I am Participating in the Writing Contest: Writers Crushing Doubt Hosted by Positive Writer

Writing Contest-Writers Crushing Doubt Hosted by Positive Writer

Doubt became more prevalent the closer I got to the end of my fiction novel.  I had been working on it for over a year without seeing it come to completion.  It seemed that I always let life come between what I felt was my true passion. I had faith, but doubt always crept in to tear that down layer by layer.

Doubt is a strange emotion.  It doesn’t have to be fed by outside sources for it to affect the inside of you.  In fact, if you are like me, I am my own worse contributor. It’s like a cancer.  Once you let it in, it takes hold of everything you do, especially your writing. 

When I feel the stronghold of doubt capturing my thoughts, I remind myself that I was born to write.  I also find that if my mood changes and I’m feeling inadequate, that immersing myself in my imaginary characters is a great release for doubt.  In my writing world my characters can do anything and I don’t doubt that, so why do I doubt my ability to write when that is real?

Studying the craft of writing is also a great replacement for doubt.  The more educated you become, the less you doubt yourself.  I do my best to study from the writers I admire.  I learn from the ones that are willing to share their experiences about how they defeated their doubt.  Then I apply some of the methods to my own writing.

I released my first science fiction ebook in January 2016. I had the manuscript professionally converted for kindle, had a professional cover done, and still right before I went to add it on Amazon for the world to see, doubt crept in again.  I emailed an author I know online and I’ll never forget what he said, “If you wait until you think you are good enough, you will never publish.  Just do it! 

From those words of encouragement I went from doubt to confidence.  You never know when one person’s words will be just what you need to hear at that particular moment. You need to reach out when you need encouragement.  The best advice I can leave writers with, is to find a mentor or writing buddy to help encourage you along the way. 

When you see your final work published, you won’t be able to contain the excitement you have to write that next book.  Writing isn’t easy but it is self- gratifying and for some of us, it’s as important as breathing.