Cintia asked Becky Wade:

I'm an aspiring writer, but I'm dealing with two things: I get discouraged every single day because 96% of manuscripts are rejected, and I haven't had an idea for years, literally. There's too many people wanting to be writers, and knowing there's so much competition just kills me a little every day. When I get motivated, immediatly something appears about the industry that kills it. Any tips on how to deal with this?

Becky Wade Hi, Cintia!
Here are my tips for the "writing road blocks" you're dealing with:
1) I chose not to let the discouraging statistics re: how many manuscripts are rejected bother me. Every person who starts writing should do so first and foremost because she loves writing. In my opinion, no matter where a writer is on her writing journey, the writing itself should be its own reward. I've always done everything I can to make writing fun and rewarding, to keep my love of it alive. Whenever I'd hear a discouraging statistic, I'd think, "Yes, but if I write a manuscript that's good enough, someone will buy it." And one day, they did. Also, these days, traditional publishing isn't an author's only option. If you want to make your work available to readers, you can.
2) When I'm in search of inspiration, I open myself up to new ideas. More than that, I *hunt* for new ideas. Every TV show, movie, book, news story, conversation with a friend, interesting thing that happened to someone I know, CAN become the seed of an idea for a story if I have the eyes to see it that way. When I hear or see something that catches my attention, I ask myself, "What if?"
I hope that's helpful to you!

flag