Thanks for having me over, Beth!
I’ve been sitting in front of my computer off and on
for about two days now, trying to find something to say. And then I realized
that maybe this is exactly what I want to talk about.
See, for about a month now, I’ve been resting, but
mainly because I keep struggling with the sense that what I’m writing just
isn’t going to be good enough. It’s aggravating, because I usually work past
this. But for some reason, the moment I let myself rest, my self-doubt caught
up with me.
So hi. My name is Misha, and I’m battling to believe
in my writing.
That was easier than I thought. Maybe it’s the fact
that I know that a lot of people out there have the same problem. No matter
what we do, those little nagging voices of self-doubt and insecurities just
won’t stay put.
What do I do to keep writing?
First, I admit
that my insecurities caught up with me. (Because if I don’t, I’ll just keep
saying I’m tired and keep right on procrastinating.)
Second, I then
prove those little voices wrong by opening my notebook/scrivener/word doc and
writing anyway. Just like I am right now. And…. Right now. And… Oh you get
the point.
Third, I accept
(and in fact encourage myself) to write absolute nonsense. This one might
seem a little counter-intuitive, but sometimes, that liberating sense that I
could call something like “I wish I was a goldfish. (Hey, it’s really hot here
at the moment.)” writing is really liberating. And with that freedom comes
inspiration. See, inspiration tends to come when we have open minds, and that
means not shooting down every single word that comes to us without writing it
first.
And there you have it. 15 minutes ago, writing this
300 word post (more or less) felt impossible. But as soon as my three steps
kicked in, I got going.
What do you do to keep your insecurities at bay?
Bio:
Misha lives (and is currently dying of the heat) in
the Western Cape, South Africa. If you manage to find her outside the pool, she
might be mildly upset because you interrupted her writing.
If you’d like to read more about her writing
activities, or to just get in touch, you can follow her blog
(http://Sylmion.blogspot.com), tweet her (@MishaMFB), circle her on google plus
(+MishaGericke) or even read some of her stuff on Wattpad (MishaMFB).
