Writing Fears - An Exercise

[queenoftheskies]

As I mentioned in an earlier post, I'm reading a book that I'm really enjoying entitled Page By Page.

One of the chapters I read today was on fears and anxiety in writing. There were some comments that I liked and a couple of exercises that I thought might actually help me overcome some problems I've had as a writer.

The first part of the exercise was to list 25 writing fears without really stopping to think about them. First thing off the top of your head.

So, I gave it a try. Some of the things that came out didn't surprise me. Some did.



1. I suck as a writer.
2. I have no talent.
3. People will laugh at me when they read what I've written.
4. There is no market for my work.
5. My ideas are stupid.
6. I'll never be able to fix what I write and make it better.
7. Nobody will ever like what I wrote.
8. I'll never make it as a writer.
9. I'll never be as good as everyone else.
10. I don't fit into writing groups where I could get help cause I'm older than everyone, I have kids, and people don't really like me.
11. I'll always be too tired and stressed to regain my focus.
12. I can't develop plots well enough.
13. People will laugh at my ideas and characters.
14. Nobody will ever understand my writing.
15. My writing doesn't fit in anywhere.
16. My writing is too simple.
17. My style sucks.
18. Writing stories with monsters is stupid.
19. I'll never make it without writing classes.
20. I'm too old to improve as a writer.
21. Writing is too important to me.
22. I spend too much time wrapped up in my characters and their lives.
23. People think it's stupid to write such a huge series of books, and maybe it is.
24. I'll never have the self-confidence I need to succeed.
25. I'll never be able to pick out what's right and what's not from the comments people make about my work.


The next part of the exercise is to treat each of these items as "crimes". Pretend the cops caught you and took you before the judge for each one.

You're supposed to present THEIR side of it...which would be support for why you feel that way.

Then, you're supposed to present YOUR side, your testimony, which would be to debunk it or find a reason that feeling that way is okay. Or find some benefit from it.

However, what confused me was that the author of this book doesn't seem to want the reader to find a reason each one is not true. The author wants the reader to find a reason it's okay. To justify these fears.

So, here's my question. Is justifying them and finding something GOOD in them, a way to exorcise them? Or is it just encouraging them to stay around and haunt you forever?

Something to think about.