The Writing-Practice Journal

Self-Doubt - The Writer's bane

Self Doubt

If any writer insists he always feels up to the task before him, he may not be a true writer. Most writers and even the most experienced ones fear the blank page or screen and the task before them, most of the time.

For one thing, a good writer has his own internal measure of what is good or mediocre. A good writer looks for new ideas, originality in expression and style, and the flair to hold his reader's interest to the end of his manuscript. Second, writing life is full of rejection slips, acerbic criticism, and failed or half-finished work waiting in the drawer or inside the computer. Third, most writers are pessimistic about their work. When someone praises the writing, they tend to think either the reader is not knowledgeable or careful enough or his praises are the results of his trying to be nice.

Then, an average writer, every so often, wonders why he is wasting time writing instead of going out there to live his life and make better money in the process. Self-doubt, therefore, is the outcome of the writing process.

As a writer, the way you may outdo this negativity--sometimes called the internal critic--is to recognize it and work with it, especially when it hinders your production or bothers you to the point of misery. An exercise you can do is to write a page or two from the voice of negativity and get it out of his system. The other way to do this exercise is to make a list of your mistakes, limitations, and the internal and external obstacles to your writing.

In the second and more important part of this exercise, you can write another page or two answering the internal critic or to the items on the list one by one. Then top it off with another page or two from your positive side, how eager you are to write, how creative you can be, how, where, and when you will write and will make the time to write.

Do this exercise as treatment to rehabilitate your internal critic until it learns to shut up and leave you in peace with your writing. Who you are and how you feel give the voice to your writing, since your writing needs to reflect a self-assured poise to be effective.