I Almost Gave Up Writing Before I Even Started. Don’t Make the Same Mistake.

     I believe one of the worst things an author can do is give up before they start. That’s what I did when I first started; I threw unfinished manuscript after manuscript into the trash because I couldn’t see the story going anywhere else. It felt as if I had already written the most exciting parts of the plot, and now everything else was stagnant and couldn’t compare.

     One of the worst pieces of advice for writing that I’ve seen is that you should write the same amount of your novel every day and stick with that. Of course, if you are working with an agent and have a deadline this may not apply to you, but I decided to self publish so I have plenty of freedom with my timeframes. That piece of advice was why I ended up destroying so many potentially good stories. I was stuck, completely and totally, and everything I wrote when I was stuck turned my otherwise good story into a mass of partly good, partly terrible writing. If I had taken a step back, started another project or even just not written at all, I would have been able to think my way out of writer’s block and continue.

     Another issue I had when I first decided I wanted to write a novel was that I compared my writing style to everyone else’s. Believe it or not, an author with more experience is likely to write better than you, and there’s no magic cure for that! The only fix is to write, cringe when you read your old writing, and then realize with relief that you’re only cringing now because you’ve improved since then. When I look back at my first novel, less than a year since it’s been published, I see things that I wish I could change. And that’s good, amazing even, because that means in a short amount of time I’ve gained skills. 

     Taking the steps to write your first novel, blog post, or even fanfiction takes guts. You’ll have to admit that you’re not great yet, and unfortunately people will have to read your writing before you’re at the level you want to be. Whenever I’ve received criticism about my novel (It was all constructive thank god), I’m overwhelmed by a sudden desire to pull my book off the shelves. But that would be stupid, wouldn’t it? Because how am I going to grow as an author if I don’t have the guts to accept that I am not, nor will I ever be, the best writer? 

     There’s no standard of success for being an author. One could claim that being on the New York Times Best Seller list is the height of fame, another could say that just having an audience that enjoys their work means that they’ve made it to the top. Success is not measurable, so it’s ridiculous to avoid starting because you might not meet an abstract standard.

     I’m glad I started. I don’t regret the mistakes, the many grammar errors(seriously…so many), or the work I had to pour into it. I look back at the late nights at Starbucks, the emails with my editor, trying and failing to design a cover, and even though I’m not rich from my debut novel by a long shot, it was worth it. I did something that I can be proud of, I took the first step, then the second and now I’m still a good half a mile from where I want to end up, but I’m no longer sitting by the start line and making up excuses.

     Whether you’re an author, a curious newbie, or somebody who accidentally ended up on my page but the screen froze and now you can no longer exit out, I advise you to take a good look at yourself and ask what’s really stopping you? The only way to fail is to not try at all. 

-Faith Larson.