All writers carry an inner critic.
It tells you things, which, for the most part, will help you improve your work. But being your own worst critic is not helpful either.
It is often so overwhelming you can’t focus on what you want to write.
Everyone wants to be better, which is why writers habitually put a hold on publishing their work because they feel it isn’t perfect.
Your inner critic is worried about what other people might say about your work. As a result, you spend more time than you’re supposed to, just to make sure your work is perfect.
But that’s not how things should work. Published work doesn’t have to be perfect. You must give yourself permission to let loose. Apply the raw side of your writing since it’s the only way to find your true voice and end up getting the best output possible.
Don’t Hold Back
The most prolific writers use their creativity and extensive imagination.
Those two attributes are what separates them from other people. Holding back on what you imagine and write because you’re too afraid that it won’t sell can be your undoing. Becoming a successful writer means letting your mind have free rein and having fun with it.
Play with ideas and language.
There’s a part of writing that makes you cringe or even stress you out, and it’s because you’re holding back. Always remind yourself that you have the permission to write, or else you’ll never proceed to the publishing stage.
Experience is Overrated
You haven’t written or published a book, so what? Experience may be the best teacher, but that adage doesn’t hold a ton of value in this industry.
If you know how to write and you’re quite good at it, that should be enough to hit the publish button.
Don’t think for a second that your lack of experience means that you must write hundreds of manuscripts before you decide to publish something. We all have to start from scratch, but once you’ve written an article, blog, or short story, then you can write and publish a book.
Don’t Overwhelm Yourself
There’s no such thing as a “perfect writer.” (Even F. Scott Fitgerald and Shakespeare, to name a few)
Every title has a target audience, and you know that you can’t please everyone. The thought of writing something that everyone loves (showering you with literary awards) is never a good thing as it’ll overwhelm you.
Many young authors are consumed by the goal of finishing a flawless manuscript and it’s the reason why they never make progress.
Instead of letting things run their course, you end up revisiting and redoing everything. All your previous efforts go to naught because you’re not confident of publishing your work.
Set The Right Standards
Every writing project must start with achievable expectations. (It’s the ‘A’ in SMART goals)
You don’t have to be on top of your game the entire time. Setting high standards in all writing stages is like asking a boxer to knock out his opponent in the first round.
It’s doable, but you’re not doing yourself any favours.
Even if you end up publishing a book that isn’t up to par with what you initially expected, you must appreciate the pain you went through to publish it.
It’s an achievement in itself. You’d be surprised to see that your target audience loves it more than you anticipated.
Lowering your standards doesn’t necessarily equate to a botched job or terrible output. As you move on to another project, you raise your standards and expect more from yourself. If it’s your first time, though, give yourself permission to hit publish.
In the famous words of Nike: ‘Just do it!”
Set Deadlines, But Don’t Kill Yourself
Completing a writing project means you’ve gone as far as publishing it. It makes sense to set deadlines as this is the only way to develop an end game.
However, don’t stress yourself out by cramming for output to meet that deadline.
The key is to establish a routine coupled with a reasonable deadline to finish your book. Setting lofty goals and outrageous deadlines will do more harm than good. In other words, give yourself some room to breathe – you need it.
Some things are beyond your control, i.e., family emergencies and writer’s block. As much as you’d want to stick to the deadline, you’ll end up missing it by several days, weeks, or even months.
But that’s not necessarily a bad thing. It doesn’t equate to failure. The more you dwell on it, the more likely you’ll feel that you’ve failed.
Loosen up a bit – there are obstacles along the way, but you’re still on the right path. Don’t forget that the goal is to hit publish. Getting to that point isn’t smooth sailing – in fact, it often involves open waters, storms and the odd sea monster!
Whatever those obstacles are, giving yourself permission to hit publish, even if your work isn’t perfect, makes you better (and braver) over time.
Once your book is out there, you’ll learn more about where you can improve.
This is how this profession works. It’s a constant struggle, but success is within reach.
Joel Mark Harris graduated from the Langara School of Journalism in 2007. Joel is an award-winning journalist, novelist, screenwriter and producer.
He has ghostwritten numerous books in all types of genres including true life crime, business, memoir, and self help. With over 1,000 blog posts to his name, he has helped hundreds of business owners scale their business and increase their visibility. You can email him at info@ghostwritersandco.com
