing Journal: Defeat Your Writing Fears
“The key point to note is not the therapeutic effects of writing in a journal but rather the fact that regular journal keeping will influence the way you think or feel about a specific topic.” That startling statement is from Angela Booth’s article called “Change Your Life with Your Journal.” Now, I’ve journaled off and on for […]
What Fear is Holding You Back?
I’ve been reading a book on how fear affects writing (and art-making of all kinds). Fear is what holds many (even most) of us back from being the writers we dream of being–and probably could be. Art & Fear suggests that these fears fall into two main categories: (1) fears about yourself, and (2) fears […]
Weakened Mind Anxiety (Part 2)
Last week we talked about “weakened mind anxiety” and what that feels like. Symptoms that rear their ugly heads just before you try to write include fatigue, foggy brain, depression and an urge to cry/sleep/watch TV/surf the ‘Net. (from Fearless Creating by Eric Maisel) What’s the Problem? Before we talk about solutions, I think it […]
Weakened Mind Anxiety (Part 1)
For the past week, I’ve been suffering from “weakened mind anxiety,” according to Eric Miasel’s Fearless Creating. It’s the anxiety that comes when you begin a piece of work. It’s not the anxiety that comes from choosing an idea. It’s not anxiety from developing characters and plot. It’s not anxiety produced by setting some deadlines. […]
Calming the Writer's Soul
I sat down to write four times this morning, but my mind simply wouldn’t stop jumping the tracks. One second I’d be thinking, “This backstory paragraph slows down the opening and should be moved.” The next minute, with a catch in my throat, I was thinking about Laurie again. Get a Grip! My daughter is on her […]