When we first imagined putting pen to paper, the scene was likely idyllic: ourselves, cozied up by a warm fireplace, or perhaps on a balcony with the distant sound of waves hitting the shore, complimented by a relieved smile on our faces as we excitedly begin our first draft.
Certainly, we didn’t imagine the truth, which features our teeth virtually chattering with a cold terror that seizes us each time we stare into the abyss of our (still) blank page.
If you’re a new writer, you’re likely wondering why on earth this business of writing seems so hard. After all, you want to be a writer or complete a book, so what’s the hang up?
If you’ve been through the book writing process once or twice, however, you’re likely nodding your head in full knowledge of what I’m illustrating here.
The reality? Writing is scary. Putting a manuscript out for the world to see can be nothing short of terrifying.
So what do you do to tame this fear so you can finally, well … write and publish?
First things first: realize that you’re not alone. Secondly, follow these strategies below to help develop courage as a writer.
1. Engage In Other Activities That Require Courage
If we think of courage for a moment as a muscle, then we’ll realize that in order to make it stronger, we have to use it more often.
Now, this doesn’t mean we have to go skydiving every week or take massive risks in some area in our lives – it simply means stepping out of our normal comfort zone once in a while. Flexing that muscle a bit, if you will.
A great way to do this is via travel, especially to a region or climate you’ve never experienced before. For example, if you’ve never surfed, think about visiting a tropical locale and going for it. If you want to keep things local, do something that scares you slightly, like reading poetry in front of an audience at a poetry meetup, doing karaoke, or even going on a blind date.
The point is: by doing things that make you uncomfortable, you increase your confidence by increasing your self trust. You teach yourself that you are capable of feeling fear and moving forward anyway.
Then, when it comes time to consider self-publishing, you’ll remember those times where you felt a similar fear and came out the other side.
2. Write The First Draft Without The Audience In Mind
There’s often nothing more paralyzing than imagining the reactions of your audience, editor, or publisher to your work. In fact, if you’re constantly considering others’ reactions and opinions, it’s likely that your blank page will stay blank, since our mind will supply us with a thousand imaginary reactions as excuses for us not to continue.
Instead of wrestling with that alligator, try to put marketing to your audience out of your mind while completing your first draft. Write it for the joy of writing about your topic. Don’t try to cut things or edit things at this point: just let it flow. If your audiences’ reactions pop in, take a breath and remind yourself that this is all in your mind for now, and that it’s not relevant yet.
Once the draft is complete, then you can break out the audience consideration.
3. Join A Writer’s Group Or Other Committed Critique Group
This might seem like the opposite of what I just advised above, but it’s actually complimentary. Once you’ve completed a draft, revealing it to an objective writer’s critique group may actually allay your fear of sending it off to a publisher or agent.
Often, the reason we fear exposing our work is due to the fear of a negative reaction. If we receive feedback from a group that our writing is actually not the monster we think it is, plus receive constructive criticism, we will feel more confident showing it to others (since we technically already did).
The reason you want to choose an objective writer’s group or critique group is because we often don’t take the advice of friends and family seriously. Subconsciously, we often believe that they’re complimenting our work because they love us, so our fear of our work being seen by strangers remains.
4. Write On A Schedule
This one is important simply because it cultivates discipline, and discipline says, “You’re going to write today whether you’re afraid or not.” Fear and anxiety will often always be present (as you’ll see in the next point) so you want to create a schedule solidified with a commitment to yourself that you’ll be adhering to.
With this, it helps to set a minimum time commitment, since some days life gets in the way more than others. Even if your minimum time commitment is 15 minutes, it’s still better and more productive than zero.
5. Fear Is Your Friend
Margaret Atwood succinctly summed up this point in one sentence:
“Blank pages inspire me with terror.”
One thing we have to remember about courage is that it exists in spite of fear. Without fear, no act would be courageous, because everything would be easy-peasy. Ultimately, there would also be no hero to the stories we write, since heroes require courage … meaning that at some point, they must first be afraid.
Fear and anxiety are a natural part of doing something meaningful and impactful. To not feel fear in the face of something that can not only impact your personal career, but also others’, would actually be worrisome. It is the mark of not only a conscience, but also of an opportunity to prove to yourself how capable you are.
At the end of the day, fear is your friend if you want it to be. It can bring out your heroic nature. It can fuel intensity in your writing.
It can push you over your edge into everything you’re meant to be.