Pep Talk: Why 'That Feeling' is Good

DON'T READ UNLESS YOU NEED. IT WILL RUIN IT FOR WHEN YOU NEED IF YOU READ NOW. WAIT UNTIL YOU'RE IN DIRE NEED OF ENCOURAGEMENT FOR THIS TO BE FULLY EFFECTIVE!

So, 'that feeling'. It's a feeling that all writers hate. It gets us down in the dumps.

Which feeling? you say. There are so many of them!

You haven't written in a while. Finally, after a time span of a month, a week, or even a couple days, you pick up your story and flip back to page one. You start to read the creation that, such a short time ago, gave you so much joy.

But this time, it's different. You groan in embarassed pain at each paragraph, reading with dismay the juevenile plot and cliche descriptions. What happened? When you looked at it last time you felt great about it! Now it's...awful!

Discouraged, you slam your manuscript down and turn your back on it. You're convinced you'll never be a great author.

Does that sound like you? Are you always dissatisfied with your writing? Does what you wrote a short time ago seem awful to you?

It's discouraging, right? You just feel like you're never getting anywhere, right? I know because that happens to me so, so often.

That's actually a good thing. As a matter of fact, if you didn't feel dissatisfied with your writing I'd be a bit worried for your future as a writer.

Before you start throwing tomatoes at me, hear me out.

Remember when you were really little, and you were starting to learn how to read? Remember how painful it was to sound out simple words? And remember when you actually read a word for the first time without help? You probably felt really proud, and really grown up and mature.

Now look at yourself. If your like me, reading's like breathing. I devour books like The Secret Garden or The Silver Chair in one night. Looking back on my first years of learning how to read, I can't believe that it was difficult at all, or that I could ever feel triumphant when I discovered what the letters 'c-a-t' sounded like together.

Imagine that, as I got older, I still fought hard to read really simple words. That means I'm not progressing. If I feel like I won a great battle by reading a simple sentence years after I began to learn how to read, I would not be growing in my ability.

Compare that with writing. If what you wrote earlier sounds horrid, then good for you! It means you're maturing in your ability to write! You shouldn't feel discouraged--you should have a party!

Besides, no one ever feels like their own writing is amazing. It takes growth and time and progress to make a real author.

Yours without wax,

Izori