Writer's Struggle

By Alan R. Warren

A writer’s life is usually thought of as having long, quiet mornings with a cup of coffee, easy for words to flow to the page, and inspiration like a trusted friend. Honestly is more like walking a trail of self-doubt and questioning your own validity as a writer, and isolation. 

The battle for myself and other writers isn’t the telling of the story as much as it is convincing yourself that the story itself is even worth telling in the first place. Even though this self-doubt is the hardest thing about writing, it's also one of the only friends that writers will have throughout the process, except for the characters they create. 

This insecurity has stayed with me throughout my career, and after writing thirty-eight books, about the only thing different now is the relationship between us. You might say that it, too, has become a character for me, only it is not one that I knowingly created. After the completion of each new book, the same trepidation and insecurity begin again. The only difference is that I know it is coming, and how I deal with it. Almost like a family member that you love, but do not necessarily want to see. 

This process is not always loud or dramatic. It can be something as simple as a sentence being rewritten ten times, or you even end up taking out a chapter or even two. And yet, the writers press on, and it is that fight which is often the only thing that gets you published. Self-doubt becomes, in many ways, a component of the journey.

Then there is the more realistic challenge, which is beyond the mental battle, which is to make the time and space in your life to author the book. 

Your real life does not stop because you have suddenly produced a great idea or character development. There is often your day job to do, and the stresses going on there. There is also your family, kids to drive to hockey practice, or dogs to walk, which have set times. 

This is when you have to find the time when none of that is going on or occupying your thoughts. For me, and several writers that I know, it is late at night or early in the morning. Everyone else is in bed sleeping, and the house is quiet. Some writers will write a paragraph or a new character’s name down on a napkin during their lunch break. Even in these times, there can be distractions like getting text messages or the baby crying. For a writer to ‘wait for the perfect time’ is something that seldom happens. When you least expect it, expect it. 

Over time, being alone with your thoughts, living in your created world, interacting with your new friends, which you also made, becomes your comfort. Only the months will go by, and the isolation begins to accumulate, and a sense of being alienated seeps in. The desire to get out and have real interactions with real people sets in. 

This becomes the time to get out and go to any local library or book show that’s going on. You get to sit and talk about life with other people who understand you, authors. It’s the chance to share your experiences with authors who live the same life that you do. It’s also the best time to connect with readers and find out what makes them buy your books. It isn't long before you, as a writer, realize that the stories we write become the world’s stories, and no longer ours. 

On top of all of that, we also have to promote and market our works. In these modern days, more often than not, publishers no longer do this kind of work for us. It’s usually up to us to get the word out there about our newest title. 

 That leaves us with promoting ourselves through social media and podcasts. 

We now have to learn a whole new thing, which, in general, writers don’t find promotion coming natural to us. 

In today’s world of writing, what gets us to being able to complete our projects is often more about our ability to manage our own goings on that are inside our minds by not giving in to doubt.

Connect With Alan

www.alanrwarren.com