This kind of goes with yesterdays post.
Writers have anxiety. That's just the way it is. I mean, writers never really know if they are writing the NEXT Harry Potter, or the next BIG BOMB. Gee, how do we do it?
I mean, how do we stay focused with so much anxiety cooking in our little heads? I discovered this back a few weeks ago when I decided that I suck at this. At the time, I really believed that I couldn't write anything decent. It was then that I realized something after listening to all of your comments. We all at one time or another deal with anxiety. Most productive writers have at one time or another believed they suck at writing. Most productive writers at one time or another have also believed they are BRILLIANT!
Talk about your living with tension. Talk about even flourishing on that tension. That's called creating, right?
After all, for taking time away from other things, we can feel selfish and we can feel selfless. This is how we grow as writers. Anxiety, discouragement to a writer mean sacrifice. We must sacrifice something. We must work hard. If we want this and I do. So we grow.
For me, I have sacrificed leisure time. After home-school on my writing days, I write. I shut myself up with the laptop and write. I do NOT sacrifice family time or home-school time. But there are things I feel I have to give up in order to make this dream come true. I am growing. Not there yet, but I am a teenager in this writing life.
So how do you deal with anxiety? With sacrifice? Are you fully grown yet? And by that I mean, that you know that you know how a book should come together without making newbie mistakes? Or do we ever really get to that point? Of course, I know that writers always grow. If I stop growing then I need to call it quits with everything. If I'm 90, I hope I'm still flourishing. But doesn't there come a time in our writing life that we know for sure what we're doing?
Questions. Could JK write a bomb? Sure she could. Is all the anxiety worth it? You bet it is.
First off! A big congratulations to two of our blogger buds. Linda KageLinda Kage sold her second novel. YAY! You go girl. I hear it’s really steamy. *Robyn wipes forehead and fans herself* WHEW!
And Tess Hilmo super, really, really cool agent dude sold her MG novel. Your dream is about to come true, Tess.
Yay! I am so very happy for you two. These two have worked hard and deserve to P-A-R-T-Y!!
Well, Linda is pregnant, so she’ll have to drink spring water. But hey! She’s eatin’ for two. YEAH!
Head over and give these two fabulous writers congrats, if you haven’t already.
Anxiety is part of life . . . whether stressing over finding time to write, what to cook for dinner, OMG my hair has receded even farther, it's 2AM and the cat is throwing up . . . AGAIN, or so many other things. Deep breaths . . . and margaritas on Fridays help the anxiety.
ReplyDeleteAs far as sacrifice . . . again, I think life is about sacrifice. We're always having to choose between things because it just isn't possible to do everything. I think we adapt more than we do anything else. I choose my writing time when my partner is a) at work or b) asleep . . . for the most part. I'm sacrificing more writing time by doing this, but I understand that the sacrifice is one of the necessary aspects of life.
As for fully grown . . . I think we're always growing and adapting. I think when we stop doing these things, we truly stop living.
S
I am not fully grown as a writer, nor do I ever think I will be. There's much to learn, the market is always growing and changing, I'm always growing and changing:) So I'm content to be a work in progress. Blessings!
ReplyDeleteHmm Scott, I guess I should have phrased my question differently. I didn't mean we should stop growing as writers. I guess what I meant was this. That when we are fully grown, we know how to put a book together. We don't make beginning writer mistakes. When we start to write a book, it comes together without too many foibles. And I want to be at this stage. Oh I know I'll have revisions, edits, and the like. But there won't be as many. I'll pretty much know what I'm doing, because I've learned from my previous mishaps. :)
ReplyDeleteKaren, as I told Scott, I phrased this question wrong. Maybe I'll edit it. I want to ALWAYS grow as a writer. If I stop growing, then my writing will suffer. :)
ReplyDeleteThrough all the ups and downs, joys and disappointments, pride and self-doubt, yeah, I'm with you...The anxiety is definitely worth it.
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for mentioning my name. I'm blushing.
Congrats to Tess too. That's wonderful. I can't wait to read her book!
I think I feel anxious because it does take a lot of time to write and if you feel like your not succeeding, you get stressed.
ReplyDeleteCongrats to Linda and Tess.
Linda, congrats my friend. You definitely deserve it. And it's worth it all! :)
ReplyDeletePatti, stress is the name of the game with writers. I'm always thinking, "is this good enough? Will anyone really want to read it?" Yikes!
ReplyDeleteI'm with Scott. I think everyone feels the anxiety and has to make sacrifices. Even though I think I'm a busy person, I know that everyone else out there is busy as well. I manage to push my feelings on these issues to the background, for the most part. I always know they are there, but I work anyway, despite them.
ReplyDeleteOh yes! Davin, if we couldn't work through them then we'd never get any writing done. But since anxiety is a part of life, and believe me I have a lot of anxiety right now, then it has to be a part of our writing life. And if it is a part of our writing life it HELPS us create. It doesn't hinder our vision. :)
ReplyDeleteWhat's the fun of a book that comes together without so many foibles? : )
ReplyDeleteSeriously. I mean, half the fun of writing, at least for me, is the evolutionary process of the book from beginning idea to end product. Yeah, I'm not so keen on the revision stage, endlessly searching for -ly words, and other words for that matter, to omit; but it's all part of the process.
If books came fully formed out of our minds, like Aphrodite from Zeus' . . . well, there goes the joy of writing.
Okay, I know that's not what you mean. I just think the mishaps are part of our humanity. Yeah, maybe we won't use as many -ly words, or end a bunch of sentences with prepositions, but a few foibles here and there aren't such a bad thing.
I also think that you, and so many of us out here in the blogsphere, might still be aspiring writers, but we're no longer beginning writers either. I guess most of us are in the high school stage of writers - way belyond elementary, just past junior high, but not yet in college. Ha.
Yeah Scott, teenagers. That's what I think a lot of us are. But almost in college. :)
ReplyDeleteI like the teenage analogy. I would have to agree there. I am not fully grown as a writer. Teenage fits quite well. As for anxiety, yeah, we just have to deal with it. It will be worth it though.
ReplyDeleteKatie, YAY! I'm a teen. WOOHOO! And it WILL be worth it all. Someday. Sigh. :)
ReplyDelete