Self doubt can creep into your psyche without you even suspecting it’s there until the first niggling thought makes itself clear.
This happens to writers all the time.
If you're a writer, you must constantly be aware of your thoughts and how you’re reacting to them, so you can weed out thoughts of self-doubt before they grow and take over your creativity and destroy your goals.
Doubts can run wild in your mind, making you question your abilities about anything new or different.
If you’re prepared, you can recognize the doubts for the untrue limiting beliefs they are and let your knowledge and common sense get you through.
When you check in to reality, you’ll realize that the negative thoughts are occurring for various reasons.
For example, you could be lost in comparing yourself with other writers.
This may make you feel inadequate and doubt your ability to succeed.
Make a firm decision and stick to it.
When self doubt about what you’re trying to accomplish creeps into your thoughts, make a decision to either carry through with your goal or trash it and go on with something else you’re more certain of.
If you do decide to go on to something else, don’t think of it as a failure.
It was a learning experience that taught you a lesson and you aren’t wasting any more time on it.
If you decide to go through with the plan, take action immediately.
Making a fast decision may seem impulsive, but most likely the decision is based on intuition and the knowledge that you’ve prepared enough for the journey ahead.
You can always fine tune your plan as you progress.
At least you’re taking action toward your goals.
Replace negative self doubt with positive thoughts. Choose any method that works for you. Meditation, journaling, affirmations, listening to music or reading a good book or simply chatting with positive-minded friends may give you the boost you need to move on.
All of us find ourselves dealing with self doubt at some point in our writing careers.
But if you let self doubt get the best of you, by feeding into it and actually believing the untrue stories you’re telling yourself, it can destroy even the best of intentions for success.
Learn to recognize and weed out the crippling, negative thoughts and get on with achieving the goals you’ve set for yourself.
Begin by becoming aware of your thoughts – check in with them a few times a day.
You’ll soon be able to discern the “keeper” thoughts from the “discard” pile.
Try it!
As the Working Writer's Coach, Suzanne Lieurance helps people turn their passion for writing into a lucrative career.
She is founder and Director of the Working Writer's Club (membership is free) and offers tips, articles, and additional resources to other writers every weekday morning in The Morning Nudge (which is also free).
Writing, publishing, book marketing, all offered by experienced authors, writers, and marketers
Showing posts with label Working Writer's Club. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Working Writer's Club. Show all posts
Write a Children’s Book in 14 Days!
Is it possible? Can you do it?
This summer, I bought the software program, How to Write a Children’s Book in 14 Days
(or Less!) by Mel McIntyre. I
imagine that many aspiring writers have done the same thing, but how many
actually go through each lesson and complete them all -- in two weeks? It’s not
easy! It’s very important to set aside time each day during those two weeks.
Otherwise, you might not be able to complete the program in the allotted time.
I also am a member of the Working Writers Club and took this
class with Suzanne Lieurance. Suzanne was
our coach during the 14 days. After we
registered, she sent us a syllabus and schedule. This was a serious
undertaking!
Suzanne also instructed us to read the entire textbook prior
to the start of the class. I read most of it. Hmmm . . . there’s that time
thing again! However, I did get a good understanding of what to expect during the
two weeks.
Suzanne recommended we do some additional reading before we began
the class. In the text, Mel gave examples of children’s books. I went to the
library and checked out several of the titles she mentioned and read them. I
got a better idea of how children’s books are written.
Last year, I started an idea notebook and file for the books
I want to write, so I already had something in mind before the class. I thought it would make the project easier. (I
did say this wasn’t easy, didn’t I?)
During the two weeks, Suzanne, my classmates and I, had
daily conference calls to discuss assignments, problems, etc. I was able to participate in most of those
calls. There is that time thing again! While the calls were recorded and could
be listened to at a more convenient hour, I felt it was important to be there
“live.” Luckily, I did not have many appointments or meetings scheduled for
those two weeks. On the days that I was not available, I listened to most of
the recordings. I think I missed one or two.
I enjoyed using the software program, being part of a class,
and Suzanne’s coaching. I got alot out of the experience. But I also hit writers
block after one week! My brain did not want to cooperate anymore. I found it
difficult to do the daily assignments, but I did what I could.
I’ve been giving my brain a rest and I plan to tackle the
program on my own next month. I will try
to complete it in four weeks. This will allow me extra time for the other
things that happen in my life, yet gives me a calendar goal to reach.
I would like to fully utilize what I learned from Mel and
Suzanne. Hopefully, a second go-around will improve my writing and my manuscript
will be that much closer to being submitted and published.
Debbie A. Byrne has a B.S. in Mass Communication with a
minor in History. She is a member of the Society of Children’s Book Writers and
Illustrators (SCBWI) and is currently working on her first children’s book.
Engage in Social Networking the Twitter Way by Donna McDine
Engage in Social Networking the Twitter Way
By Donna McDine
To be an effective social networker/marketer setting up your
profile is the first step, but it goes far beyond the setup. The saying from
the Field of Dreams movie… “Build it and they will come” will not work in this
instance. You must continually develop online relationships and share relevant
information from your expertise. Like your website and blog, social networking
is a constant work-in-progress. Don’t let your shoulders sag, engagement does
not need to take you endless hours every day.
Today I will focus on….
How to strengthen
your Twitter participation:
To be an effective member of the Twitter community you need
to tweet on a consistent basis. Note tweets are limited to 140 characters including
spaces and the URL you are directing the reader to. Your tweets can be just
about anything. Such as, your latest book, your newsletter, book reviews,
author interviews, and information you find interesting to the freelance
writing career, etc. My rule of thumb is to tweet at least 4-5 times per day,
Monday thru Friday. I give myself off the weekends for good behavior.
Use www.tinyurl.com to
shorten the length of the URL you are providing in your tweet, so you save
valuable characters for your message.
Don’t just tweet about yourself. Avoid the “it’s all about
me attitude”, become a master communicator with tweeting a combination of your
own tweets with those of colleagues.
Take out ten to fifteen minutes per day and visit Twitter
and retweet (RT) posts of interest for those you are following. You’ll be
amazed how appreciative tweeters are for RT. It is a terrific way to broaden
the contact base for all those participating.
Scheduling Your Tweets Ahead of
Time: Save
valuable time and plan your tweets ahead of time (at least weekly). Create your
tweets in Word and double check the character length by highlighting your
tweet, clicking Review in the toolbar and to the right of Translate on the far
left click the ABC/123 symbol. A pop-up screen will appear providing full
statistics and make note of the Characters (with spaces) number. To set-up and
schedule your tweets, I recommend www.dynamictweets.com.
Once you register an account you will be able to schedule a one-time tweet or
tweets you’d like to repeat throughout a specific timeframe. The template/site
is simple to use.
Tweeting Lingo and
What It Means for Your Tweeting Experience:
# - hashtag – by
searching for a keyword with the # (hashtag) before it will pull you up a list
of the latest tweets regarding the topic. This is a great way to get in
specific conversations and tweeter parties.
@ - symbol before
username – by searching for a particular
username the results provides their tweets and mentions by fellow tweeters.
Direct Messages –
by clicking on the “head” image the pull down menu will appear. Click on direct
messages, here you will find a listing of all messages sent to you by fellow
tweeters.
For more lingo details visit: https://support.twitter.com/articles/166337-the-twitter-glossary
Remember, tackle your social networking campaign with baby
steps every day for each step will develop into a quantum leap.
If you require further guidance or have additional
questions, please free to contact me at donna@donnamcdine.com.
As a PR Publicist I offer an array of services and FREE articles to help you FREE up your
valuable writing time, visit www.authorprservices.com
for details.
Thank you for joining me today, it’s been a pleasure.
Bio: I am an award-winning children's author, Honorable Mention in the 77th
and two Honorable Mentions in the 78th Annual Writer’s Digest Writing Competitions, Literary
Classics Silver Award & Seal of Approval Recipient Picture Book Early Reader, Global eBook Awards
Finalist Children’s
Picture Book Fiction, and Preditors & Editors Readers Poll
2010 Top Ten Children’s Books ~ The Golden Pathway.
I have three more books
under contract with Guardian Angel Publishing, Hockey Agony, Powder Monkey, and A Sandy Grave. I write, moms and am the Editor-in-Chief
for Guardian Angel Kids, Publicist for the Working Writer’s Club, and owner of
Author PR Services from my home in the
historical hamlet Tappan, NY.
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