Author: Nicole Simms

Hi everyone! I’m back with some more self-doubt fighting action. A few days ago I spotted something on the Writers and Artists’ Facebook page. They were doing a read aloud challenge, where people would video themselves reading out the first few lines of their novel, and uploading it for all to see. Now being a fellow self-doubter while I loved the idea, I couldn’t imagine myself ever doing that. My mind filled with all the negative comments I could receive. However, after having to read out my work for my writer’s group it got me thinking about all the ways you could possibly try the read aloud challenge, and this is where I got the idea for this post.

Before joining my writing group I never imagined that at this stage, in my journey, I would be reading out my work to a group of people; I haven’t even read my stories out to my family. But with the challenge set, even though fear and doubt threatened to cripple me, I took the challenge on and once completed I realised that I was worried for no reason. On the second reading challenge people were even impressed with what I had written, which was a surprise to me. The one thing I have learnt is that it is important to read your work out, not only can it help boost your confidence, it can also help you see how potential readers react to your work, and allow you to receive valuable feedback. Therefore, to help you find a way to try the read aloud challenge I have listed some ideas for you to consider.

Ways to do the read aloud challenge:

• Read out your story in your writing group: An extra challenge, I will be trying, is standing up, and reading out your story while standing up in front of your group. This will be terrifying for some, but trust me, you’ll feel great once you’ve done it; it’s a real achievement.
• Do a reading in front of your family and friends: If you are not ready to start reading in front of strangers, then why not get all your family and friends together. You can imagine that you are an author who is reading out their novel to an audience, even offer coffee and tea.
• Attend an open mic night: If you write poetry there are places that allow you to get up and read your poem to the people in the pub or bar. This is something I never knew about before. It has been advised that you choose a suitable location to read your work out first, i.e. don’t read a poem with blood and guts in a family pub.
• Read your story in front of your work colleagues: Of course you shouldn’t stand up and randomly start reading your story while people are working, but if during a lunch break you ask if people wouldn’t mind listening to you read out your story then you will have an opportunity to read out your work and see what they think.

Here are some examples, but if you believe you could manage the actual read aloud challenge then ignore Mr Self-doubt and try it.

This journey will often require you to step out of your comfort zone, be it submitting your story, uploading your story for feedback, reading aloud. Rather than letting Mr Self-doubt talk you out of it, rise to the challenge, even if you are shaking to the bones, you stand up and shout, “I accept!” I set you all a challenge, you don’t need to video it, but I want you all to read out your work, and let us know how you get on. Trust me it doesn’t hurt as much as you think it would.

To end this post, here is another inspirational quote:

“Every accomplishment starts with the decision to try.” – Author unknown

Hi all! I’m back again and this time I have a very interesting post for you. Since starting my self-doubt fighting posts I have shared with you all my little tricks and ways you can fight your own Mr Self Doubt, however, this time I thought it would be great to see how other writers deal with Mr Self Doubt. So I called on the other Horror Tree contributors to answer some questions, and share how they deal with self-doubt.

So here you have it the Horror Tree crew deal with Mr Self Doubt.

Nicole J Simms (Me)

1. What do you write, why, and when did you start? I mainly write horror, fantasy and crime (the crime bit is new). I tend to write more horror than anything, there’s a darkness within this pink bubble. As well as writing fiction, I also write articles about dealing with self-doubt as a writer on this lovely website here. I used to write a lot when I was younger: plays, poems, etc., however I decided to give up the “unrealistic dream” (shocking, I know), and concentrate on a “real” career, the “real” career didn’t go to plan, so to fill the void in my life I started to write again. It’s been over 2 years now since I started on this new journey, and any success I’ve had has been a real surprise to me. I write because I have something to say and because it makes me feel complete, cliché I know. It’s like I’m home, and that dream I had that I would once affect readers the way authors have affected me is alive and brighter than ever before.

2. Have you ever experienced self-doubt? If yes, what causes it, and what do you do to overcome it? I experience self-doubt all the time; the only time doubt doesn’t creep in is while I’m writing, but once it comes to editing or submitting it’s there saying all those mean things. What causes my self-doubt is the fear of rejection and failure. I have this big issue with failing, and rejection hurts like you’ve been kicked in the gut. What I do to overcome my doubt is to write these posts and to keep on writing because I will never reach my goal if I don’t keep on trying.

3. Has self-doubt ever stopped you in your journey? If yes, how did it stop you? Yes, earlier on in my writing journey after facing so many rejections I stopped writing, it didn’t last long though I soon had to give in. However, I stopped editing and submitting, which I hugely regret because I now have a huge pile of unedited stories that is still taking forever to bring down.

4. What part of the writing journey do you fear the most and why? (Rejection, submitting etc.) Rejection, that someone will confirm my fears that I’m a fraud and couldn’t write a shopping list. It’s not as bad as it used to be; I don’t spend ages hovering over the send button anymore, and I bounce back from rejections a lot better, but it’s still there.

5. Why do you keep writing, and what are your future writing plans? It’s simple, it’s because I don’t know what I would do if I didn’t write. I get grumpy if I haven’t written for a while, it’s crazy, but I just love it. I feel complete, and so proud after I finalise a story. I’ve had a taste of success and hunger for more.

In the short term I’m looking to submit loads more short stories, work on my novella and start editing that novel of mine. Future plans, I would love to write full time. I had a lovely day the other day, I wrote, did some baking and then edited a story, it gave me an insight into what could be the future and to be honest there’s nothing better. I’m not after fame and fortune, I just want to be able to live a comfortable life doing what I love, and doing something that gives me life.

Franklin Murdock

1. What do you write, why, and when did you start? I write speculative fiction, usually the dark stuff.  I think a lot of my writing is therapeutic, not in the sense of working through trauma or the grind of everyday life, but rather as a way to work through a kind of existential crisis that pops up every time a story announces its presence in my thoughts.  I get drawn into these story ideas and I just have to write them, though first I have to work them out in my head like a puzzle.  Who is doing what, where and how?  Why?  WHY is WHO doing that WHY WHERE?!  It’s almost compulsory.  I love it, though, the mystery of inspiration.

I’ve been writing for most of my life.  I started composing stories when I was really little, maybe six or seven.  They were rudimentary, of course, but had all the elements of an established story:  plot, characters, settings, etc.  I’ve loved the act of committing stories to paper my whole life.

1. Have you ever experienced self-doubt? If yes, what causes it, and what do you do to overcome it? I’ve wavered in my confidence as a writer, though I’ve always known I was talented and creative (hey, we’re all allowed to step outside the circle of modesty every now and then).  The rejections were the worst probably, as every writer worth their salt can attest.  That and just how S L O W the process of creation to publication can take.  I’ve really had to learn patience in the last fifteen years.

I’ve found that separating myself from the whole business of writing for a few hours or days allows me to come back to the table with a clear frame of mind.  Sometimes you just have to let the toilet flush, heh.

1. Has self-doubt ever stopped you in your journey? If yes, how did it stop you? I’m a motivated person by nature, so I’ve never given up.  As I mentioned before, I’ve gotten down at times, but always seem to bounce right back after a setback (rejection, stalled plot, etc.).
2. What part of the writing journey do you fear the most and why? (Rejection, submitting etc.) I used to fear being lazy with my first draft because it meant doing THAT MUCH MORE work when it came to editing, but — like most successful writers will tell you — that first draft is supposed to be a mess and editing is supposed to be hard work.  I still find myself dreading the editing process, though, because I find myself getting bogged down too quickly.  I have to keep telling myself that the story is worth saving, that all the work will pay off if I truly believe the story I’m writing is a good one.
3. Why do you keep writing, and what are your future writing plans? I keep writing because I have to, really.  All the stories that I think up demand to be written at different decibels.  The only way to truly exorcise them is to get them on paper.  But, to that effect, I also relish the pride that comes with presenting one’s creation to the world.

I plan to keep going, one day at a time and to always take more chances.

Angeline Trevena

1. What do you write, why, and when did you start? I write horror and fantasy fiction, mainly short stories, along with poetry and journalism. I write for one reason; because I have to. Characters, settings, plot ideas, and first lines will crowd their way into my head, and I have to get them on paper to shut them up. I dread to think what would happen if I let them build up in there! I’ve been writing for my entire life. My mum has a box of stories that I wrote as a young child; so young, that I don’t remember writing them. My late grandmother was a writer, so I guess it’s just in my blood.
2. Have you ever experienced self-doubt? If yes, what causes it, and what do you do to overcome it? Almost daily. Every time I submit a story for publication, the self-doubt gets worse and worse the longer I have to wait for a reply. If I get an acceptance, the self-doubt goes away. If it’s a rejection, it multiplies ten-fold. But that’s just what writing is. My way to overcome it is to distract myself by writing something new. I always have to have something on the go. It doesn’t stop me checking my email every three minutes though!
3.  Has self-doubt ever stopped you in your journey? If yes, how did it stop you? There have been some rejections that have left me feeling like I never want to write again. There have also been comments online that have really hurt. I’ll dwell on them for years. Writing isn’t just standing naked in front of someone, it’s cutting your stomach open and letting them dig around inside you, asking them to judge everything they see. It’s an intrusion like no other. But, if it was easy, it wouldn’t be so satisfying when we succeed.
4. What part of the writing journey do you fear the most and why? (Rejection, submitting etc.) The most unlikely of horror writers; I am scared of almost everything in life. As a result, I’ve learnt some seriously effective coping strategies over the years. Everything about writing scares me; submitting, rejections, reviews, public appearances, success. Every time I submit something, I have to count down from five before hitting send. Likewise opening submission responses. I’m a massive wimp who has learnt to look brave. But then, aren’t most of us?
5. Why do you keep writing, and what are your future writing plans? I will always write. Despite being scared of every part of the writing process, I love it in equal measure. A few weeks ago I was asked to sign a book for the first time. It was a glimpse of the future I want. I’ll settle for nothing less than worldwide fame! Chances are, I’ll never make it, but that’s certainly not going to stop me from trying.

Stuart Conover

1. What do you write, why, and when did you start?What do you write is a little open-ended. I like to think that I write horror and suspense with a dash of science fiction on occasion. I write because I am passionate about writing. I really enjoy writing and when I have someone else get lost in another world for a little bit, there’s nothing better! I’ve been writing for as long as I can remember though for the longest time I was writing as a side job and not fiction.
2. Have you ever experienced self-doubt? If yes, what causes it, and what do you do to overcome it? Who hasn’t? I feel like every time I get ready to send out a submission I feel a little bit of it, but unless you truly feel something hasn’t been edited enough you can’t give into it. Self-doubt is something that can eat at you and paralyze you. For me, I just push through even if it’s there.

3. Has self-doubt ever stopped you in your journey? If yes, how did it stop you? It hasn’t in a long time. I decided long ago that we’re only here once and have to make the best of our time. Stalling or quitting can’t factor into that.

4. What part of the writing journey do you fear the most and why? (Rejection, submitting etc.) The submission process. Or better yet, if I am prepared for the submission process. I don’t mind being rejected, but if I’m rejected from not doing my due diligence in editing or formatting or preparing my work, that’s on me.

5. Why do you keep writing, and what are your future writing plans?I keep writing as I have a ton of stories to tell. I haven’t even made a dent into my idea list at this point for short stories and that doesn’t even factor in my novel ideas. My short term future writing plans (through the end of the year) is to finish at least 5 of the 10 anthology submissions that I am eyeing as well as finish the first draft of my first novel.

Kerry G.S. Lipp

1. What do you write, why, and when did you start? I write a little bit of everything.  Mostly horror and I focus a lot on hardcore horror because it’s the most interesting to me.  Most fun to write.  I try to make it funny too, which works with the right audience but is completely wasted on the wrong audience. The line is razor thin, and I have no idea where it is.  I studied a little creative writing in college with some great professors and peers, but didn’t get serious about it until several years later.  I’ve been serious for about 2.5 years now.  In those 2.5 years I’ve worked my butt off, but I’ve also been very fortunate.

2. Have you ever experienced self-doubt? If yes, what causes it, and what do you do to overcome it? Self-doubt and writing (and probably creating in general) go hand in hand.  The constant cycles of “this is awesome” followed promptly by “this sucks” is part of the never-ending uphill battle.  Obviously you think it’s awesome, because you’ve written or submitted it, but you gotta patiently wait for a judge, jury and executioner to evaluate your story’s value and nail all the shit you missed straight to the wall.  Most times, even if they see value, they don’t see enough to take you on-board.  Take as little as you can personally.  Competition is tough these days and any editor will tell you the same thing, that they reject great shit, shit that they love every day because it’s just not quite right.  Vague as hell, but I think a day in an editor’s shoes would open the eyes of every writer out there.

Also, writing hardcore horror, I’m kind of in a different boat.  Not only do I have to worry about editors/publishers/readers/reviewers not liking my story, I have to worry about them saying shit like I only write “rape fantasy” or “gore porn” or “I was so offended that I couldn’t even finish.”  All of which I’ve heard from time to time.  This alone doesn’t bother me, but I really do try to be diverse with what I do and want each story to speak for itself and not have some editor or reader immediately dismiss me as the “rapey gore guy” because of ONE story that they saw.  At least read a few more of my hardcore stories before you make that judgment 😉  I don’t even know if editors do that, and I’d like to think that the professional ones don’t, but I’m sure readers due, and combined, that’s my biggest issue of fear/doubt.

As a sidebar, The Wicked Library podcast has been very good to me and its host, Nelson Pyles, a great writer and someone I’m happy to know (who I actually met through horror tree) gave me one of the best compliments I’ve had so far.  He’s noticed and voiced my diversity and for that, I can’t thank him enough.  It helps with the self-doubt when you KNOW that at least a few people get it.

The best way to overcome self-doubt, at least for me, is to ask yourself one question.

“Have I done the best that I can?” (At least considering the confines of the deadline)

If the answer is “yes.”  Then you’re brain gets to proudly say,

“Then screw it.”

And you hit send.

I try to write honest and fearless and let things fall where they may.

3. Has self-doubt ever stopped you in your journey? If yes, how did it stop you? It did at the beginning.  I think experience and slowly gathering acceptances, personalized rejections and momentum eventually hinders (or at least helps with) self-doubt.  But having said that, some things still poke out.  For example, I’m starting to edit a novel right now.  I’m not going to quit, but it sucks (the novel and the process of editing 85,000 words)

Also, I don’t like knowing that I’m short-listed for an anthology or contest.  I’m not a big fan of hope, especially the false kind.  And it seems like more often than not the fiction monkey is throwing shit at your face instead of offering you a banana.  I could live without knowing that I’m the best of the worst and that I just missed the cut.

4. What part of the writing journey do you fear the most and why? (Rejection, submitting etc.) I don’t like it when people misread my stuff.  I’m also terrified of my parents reading my stuff.  They’re awesome and cool as hell, but they aren’t exactly my target audience.  The biggest fear I have is people who shouldn’t be following me on facebook or social media freaking out and mistaking my online persona or my fiction for who I really am.  I usually play a character online.  A very exaggerated version of myself, one of these days someone isn’t going to be able to handle it and I’ll probably find myself in some trouble.  I kind of answered the second part to this question in question 2.  Sorry.  I really don’t want to get labelled as a one trick pony.  I want to put my heart into everything (even the rapey gross stuff).  I want to be diverse.  If I catch myself writing too much of one thing, I immediately shift gears with the next piece.

5. Why do you keep writing, and what are your future writing plans? I keep writing because I love it.  Or love to hate it, or love to use it as an excuse to avoid hanging out with family/friends/drink excessive alcohol.  Or possibly because I hate myself and just haven’t realized it yet.

I write because it makes me laugh, it makes me cry, it heals and breaks my heart.  Sometimes I even have something to say.  And with the non-fiction stuff I’ve done with 666 Bottles of Blood on the Wall I hope I’ve helped a few people.  That’s important to me, too.  It really sucks that I’ve had to put the brakes on that, but there’s just so much other shit out there I want to write/read/and do plus I have an Xbox 360.  I think that was an important part of my beginning though, and I’ll be around as long as Stu will put up with me.  And forever grateful for the opportunity he gave me.  I’ll even buy that person a beer when I meet him at a con one of these days.

Future writing plans are to edit this novel I’ve finally finished, keep writing and submitting short stories like a mad man.  I’ve been trying to do a story a week, but one of them turned into a 10,000 novella, (I refuse to use the word novelette) so now I’m like 3 weeks behind.  Been collaborating a little bit lately too.  I’ve got a few more collaborations in the works.

I will wear every rejection like a badge of courage and stare in disbelief at each acceptance.  I know I’ll never be Stephen King, but I also know that I’ll never quit.

And to be completely honest, it’s pretty cool to look at my contributor copy shelf and know that I am a part of all of that.  That feels real good.

Kai Wilson-Viola

1. What do you write, why, and when did you start?
   I write a bit of everything, and I started at four, crayon in hand.  As for why – I get unwell when I don’t.  It’s really motivating when you get physical symptoms if you leave it too long.  Plus, the characters never shut up for very long.  Even if I gag them 🙂
2. Have you ever experienced self-doubt? If yes, what causes it, and what do you do to overcome it? Yes, and to be honest, I haven’t.  I think a healthy skepticism is good for anything, and I use my own self-doubt to question my work, so I never relax and I always write my *best*.
3. Has self-doubt ever stopped you in your journey? If yes, how did it stop you?
   Yes.  For a long time I was worried about the backlash because I moderate a few forums.  I was threatened and I began doubting my own ability.  It’s taken a long time to bring my confidence back up to where it was – but a lot of that was also about being unemployed.  I could talk a lot about that, but the fact that I’m in a job that I love has really helped my self-doubt in general.
4. What part of the writing journey do you fear the most and why? (Rejection, submitting etc.) I used to fear rejection, but a lot of what I’ve decided is that it’s ok to learn from feedback, which is what rejection is.
5. Why do you keep writing, and what are your future writing plans?
   I keep writing because I have to.  I don’t plan very far ahead, mostly because I can’t, my life has been nothing as I planned so far, so I’ve decided, for the most part, to go with the flow.  I do have a plan to get books out, but that’s the wonderful thing about being self-published.  Even with all of the mess and arguments about where we all fall in the scheme of things, I wouldn’t change it for the world.

So there you have it folks. You are not alone when it comes to self-doubt. We have all experienced it, and not just with our writing. The only important thing is that you push that doubt aside and keep on going until you reach that goal.

I’d like to say a big thank you to the Horror Tree Crew for answering my questions and helping me create this insightful post. If you want to find out more about the writers, see the links below.

Kai Wilson-Viola

Franklin Murdock

Angeline Trevena

Stuart Conover

Kerry G.S. Lipp

To end this post, here is another inspirational quote:

“If doubt is challenging you and you do not act, doubts will grow. Challenge the doubts with action and you will grow. Doubt and action are incompatible.” – (John Kanary)

Hi all! I’m back, a little later than normal, but here again to share my self-doubt fighting ways. Today I am going to talk about something I have recently experienced myself. As you can see from the title I will be talking about writing groups. I never realised what fear would arise from considering joining a writing group, at one point I even tried talking myself out of it. So as I’m sure I’m not the only writer out there who fears writing groups in this post I will be sharing my reasons why a writing group is a good idea, and help you to defeat Mr Self-Doubt’s sneaky attack.

The one main fear that can come from looking into joining a writing group is that your work will be torn to shreds, and your ability will be questioned, which for us self-doubters is our biggest fear, to have confirmed what you already fear. However, as I have often said in my past posts Mr Self-doubt often lies to you, if writing is your passion, then you do not need permission to do so, and no one starts off as a brilliant writer, like everything in life practice makes perfect.

So here are my 5 reasons to join a writer’s group:

• You get to meet and interact with other writers: Writing can at times feel lonely, so being able to get out and mingle with other writers is helpful. Even though your family and friends are supportive it can be difficult for them to understand what it is to write.
• You can gain additional support: This journey can often be difficult, especially when faced with constant rejection, so it helps to have even more people in your life to help support you through, as long as you are prepared to also support your group, it needs to be give and take.
• You can receive feedback and improvements for your work: It is ideal to have as many people as possible to look at your work, often people who love you won’t tell you when you have done something wrong, and so this is where a writing group comes in handy; they won’t be afraid to say when something sucks, but hopefully they say so in a constructive way.
• You can make new friends: Getting writing advice and support isn’t the only positive, you can find yourself meeting new and interesting people.
• Discover new writing opportunities: Word of mouth is still one of the best ways to find out information. The members in your group could know of a website that helps you find places to submit stories, and of competitions or events even. Every bit helps. Yes, if I meet horror writers I shall spread the word about The HorrorTree,

At times you might come across an unfriendly group who might be everything you fear, however, if you don’t take the opportunity you can never know the answer to your what if question, and if you do not like the group you can always leave and look for another. On this journey, it’s about taking risks, rising against fear to achieve that final goal, so put fear and doubt aside and go see what awaits you.

To end this post, here is another inspirational quote:

“You gain strength, courage, and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face. You must do the thing which you think you cannot do.” – (Eleanor Roosevelt)

Hi everyone! I’m back again, here to share some words of wisdom, or so I hope. Today, I have a topic for you that I’m sure many of you have struggled to deal with many times before. As you can see from the title, I’m going to be discussing the risk of looking for perfection.

When faced with the prospect of rejection, we can often find ourselves desperate to avoid any chances of this happening by aiming to create the perfect manuscript. We do this by painstakingly checking our grammar, spelling, format, style, plot etc. in the hopes to create something flawless. However, by aiming for such an unattainable goal not only can you waste too much time, you can also lose faith in your abilities. Now when you are already dealing with self-doubt the last thing any of us need is something else to make us doubt ourselves further.

So to help you understand why fighting for perfection is a doomed quest, I’ve listed five points for you to consider:

• Stops you submitting: So many times I’ve missed story submission deadline because the story wasn’t perfect enough to submit, and every time I do this I beat myself up over the missed opportunity. Sure, there might have been a misplaced comma, but who knows the editors might have liked it enough to overlook this. Sometimes you just have to go for it, take the risk, and see what happens.
• Makes you focus solely on the negative: To perfect your manuscript you must hunt for any mistakes or flaws, now while this isn’t a bad thing (this is why we do the editing process after all), constantly concentrating on the flaws can make you blind when it comes to the positives, and it’s the positives that matter the most.
• You over edit: I’ve often found that my stories have been so over edited that it no longer holds the sparkle that it once had. It resembles a show home, lacking in personality rather than something that might be rough around the edges but still grabs your full attention. Edit as much as you need to, not as much as you want to.
• Lose confidence: This links with point two, if you only see the negatives you will lose faith in your skills as a writer, and self-belief is important if you’re on this journey.
• End up hating your story: This is another one I’ve experienced, this point links everything together, you convince yourself so much that your work needs to be perfect, so when it isn’t you will feel nothing but disappointment rather than the pride you should feel for making the time to sit and write the story.

To help you find ways to avoid the hunt for perfection, I’ve listed another five points for you to consider:

• Focus on what’s important: As long as a story has an exciting plot and strong characters that readers care about it doesn’t matter if you put one comma in the wrong place. By producing a strong story you can be forgiven for any minor flaws.
• Remind yourself that perfection doesn’t exist: It’s true, it doesn’t, and we spend so much time in our lives aiming to be perfect whether that is the way we look, our careers, roles in the family. However, there is no such thing, nothings perfect, if you look closely enough, you’ll see that everything has something wrong with it.
• Remember, you’re human, you will make mistakes: You will make a mistake, it happens, it doesn’t make you a rubbish writer. So instead of beating yourself up over a typo (as long as you don’t have too many), accept that all you can do is your best, and as time goes by you will get better.
• Set a limit on how many times you edit: If you are like me, you can edit too much, which causes the issue that I mentioned above, so to defeat that you can set a limit on the amount of times you edit your story. Once you hit that limit, then you better leave the story alone and submit, and only after a certain amount of rejections, or if you get some constructive criticism, should you do another edit.
• Get some feedback: Sometimes you can get so blinded by your quest for perfection that you can’t see the true beauty of your story, and this is where getting someone to read your story for you helps. If your chosen reader comes back saying they were gripped by your story, enjoyed it and yearned for more, then leave that delete button alone and submit that story. However, if they notice nothing but mistakes, then you need to do another edit.

That’s all I have for you today. Let us all forget about being perfect, instead focus on being the greatest writer you can be, and join me as we take another step closer to beating Mr Self Doubt.

To end this post, here is another inspirational quote:

“If you look for perfection, you’ll never be content.” ― (Leo Tolstoy, Anna Karenina)

Hello everyone! I’m back with some more self-doubt fighting tips. Today, I’ve got a very interesting topic for you all, thanks to a great suggestion. I will be discussing how you can deal with the deflated eureka moment. I’m sure you’ve all had this experience at one point in your writing journey. You have an idea; it seems great, you’re buzzing, and then the doubts start to creep in. You start to second guess yourself, and think that the idea is too similar to something already out there, and what was once a great idea becomes a stupid one.

An idea is a combination of old ideas, therefore we never really come up with a brand new idea. This is something I learnt while studying for my degree. What is new is the way we present the idea. Who we are and our lives greatly affect the way we write and how we see things, so you must bear this in mind because an idea may not be new but the way you execute it will be.

Now I know that some of you will still be doubting your ideas, so I have again returned to my famous 5 tips, to show you how you can beat the deflated eureka moment.

Here are the tips to make sure your idea isn’t the same old same:

• Research: I find that when I get an idea I want to start writing straight away, and write it down before the idea leaves my mind. However, I have found that spending some time on research can help you stretch your idea and learn something new, which can improve your idea. So before you start writing, dive into the research and explore the stream of information.
• Throw in a random idea: The one way to make your idea different is to add something random. You’ll be surprised how this can set your story on an unusual path. You have a serial killer, perhaps he could be an ice cream addict which distracts him from the actual killing. This example may turn the horror into a comedy, but it’s something to consider.
• Tweak the idea: There are many ways to tweak an idea. Firstly you can change the POV (point of view), rather than the victim being the main character try the villain or vice versa, or an animal even. You could also come at the idea from a different angle. Instead of a monster wanting to destroy the town have them looking for world peace, and the townsfolk being the real villains.
• Merge ideas: They say two heads are better than one, so why not try two ideas. The single idea might be similar to another, but if you add another one you might find yourself coming up with something new. For example, you have a monster that collects teeth (similar to the tooth fairy right), you have another idea of a ghost protecting her/his family (the film ghost). Now merge them together and you get a monster targeting a family trying to steal their teeth and a ghost doing its best to stop it. Not the best example, but you get the point.
• Allow the idea to grow: Sometimes an idea just needs time to mature, and that’s why I carry an Idea journal. Whenever I get an idea I note it down, and sometimes months pass before I return to that idea, but when I do the idea becomes something more than I previously imagined. This Idea journal has also been useful when it came to merging ideas, which I have done many times before, trust me it helps.

Hopefully you’ve learnt that you don’t need to allow Mr Self Doubt to destroy your eureka moment, and with these tips you can come back fighting when he begins to mock you for being a copycat. So you hold those ideas high, be proud, feel good and then get to some serious work.

To end this post, here is another inspirational quote:

“It’s not who you think you are that holds you back; it’s who you think you’re not.” – (Unknown)

Hi everyone! I’m back and this time I’m coming full force with my self-doubt fighting sword. It’s June, six months into 2014, and it’s time that we, as writers, start congratulating ourselves for still being on this journey. If you already do this, that’s great, but if not then I urge you to keep on reading.

I’m sure you all know that when you’re dealing with self-doubt finding a way to keep going can be difficult, especially with the fear of rejection. Regardless of what we read every time our stories are rejected it hurts, it feels personal, and Mr Self Doubt mocks you for even thinking you have the right to call yourself a Writer. Ha to you Mr Self Doubt because we are still writing and in six months’ time we will still be writing, submitting, and dragging ourselves along that yellow brick road.

So what is the point of this post? Well today I’m here to tell you, and myself, that it’s time to pat ourselves on the back and feel good about being on this rollercoaster ride of a journey. This is important because it’s easy to constantly put yourself down and tear yourself to shreds, and this can often block you from doing what you love, which is writing. So for once rather than putting yourself down, let’s celebrate our successes no matter how minor they are.

I want all you Self-doubters to join me on this quest, and to help you on your way I’ve listed some times that you NEED to give yourself that well deserved pat on the pack. When to praise yourself:

• When you’ve finished a first draft: I’m sure you’ll agree that when you write, ‘The End’ you can’t help but feel proud that you finished something you started which in itself is another challenge.
• When you’ve submitted a story: The fact that you submitted knowing that rejection could follow is something that definitely needs celebrating.
• When you keep writing even after a rejection: You can feel like you are dragging yourself out of a hole when you consider writing after rejection, it isn’t easy, so if you do then that’s a point to you.
• When you sit down and start writing: There’s so many distractions, and at times it can feel like you are wasting your time doing something that you might not get anything from. However, writing isn’t pointless if you love what you do.
• When you get that eureka moment: You got an idea that’s got you buzzing then celebrate, and then go write.

As you can see there are many times when you should praise yourself, you can even add to the list, all that matters is that you embrace the positives, which I have discussed in a previous post. Embrace them and keep writing because this is a long road we are on.

To end this post, here is another inspirational quote:

“Get it down. Take chances. It may be bad, but it’s the only way you can do anything really good.” – (William Faulkner)

Hi all! I’m back with my self-doubt fighting words, and today’s topic deals with something that damages your, already frail, self-belief more than just rejection alone. Shocker, I know, what could be worse than rejection? The simple answer is negative feedback, or comments.

Now let’s get into feedback, we all know how valuable it is, how it helps us to improve our work if we get constructive criticism. I have found it helpful when an editor sends you a message just to say what is wrong with the piece you have submitted, but what helps me to see that a story is still workable is just a few words of encouragement, just to let you know that the story isn’t a total fail, and you’re not wasting your time on this journey. Now while many of us don’t even get a rejection let alone feedback, there are some occasions when the feedback you receive is just negative, not necessarily horrible, but having each negative part of your story listed, and no mention of whether there is anything good about your work at all can feel just as bad as your work being called crap. Just imagine a child giving their mother a drawing they are so proud of only for her to tear it up in their faces and say it was rubbish. It would hurt, really hurt.

So the question is, how do you get over this, and fight the urge to quit? Well folks I have some pointers to share with you, and they have helped me through my dark periods of self-doubt.

• Remember it’s the story that’s the issue not necessarily you as a writer.
• Remember why you wanted to write the story in the first place. This can be the positive anchor that you need to not lose hope on the story.
• Look to your more successful stories, compare that story to them, and look to them to remind yourself that you are not a huge failure.
• Keep writing, and keep reading.
• Don’t read the story too soon after rejection, this will only convince yourself that there is even more faults with the story, which isn’t helpful
• Remind yourself of your goal and why you are doing this.
• Remember this journey is a snail pace rollercoaster, there will be downs but there will also be ups.
• You can improve and get better, you just need to keep going.

The pain of rejection never eases, that I have realised, but what does change is the way you deal with it. Overtime you will heal quicker and continue marching through because folks if you are in this for the love of it the only time you will stop is when you draw your last breath.

So come on folks let’s continue following this yellow brick road because we cannot allow Mr Self Doubt to win.

To end this post, here is another inspirational quote:

“I seek strength, not to be greater than other, but to fight my greatest enemy, the doubts within myself”― (P.C. Cast)

Writer or Author, what am I?

This was a question that had entered my mind recently. A question that had encouraged Mr Self Doubt to start mocking me for thinking I was either of them, but to silence his noise I decided to look into what the real difference is.

I have seen many websites that say that if you have work published then an author is what you are. I was even told that due to having work published I could call myself an author, but I have always associated the word author to those who have had a ‘novel’ published. So realising that I may not be alone in my confusion, I have decided to do this post.

To start with let’s look at what a writer is. According to the Oxford Dictionary a writer is:

‘A person who has written something or who writes in a particular way:the writer of the letter. A person who writes books, stories, or articles as a job or occupation:Dickens was a prolific writera writer of short stories.’

Looking further into this I found that a writer is also defined as someone who writes, which is the present; this is mentioned on this website. Also if you are a writer you are not necessarily the author of the piece, this I will explain later.

Now let’s look at an author. According to the Oxford Dictionary an author is:

‘A writer of a book, article, or document:he is the author of several books on the subject.Someone who writes books as a profession. An originator of a plan or idea.’

Again going back to the same website I mentioned before, a writer is someone who writes, an author however is someone who has written, so it refers to the past. As I had previously thought you cannot be considered an author of a piece unless the piece is published. Previously I mentioned that a writer will not necessarily be the author of the piece, if you are writing someone else’s idea then you will be the writer but never the author because the idea wasn’t yours. For example, if you write a biography. For more detailed information on this, this website is very useful.

So what do you call yourself? Well if you’re published, you can call yourself an author, if not then a writer. However, when you are suffering with self-doubt you’ll be struggling to call yourself a writer let alone anything else, and at times a label can make things even worse. My advice to you would be to not worry about labels just keep doing what you’re doing, continue on this journey and hopefully one day you will not have to struggle with what to call yourself, you will just simply be.

So my answer to my question is, it doesn’t matter either way, just keep writing. However, due to my self-doubt I think I will focus on calling myself a writer first before I try anything else. It just depends on what you are comfortable with.

To end this post, here is another inspirational quote:

“It’s none of their business that you have to learn to write. Let them think you were born that way.” – (Ernest Hemingway)