Notes from The Writer's Corner: Managing Creative Anxiety

Thank you to all the writers who joined us this week! If you missed the live session, here is a snippet of what we discussed.

After working with hundreds of writers, I know most creative anxiety stems from one place—fear. Like all anxiety, that fear often focuses on the future instead of the present. Fear cannot only stifle the work you already have in progress, it can also stop you from creating any work at all.  

Before we talk about ways to reframe fear, let’s identify some of the most common ones …

1. You are afraid you aren’t talented enough

2. You are afraid your work will be criticized or rejected as not good enough

3. You are afraid someone else is better or has a better version of this story

4. You are afraid your work/topic isn’t important enough (who will care about it?)

5. You are afraid that what you are writing about will upset someone (and this fear is so strong that, even if they never read it, it stops you from writing it) 

6. You are afraid to go back and explore something that was painful or upsetting

7. You are afraid you neglected your creative side for so long that maybe it’s too late

8. You are afraid that you may look back on this work someday and see it as a huge waste of time

9. You are afraid no one wants to hear stories about XYZ anymore

10. You are afraid to start until your story is mapped out in your head  

Now, let’s imagine this … 
A woman arrives at the beach on a hot day. She looks at the water and thinks how beautiful it is. What a dream it will be to go for a swim. She imagines herself floating, the way the water will feel on her skin, the rush of the waves as they go by. She remembers how much she loved this sensation when she was younger.

She walks to the water’s edge. A wave hits the shore, the water is cold. And now she isn’t so sure. Maybe she’ll just stand in the surf? Does she really want to get her hair wet? I’m being silly, she thinks. Just jump in already! But she can’t bring herself to do it. Instead, she slowly walks in, silently saying to herself, “This is torture.” Until a wave comes. She has no choice but to dive in and within a few seconds, like magic, she’s happy. 

The real question is: Why do we torture ourselves? Why don’t we just jump in?

This scenario is not so different from many experiences in our life. Something speaks to us, it beckons us in. Maybe that prompts us to sign up for a class or try something long-forgotten or start something completely new … and then we get there and fear presents itself, doubt surfaces. We question ourselves. 

Are we brave enough to really jump all the way in?

Reframing fear for the writer: 

• Often we move through these emotions without recognizing what we are doing. The first step is to STOP and see them for what they are. 

• Understand that to write in a state of fear will create boring work. 

• Understand that anxiety is part of the process (as it is any time we take a risk and put ourselves “out there”) and it will come and go.

• Understand that you cannot let it dictate how your writing should be shaped.

• Understand that it is not fully possible to shape the work before you create it.

• Start to see writing as any other artform—layered, something that will have many drafts. (It will not be perfect the first time.)

• Start to see feedback as something that is worth thinking about but also remember that not everyone is YOUR reader. You do not need to take all the feedback you are given. You may get feedback that allows you to see the work in a different way—stay open to it but remember you don’t have to take all the advice you are given.

• Remember that you do not need to share everything you write or every idea you are thinking about. Find writing friends that will encourage and support your work.

• It is not your job as the writer to place value on the story that is calling you. If you feel compelled to write about something, your job is to tell that story the best way you can. 

• Understand that it is often through the writing that we are able to find meaning in a story. If a painful experience enters your thoughts again and again but finds no outlet, it will continue to haunt you. 

• Understand that if you wait to see a story mapped out in your head, you will never start. It is often in the writing that we find a path to follow. 

• Understand that it is more likely, if writing is your creative outlet, that you will regret that you didn’t tell the story than that you did. 

• Remember that creativity needs to be fed to grow. 

• Know that writing is a brave act.

Takeaway: To write requires confidence. It also requires vulnerability. The writer must not look to others but within themselves to create. They must stay grounded in the present.

Quote: “Your fear will always be triggered by your creativity, because creativity asks you to enter into realms of uncertain outcome, and fear hates uncertain outcome.” - From Big Magic: Creative Living Beyond Fear by Elizabeth Gilbert

Comment below: What are some of your biggest writing fears? How do you redirect yourself when they come up? What ways have you found to work through them?

Next week in The Writer’s Corner

September 23 at 1 p.m. EST/10 a.m. PST - Kara Kavensky on Connectivity and [Your] Writing
In this session, we will do a deep dive into connectivity and writing. Special guest Kara Kavensky will walk us through steps you can take to build confidence in your writing, grow your platform, and share your truth. A born storyteller, Kara loves sharing inspiring stories. She has written thousands of personal interest stories, op-eds, and features on fascinating people for local and national magazines and news outlets. Kara’s debut memoir, FINDING JOY, is a result of one of her interviews (release date TBD). You can also listen to podcasts Finding Joy with Kara and her newest series, Record Scratch with Kara. Zoom link will be sent out Monday morning!