The last few weeks have been challenging for me to get anything written. Let's just say I've gotten very good at making excuses for myself. (ha ha!) November is right around the corner, though, and I'm all set to participate in NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month). This will be my fifth year participating, but I've never completed an entire novel in one month. I'm hoping to change that this year! What is impostor syndrome? Impostor syndrome, from my own understanding, is when you feel like a phony. Artists usually experience it as they're growing in their craft, but it can hit almost anyone learning new skills: parents, nurses, teachers, and even sixth graders learning to do long division. It's that inner critic that tells you you're not good enough or those moments when you feel like giving up because you don't think you can do it. Elizabeth Gilbert talks about impostor syndrome as a society inflicted flaw, which may never go away. Successful giants like Stephen King or Kate DiCamillo are not immune to it, so it's no wonder I feel it every now and then, too. Mine probably stems from my unruly tendency to compare my sloppy drafts to finished products, but it's heightened as I've entered the query trenches, as I've applied for mentoring programs, and (in general) as I feel the weight of my new baby-project, which I hope to write for NaNoWriMo.
Tom Leveen, an Arizonan writer and talented motivational speaker, recently posted the above video. (Check it out!) He asks the question: Why write if you can't guarantee publication? He talks about the various motivations a person can have to write a book. My favorite part of the whole thing is when he talks about failing versus quitting. They are not the same! So what would I do if I knew I would fail?... Would I still write?... Ahh... That is the question, my friend. Will I keep writing--- if I never get my stories published? (Ouch.)
She rambles quite a bit, I know, but I love it! I love that she validates the hard work that goes into writing a book. She says it's even harder than giving birth! ha ha! But most importantly, she say to never give up on your dreams.
What now? So it's time to sit at the set, so to speak. I gotta put the work in. You know write badly! First drafts aren't supposed to be pretty and clean, as much as I'd like them to be. It's time to take my own advice and do the best I can. Why? Because I love stories. Because I still have dreams. If you're planning to do NaNoWriMo this year, I'd love to hear what you're working on. (Maybe we can be buddies!) If you're not doing NaNoWriMo or you're not even a writer, let me know if you've been attacked by impostor syndrome and what you're doing to fight it. It's a battle I have to fight pretty much every day. But it's a battle I hope to win. How about you?
1 Comment
Lacey Ellsworth
10/28/2020 10:21:54 am
I have been feeling that imposter syndrome in my coaching. I often think, "who am I to be the one who tells these kids how to get better at their sport? I can't help them the way my coaches helped me." I remind myself that I'm still young and I won't become competent until I have years of experience. So, sorry to those who are my athletes in my early days of coaching. One day I'll be the coach I need to be for them.
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