The Writing Blues

I've been kind of suffering from what I've decided to call "The Writing Blues" lately. You may know the feeling. Everything you write seems like crap. Every scene, every line, every word is pure horror. You're convinced that you'll never be as good as all the other writers out there. You're not as creative. You're not as clever. You're not as talented. You'll never get an agent. You'll never be published. You wonder why you even keep trying. You might as well give up.

When a have periods like this, I just have to remind myself of one thing: I can write. I'm actually a darn good writer. I think of all the positive encouragement I've gotten over the years. I think of my former college English professor who told me I was "the best student poet he's ever taught." I think of the advisor on my graduate thesis who remarked several times throughout our sessions, "Wow, you really can write." I think of the writer's workshop I attended this summer where Jess Walter told me, after reading the beginning of my adult WIP, "This is something that could be published," and encouraged me to start looking for an agent. I think of the writing prize I won a few years back. The judges said my work was by far the best of all the submissions, and then they awarded me $1,500 in prize money. That's the most that's ever been won in that competition.

So, I tell myself, I know I can write. I know I can write well. I just have to keep at it because writing is hard. If it wasn't hard, everyone would do it. Revisions can make our work better. Negative feedback can lead to a better solution. Rejection helps us grow. This is how we learn.

Any writers out there feeling The Writing Blues? What do you do to stay sane during these down times?

-- Lisa