5 Ways to overcome self-doubt while writing!

With National Novel Writing Month over half way finished, I thought it might be a good idea to write a post about a problem that plagues me when I’m writing. It’s also a problem that the core concept of NaNoWriMo attempts to solve – eliminating self-doubt during the writing process. Just write, and worry about problems (grammar, spelling, etc.) later.

Yes, self-doubt is a problem I struggle with each time I sit down to pound out a short story, blog post, essay, or even an email. Usually this problem comes in the form of questions that pop into my head while I’m writing: Is this good enough to be published? Will anyone want to read this? If they do read this, will they even like it? Why does this story/blog post/essay stink so much?

Here are a few ways I have learned to deal with self-doubt:

- Knowing it’s a problem for you is a large chunk of the solution! Just knowing that self-doubt might be holding your writing back is big first step. It’s admitting you have a problem. Once you realize this, you can take further steps to minimize the damage self-doubt can do.

- Not everything you write will be a masterpiece. This is often caused by your mind thinking too far down the road. Instead of concentrating on the "here" and "now", you begin to think about you story’s potential for publication, opinions of critics, will it ever be popular enough to catapult you to literary stardom, and so forth. Getting over this problem requires a conscious effort to throw these ideas out the window. Just write. Enjoy the creative process. And realize that you can always edit later.

- It’s better to finish a bad story/novel, then let a good one die. This especially comes into play when you’re just not "digging" your writing project. You don’t feel any excitement and the writing seems plain and filled with cliches. Generally, it’s better to just finish the story. You never know, you might read it again at a later date and decide it’s really good and worth reviving. But if you give up on a story, this chance will never come!

- Turn off your inner editor. You know, that little voice that says "This whole story stinks!" Turn that voice off. I realize this is easier said than done. The key is to realize when it’s happening and take actions to counter it – mainly, just keep writing. When you feel tempted to delete an entire paragraph or go back and fix a few glaring grammar/spelling errors. Don’t do it! That’s what editing is for later on. Just write!

- Grab a writing partner and keep each other motivated. By its very nature, writing is a solitary endeavor. So having someone there to encourage you, read your work and give you constructive feedback can go a long way in getting over your self-doubt. It’s better if your writing partner isn’t a family member or a really close, longtime friend. A writing partner should be someone you trust and get along with, but who you mostly associate with because you both love writing.

Even with all these little tips, there is still no way to completely get rid of self-doubt while you’re writing. Perhaps that is good – we all need a little self-doubt to keep us in check. It only becomes a problem when it starts to hinder your writing and progress becomes slow, if not impossible.

What are some ways you overcome self-doubt while writing? Leave a comment below and give us all the juicy details!

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