Yesterday, I quit the story I was working on. I tried to start something new but then hated the new idea and quit it, too.
I go through these periods every once in a while when I hate all my writing ideas. Even writing this post was hard. Every sentence I wrote, I hated. Has this ever happened to you? How do you handle it?
What do you do when you hate your writing?
Photo by Jackie
Writers, like many creatives, have these bi-polar-like cycles. Hating everything you've ever written is the other side of that feverish inspiration you experience when write thousands of words a day and think each sentence is genius.
But sometimes, there's something else going on, some emotional or mental block that's keeping you from writing your story.
Searching For Your Story
We all get stuck sometimes, but when you get stuck you need to keep writing. Write whatever you think, even if it has no relation to your story, even if you'll have to delete everything later.
For example, if you hate your story idea, write about why you hate it. If you can't even focus on your story, write about whatever you're thinking. You can call this morning pages or free writing but in the end you're searching for your story.
When I started doing this yesterday, my writing led me to an emotional issue in my life that I've been struggling with for weeks. I realized this issue was not only blocking my writing, it was blocking my whole life. By writing about it, I was able to discover the roots of the issue, and later, make steps to fix it.
The surprising truth is that when you search for your story, you end up discovering a lot about yourself. (Share this on Twitter?)
Don't Hate Your Story, Accept Yourself
You often hate your writing for good reasons. Your story may really be as shallow and boring as you think it is.
The secret to writing stories that not only don't suck but boldly speak to the human condition is to explore your own humanity more deeply.
What I've learned is that my story is really me.
When I'm not being honest with myself, when I'm trying to hide my faults and failures, when I'm projecting some false self, it's almost impossible to write my story. Writing is a vulnerable act. If you can't accept yourself, you will have a hard time accepting your story.
Accept yourself. Accept your story. Give yourself room to as vulnerable as a child. Acceptance is the pathway to love, love of your story and of yourself.
Have you ever hated everything you wrote? What did you do to get to a place of acceptance?
PRACTICE
Let's spend some time free writing today. For fifteen minutes, write about whatever you're feeling, good or bad. If you'd like to share your free write in the comments section, feel free, but no pressure.
Happy writing!
What’s the best way to research about occupations that are unfamiliar to you?
1. Figure out where a bunch of them are likely to grab lunch and hang out there and strike a conversation
2. Try HARO (Help a Reporter Out) – kind of like a Craigslist/freecycle of contacts and info
Well, for HARO you have to define the outlet that you’re writing an article for… I’d say use the Internet and your networks on social media (somebody is bound to know somebody who knows somebody)
Writers always have days where they hate their writing. At the same time, there are those times when you write a certain sentence and it comes out just perfect. Next thing you know, you feel like you’re on top of the world because your novel is now the greatest piece of literature on earth.
For more of my thoughts, go here:
http://vozey.wordpress.com/2013/08/07/writing-day-to-day/
But, knowing whether you’re legitimately criticizing your work or just attacking it can seem a lot trickier to discern. It isn’t. You know how you filter other people’s criticism right? If they say, “Well, I liked the story…. but… you missplpeld that word…”
If you find yourself saying “this would be better”, it probably would be. On the other hand, if there are no suggestions, ideas popping out, or attempts to otherwise fix the problem, there probably isn’t a problem, you’re just bashing yourself.
I don’t believe a story is ever “finished”; every time we read it we correct something. That doesn’t mean it’s bad. We might have learned better ways to express a thought, a more concise style of writing, more description. The heart of the story should matter; details later.
My thoughts are a gray reflection of the sky, overcast, undefined. The sun has disappeared, and I’m left to light my own way. Pressure adds creases to my brow and steals away a smile. The diamond sparkle of life has faded under the grime of stress. That’s it! Time to ditch the grime and polish. I choose moments of reflection, deep breaths of clean air, a listing of all things right. My favorite music lifts me, authors’ words inspire. I search for beauty surrounding me and catch a ray of light. I’ve been given so much. Maybe it’s time to share.
it feels like your mood is lifting and you’re ready to get back to writing. The exercise works!
Agreed. The time has come for me as well.
Great post. I often start hating my ideas, too. I need to keep writing!
I hated my first college essay even though it seemed to be exactly what was asked of me. i tweaked it and improved the grammar, sentence structure variety, verb strength and more. I still hated it. So much so that I couldn’t stand the idea of my name and SAT scores being attached to it in anybody’s file. (This was LONG before the digital common app.) I imagined the question I would have liked to answer, and wrote that essay. It was much more truthful on all levels. I worried that it didn’t show all my accomplishments, did show serious cracks in my confidence, and was at serious risk of putting me in the “doesn’t follow directions” pit. But I typed it, proofed it, and mailed it before I could finish talking myself out of it.
So the oldest advice is the best: keep writing. Change it up, change it back, take a whole new tack, but don’t give up. Start in a place that’s so interesting to you, you almost have to write about it, and it will be what the reader realizes s/he wants to know. And another cliche: the deadline is actually your friend.
And yes, I got the fat letter.
Once you start writing and you’re afraid of the direction it might take, carry on and it goes somewhere more acceptable. Actual writing teases out some things you’re not aware of.
Does that make sense?
This is the first time
This is exactly what I needed today. I don’t like to get caught up in endlessly examining my own thought loops, but I do find that my creative writing gets bogged down when I have unexamined thoughts and feelings hovering on the edges of my consciousness.
This phrase says it all: ‘..endlessly examining my own thought loops..’ Refocus on something else.
Yesterday I was feeling as I’ve been for the last two weeks: struggling for peace of mind, trying to ‘settle down’. I’d sneaked back into my comfort zone – read my favourite author, listened to my favourite music – but every time it was only a brief release from feeling guilty about not having gotten anywhere with my writing.
In the back of my mind I could hear my muse threatening me if I didn’t seriously put pen to paper or, if you prefer, fingers to keyboard.
Yesterday, the first time in almost three weeks I reluctantly went out, to a movie, expecting that the relief here would also be short-lived.
But things worked out differently. I can’t remember what the movie was about, but I met an old friend who told me things that changed my whole outlook. Perhaps it was the unseasonal cold weather that had caused the mood swings.
This morning it triggered off another setback – hayfever. Although . a runny nose and watery eyes aren’t serious, at the moment it’s the discomfort and inconvenience that hold me back.
I have only two handkerchiefs, and they’re both sopping wet. In my condition wiping a runny nose with a wet handkerchief sets off a vicious circle – sniffling, then sneezing and wiping again.
Am I wallowing in my misery by not going to the store a few steps away and buying a box of Kleenex?
But my spirits are higher today than they’ve been for a long time, because of my foray into the outside world last night. It’s like they say about beating writer’s block: take a bus trip, eavesdrop on strangers, chop firewood or dig a trench, just go out and do something different.
I have three meetings with friends scheduled over the next five days which I’m looking forward to.
I’m kind of stuck myself lately, that’s why I wrote a post about inspiration the other day. But you just brought my attention to something I had forgotten – and maybe you’re right, I need to start writing no matter what, and then it will all come together naturally, hopefully. It’s just harder when you spend most of your day writing at work.
Thanks for the tip.
‹ Nico @ Leaf ♦ Pub ›
I have avoided journaling/free writing for exactly the reason mentioned in the article, it brings up that emotional issue that prevents us from writing/living as we are. It’s not that I want to deny the problem, but whereas I used to find some solution or catharsis in the journaling, over the past several months it hadn’t been. In fact, I felt like I was whining on paper so I quit it altogether! I still couldn’t write, so I did other things and somehow those activities have led me back to writing. An odd loop, but I think I eventually realized that the problem that was preventing me from writing was no longer there and that I could continue without hating every scene or stopping and stalling midsentence in frustration.