The pandemic is playing havoc with many writers,
destroying our creative process and pitching us into isolation and depression,
but the real culprit causing Writer’s Block (procrastination, or resistance to writing)
is perfectionism. Writers want to submit to public opinion the best story they
are capable of producing, but the vulnerable fear of judgment may kill the
desire to finish a work or submit it.
It is greatest desire of a writer to tell a story in such a way that a reader will remember that story for all time, sigh over the hero, identify with a character, and maybe even cherish a line or phrase from the story to remember for all time. Writers want good reviews that exalt their work. The worst fear of a writer is the judgment call that their story sucks, is full of plot holes, or just doesn’t muster. There are few writers, even famous ones, who haven’t experienced the rebuke of a reviewer or harsh words of disappointment or rejection by a reader. Even the best writers may discover the story wasn’t perfect after all.
“Perfectionism is the mother of procrastination.”
Michael Hyatt
Fiction stories are written from the very core of a
writer’s spirit. When a story isn’t well received, it hurts way deep inside the
writer. A hundred reviews could heap praise on a book, but one negative remark
from a reviewer or reader can negate every good testimony to the work. Most
have lived through these negative responses to their work and resolve to grow a
spiritual shield around themselves to protect their creative core—you know, “shake
it off”, or grow a “thick skin.”
Some writers, however, struggle with the fear of public rejection and begin to think, “I’m just not good enough.” Either this will lead to giving up or it will lead to a drive for perfectionism. Perfectionism taken to a heightened level can bring a writer to a standstill. The story may be written, but the writer feels compelled to write draft after draft every time an imperfection is discovered. They will not submit their work until it’s “perfect”, and in so doing, that story will not be submitted until the writer goes to their eternal rest —now that’s sad.
I’ve had Writer’s Block twice, but I never quit. I did,
however, take a workshop for writers about the problem and worked my way
through it. Writer’s Block is never about the lack of creativity (that’s a
whole other animal); it’s about fear of judgment.
So what should a writer do to stop chasing after the elusive perfection, get out of Writer’s Block hell, give up procrastination, and end the fear of judgment? Perfectionism is the most paralyzing form of self-abuse.
Well, I found some answers that might help.
And here
are some affirmations for your consideration:
Diverse
stories filled with heart
Sarah, this is so true. You know, I always remember my mother's advice. Yes, she was a perfectionist in so many areas, but I could do one thing she could not do, and that was play the piano. My piano teacher entered her students in 2 contests every year, and three recitals. We were always preparing for a performance of some kind, so never could just ENJOY the music. I was a ball of nerves, but never showed it outwardly, at these events. I do remember a couple of times when I did talk to Mama about being nervous, and she said, "Cheryl, there is no one in that room who can play your solo as well as you can, except your teacher. Just remember that when you go up there to play. You will play it better than anyone else in that room." That's how I feel about stories, too. Our stories are OUR stories, even if it's retelling a story that others think they've heard before. They've never heard it like WE will tell it, because each person is different in not only their speech and language, but their "lens" of seeing what happened in their own mind's eye.
ReplyDeleteI remember a review I got for a story I still laugh over. It was a western. The reviewer wrote, "Well, it's no Louis L'Amour..." Uh, no. It's not. How I wanted to write back to him and say, "NO, because there is only ONE Louis L'Amour--unique and wonderful as he is, this might come as a shock to you but there are people in this world who wouldn't read his books at all!" That really opened my eyes and showed me not to strive to "be" someone else stylistically. Loving what you write is what keeps us going, but if we try to fix our style of writing to match someone else's, we lose our originality and our voice. There will always be those who DON'T like what we write, but there will be those who love it, and no matter what, we will always be our own best audience, because we write the kind of stories we would like to read.
Great post!
Sarah,
ReplyDeletePerfectionism's fingers are in so many aspects of our lives. I'm guilty of "perseverating perfectionism", which I define as writing and rewriting ad infinitum one sentence, one paragraph, one chapter and not being able to move on and just get the darn story written AND THEN GO BACK and read it as a completed work to tighten-up.
I've not struggled with writer's block, per se. When I get stuck, I've learned to put my creative mind to work on a different project, such as sewing or construction (hammer, nails, and saw projects), or take a long drive by myself to think through where I'm stuck in the story.
Like you said, once we recognize perfectionism for the troublemaker it is, we can intervene and cut it off before it takes hold of, and stops, our creative processes.
Kaye, I'm trying to imagine you with a hammer in your hand building something.
DeleteI've done that rewriting bit until my fingers go numb and I still do it. I still do it even when I think, "enough is enough." I worry that I've left a glaring flaw in my work and some reader somewhere is going to notice it. As you mentioned though, we get stuck in the rewriting and the search for imperfections and end up with a story that never gets submitted.
Thank you for coming, Kaye. I'm still trying to use the Twitter tools you taught us. I appreciate your input and suggestions--always.
Incredible article. Just what I needed today to re-ground me, thank you!
ReplyDeleteYou're welcome, Alexis. I'm glad to have helped you in any small way I can.
DeleteAll good things to your corner of the universe.
Cheryl, you are so right...we should never strive to be like someone else; we should only strive to improve our own genuine voice and style. There are only something like 20 plots in fiction, but there sure are a lot of ways of writing those plots that each author brings to his or her work.
ReplyDeleteI remember a review from a reader on Amazon about a western themed anthology in which I had a contribution. She ragged on the fact that there was cussing in some of the stories. Well, I don't know of any cowboys who don't let a little cussing hinder them, so maybe that reader should have stuck to Jane Austin or Louisa May Alcott stories. We will never please every reader. Writers can't play to the audience for validation, but learn instead to just write what they love to write.
I can play several instruments and love music, but the one instrument I could never play was the piano. The music is divided left hand/right hand and I could never get coordinated enough to work that out. It may have helped if I had taken lessons, but I am not so sure. Your mom was so supportive. I was nervous before every violin recital just like you. It doesn't matter how good you are; it's how much belief you have in yourself. I hope you're still playing the piano. Playing an instrument is so soothing to the mind and spirit.
Thank you so much for coming and sharing some of your journey on this post, Cheryl. It's always good to hear what you have to say.
Really good article. Although nowhere near approaching perfect, I needed this.
ReplyDeleteWelcome to Perfectionists Anonymous, Christine. I think we're all working these steps. I manage to take to a level where I just freeze like a rabbit.
DeleteThank you for your comment. I appreciate it.
Such a wonderful post! Perfectionism is a day-to-day struggle for me. My father was a perfectionist and I learned to be one as well. While I know intellectually that there is no such thing as "perfect" there is that part of me that strives for it nevertheless. All of this self-isolation only seems to have made it worse. Sigh. I've been doing a little better recently so I'll keep struggling forward.
ReplyDelete