feeling ashamed of your writing?

[Anonymous]

@esther-c @godlyfantasy12 @freedomwriter76 @loopylin @sarafini @princesachronicle22 @whalekeeper @keilah-h @booksbyjayna @orielle21 @anyone-else

I could really use some help. I’m working on editing my novel right now (line edits and adding scenes and such) but have been struggling to get things done for several days now. At first I thought it was just lack of motivation, but now I recognize it as something deeper. The plain truth is that I can’t get anything done because for some reason, I’m cringing over every word I’ve written. I know every writer goes through spells where we cringe at our writing, but this feels different. Scenes that were once my favorites, I can’t get through now because I can’t bear to even read them. I just feel so embarrassed of every single scene, and because of that, it’s impossible for me to get through anything. It’s really frustrating because I want to edit, and I love this story, but I just don’t know why I’m suddenly feeling so ashamed of it.

Can anyone offer advice? I’m all out of ideas at this point. I even tried reading over some positive feedback I got on my book awhile back to encourage me, but even that didn’t work. ):

[Loopy]

@joy-calle

I’ve never finished a book so I don’t know exactly what you’re experiencing, but maybe you just need a break?
If you’re reading something you wrote over and over, it’s bound to start sounding weird or bad. Kind of like when you repeat a word to yourself until it stops making sense.(Or maybe that’s just a weird thing only I do. idk.)
I know that usually the longer that I work on a writing project, the less confidence I have in it and the more my perfectionism acts up. Sometimes it helps me to just forget about it for a couple days and come back to it later when I get excited about it again.
I don’t know if my advice is any good, but I think taking a break for a few days might be helpful. I’m sorry you’re having this happen. I hope you get some confidence back soon!

🎵It takes a long time to wait 🌻

[Anonymous]

@joy-calle Aww, I’m sorry you’re going through this, Joy, but rest assured, every writer has gone through that moment.

I went through it quite a few months back, and right now I’m also struggling to find motivation, so I understand completely.

I had pushed myself to writer burnout to the point where I hated EVERYTHING I wrote, and the only way I was able to get over it was, like @loopylin said, stepping back and taking a break. I needed to step back, reevaluate, and give myself time to breathe and focus on other things I needed to focus on/loved.

I’m not saying that’s exactly what you’re feeling or need to do, but that’s my own experience.

I LOVE you and your story way more than you’ll ever know. ❤️

I’ll pray that you gain your confidence back, and that God will give you peace in this difficult time. 🙏

[Anonymous]

@joy-calle

I don’t have a ton of experience with editing but I totally get that and may even go through that soon. Definitely take a break, drink some water, do something fun to take your mind off it for a while, write another story or brainstorm ideas if you have any going rn, eat a snack or rest if you need it, exercise is really helpful, taking a walk can get your mind ready to write, oh and if you have a Playlist definitely play it while you edit. It can get you in the mood and excite you again. Sorry you’re experiencing this, prayer helps a lot and I’ll be praying for you, girl! 🙏❤️ 🫂

Also @loopylin I do the same thing. 😆

[PrincesaChronicle22]

@joy-calle

I’m sorry! I can understand why this would be difficult and frustrating. I haven’t finished a book, but go through this all the time with the ones I’m currently writing. Looking at past scenes that I feel I could have written so much better and that I feel now don’t fit at all with the rest of the book.

But I believe this is natural, even for professional authors. Many of them never read books they’ve previously written because they can’t get over how they could have done it better.

Your problem does seems a little different though in the sense that its hard to even edit. I have an editing mind and am always thinking of how I can change things, but even with that mindset it is still really hard for me to go back and try to fix things I used to like a lot but now feel doesn’t work or sounds bad. So I can relate!

I don’t know if this will help but what usually helps me is detaching myself from the writing. We are usually hardest on ourselves and that can make editing the most difficult part of writing. And it can be hard, but I think it is often good to pull back on any feelings attatched to the book, and just focus on the task rather than the actual words. If we treat it less as something we haven’t done right, and more of something that is good but we can make better, it may help

But it is also good to aknowledge that our writing styles are going to adapt and be different in different situations while we are experiancing different times and it may just change over time. But our writing is just growing along with ourselves and our characters. It is just like any other art form, you may feel happy with one thing and then as you get better you look back and cringe at the talent displayed. We all starts somewhere, and some projects we are going to like and think turn out better than others! But the main fact is you were doing something you loved and you accomplished something!! It’s always good to remember in writing I think

I don’t know if this helps but I hope that it all goes well for you!!! Good luck!!

Love is patient. Love is kind. Love never fails. -1 Corinthians
And guess what? His is eternal (:

[GodlyFantasy12]

@joy-calle I can say I have gone through this…or at least in the way that I once reached a point in my writing where everything I wrote seemed so bad to me, and I was such a perfectionist that I think it was during this time I even had thoughts to…

 

stop writing…

 

It was really bad…

 

I was so down. Everything I wrote I wanted to fix. Everything seemed so…just… average.

It wasn’t even that maybe it was all bad just…below everyone else.

 

I’d look back at earlier writings and see things I loved and be like “Where did that writer go?” And see the compliments from my mom and others about those writings (and tho I was still receiving compliments) my writing style had changed and I didn’t like it.

I hated it…

 

I hated all of it.

 

I told my best friend…I go to her about all of my writing problems. Whenever I’m feeling down about it and she supports me so immensely, she’s really amazing, and all she could do was just lift me up and let me know how great my writing was.

 

But I still just felt…so lacking.

 

Honestly? Im not entirely sure what changed…

 

I know it was mindset. And the Lord. It had to be, because things shifted so miraculously.

 

But eventually, I just realized that my writing? Will not be perfect until one day.

 

(and it won’t ever be perfect. But it can be excellent)

And that day? Just…isn’t today.

The quotes about terrible first drafts? They’re all true. And it’s not just first drafts.

It’s second drafts.

And third drafts.

Fourth, fifth, sixth, up to a hundred if you go that far.

 

Your book won’t be excellent until you publish it and even then you might have regrets.

 

But you did it.

 

And for me…my mindset just changed. And again, I know it was God, because I stopped worrying so much about being the Writer I Used To Be, and decided that I was indeed growing, even if it didn’t look like growth to me.

 

 

 

And too?

 

 

This that was going on with my writing? Was actually happening in other areas of my life. I lacked Godly confidence in a lot of my life, and since then God has helped me so much,

It is good sometimes to step back (and I hate that advice honestly 😂) but if you need it, do it.

If not…then don’t. It’s about mindset. And chances are this isn’t the only area if your life your struggling with this…

 

 

Yea I hope that helped but uh that’s my personal experience…. 😅

#IfMarcelDiesIRiot
#ProtectMarcel
#ProtectSeb

[Esther]

@joy-calle

So, I don’t know what advice I’ll be able to offer, since I’m editing my first novel. XD (I know I’ve been writing for a couple of years, but I rarely ever finished writing a book. 😂)

Anyway, I’ll echo what some of the others have said. If you need to, take a break. For as long as you need. Sometimes, when I don’t write for a little while, even if it’s just because of procrastination, I come back and I’m like: “I wrote that?!” It looks better when I come back to it after a break. (that doesn’t happen with every scene tho… XD) In a book about writing that I read, the author said that sometimes we have to take a break from our writing and then come back to it. She explained, that it’s like going into a room where something is cooking. It smells amazing, but the longer you spend time in the room, the more the smell goes away. You leave the room for a bit, come back, and it smells amazing once more! That example may be more talking about the plot and characters and such, but I think it can apply to feeling ashamed of your writing.

Second, you’ll never get your writing “perfect.” I read a book about writing once, and the author was talking about how she’ll write multiple drafts, get her book published, see the final result, and still want to change something. You may never reach what you think is “perfection,” and that’s okay! Now, there is really good writing out there. And I still fully support striving to make your work as good as possible. But don’t do it to such an extent that you’re burning out. (I don’t know if that makes sense or not. 😅)

Last of all, pray about it. God’s there for you and He understands. Talk to Him about it; lay your burden at His feet; ask Him for guidance and encouragement. Keep reading the Bible of course. (There’s always encouragement in there, especially in the Psalms.)

In the end, I think as the authors of our books, we are our worst critics. We are the harshest on ourselves. Turning off my inner critic when I’m just trying to get words on paper, is really hard. So I can relate some.

I hope that maybe helped a bit. 🙂

I’ve read a few snippets of your book that you’ve shared, before I was part of KP and I loved them!! You are a great writer and I love your characters and your plot!

I’ll be praying for you!! ❤️🙏🏻

Write what should not be forgotten. — Isabel Allende

[Keilah H.]

@loopylin Sometimes, if I look too hard at a letter (like when I’m reading a dictionary and all the words start with K or F or something) I think “Why are our letters so weird?” 😂 I don’t know, it just happens…

 

@joy-calle I’ve never had this happen to me. I’ve looked back on my writing from when I was nine or ten and thought “Wow, this is super cringey” but it’s never discouraged me too much. If you wrote this story (or at least started writing it) a couple years ago, it might just be you noticing how your writing has changed.

Like everyone else said, taking a break is probably a good idea. Praying about it might help too; even though I’ve never actually asked God what He thinks of my writing, it might work for you. He might tell you something you’ve forgotten……like “I’m perfect, even though you’re not, so stop fussing about it and let me help you.”

"When in doubt, eat cheese crackers."-me to my charries who don't even know about cheese crackers

[Power]

@joy-calle If you don’t mind, which of your stories are you editing, and what do you mean by ashamed? (You think the writing is just bad, you truly feel embarrassed about the story/plot, or you feel sick/depressed when you try to edit?)

You will love what you spend time with.

[Light Warrior Pen]

@joy-calle

I know exactly what you mean, because I’m slogging through editing a novel at the moment. For me personally, these are some things that help.

1. Music. I’m not sure if you’re a huge music person, but I find it encourages me and keeps me going.

2. Read books that strengthens me. I  love Adorning the Dark by Andrew and Walking on Water by Madeleine L’Engle Walking on Water, but you may have your own. They boost my courage and let me know I’m not the first one to experience it. Others have gone before me and have sound advice that just makes sense. It helps me get up and dust myself off. (As a side note, if you decide to read Walking on Water, you might want to know L’Engle is a little eccentric and has some wonky ideas. But she also gives amazing advice.)

3. Realize God put this story in my heart for a reason. Once I wrap my mind around that, I guess it kind of dawns on me that if God approves of it, then He’s going to help me through it. I think it’s normal for writers to be ashamed of their writing. But at some point I need to realize that this isn’t necessarily my story; it’s God.

4. Ask why. Like what @power was saying, I ask why this story is making me ashamed. Is it because I don’t think it’s important, that it’s all a bunch of junk, or that everyone will think it’s stupid? When that happens, I get an opinion from a couple of people I know will tell me the truth while affirming I can do this. Since you are your worst critiques and biased against it as it is, others will give you a more realistic opinion because they’re able to take a few steps back and analyze it more accurately. And even if they point out a few flaws, that’ll at least gives me direction, so I’m not standing around cringing.

I hope that helps. While I haven’t read your fiction books or typed with you long, I have read your blog and can honestly say I think you are a good writer. You’re personable, yet know how to drive a point home, two very important factors for a writer. You can do it, girl! 💖

This girl is armed with books, coffee, and writing accoutrements!

[Orielle2023]

@joy-calle

Hey. I might be repeating something someone already said, but when I re-read your post, I thought of a few little tips that help me for inspiration especially when it comes to any kind of writing. I honestly have no experience in the area of editing, but I do know what it is like to have a great idea, begin writing a story/book, and then become uninspired and just tired out.

I love going to coffee shops to write, somewhere out of the house, somewhere usually quiet for the most part and of course, with coffee or something you enjoy drinking/eating.

Also, on super nice days, I take my writing outside. The natural elements are refreshing. There’s a creek in my back yard and I love sitting by it on one of the big rocks as I write.

Or, and I think some people mentioned this already, just take a step back…take a break. When you feel rested, read your book with new eyes.

I think editing take some amazing skills when doing it for other people, never mind doing it on your OWN WRITING! You’ve got this, girl. Don’t be too hard on yourself. Sending encouragement, love, and inspiration your way. 🙂

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[Author]

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