You have your reasons for quitting writing; it is too hard, you’ve come to the conclusion your writing is unlikely to bring you fame and fortune, nobody wants to read your work or even your best tweed writer jacket no longer fits you. They all seem like great reasons to quit.
The only problem is that you are displaying some important signs and these signs indicate you’re not ready to quit. If only you knew you were wasting valuable time and energy telling everyone about your intention to leave the creative world.
Here are the signs you need to watch out for:
- You can’t stop writing. Whilst telling the world you have had enough of writing, you are busy hammering out the last few chapters of your draft novel. You’re not ready to quit.
- You can’t stop thinking about one of your old projects. Our old creative projects can make us cringe and give us a sick burp or two, but they can also act as a clever reminder of how much we love writing. If you can’t shake off those thoughts about that old piece of flash fiction you wrote, the one which to this day you still love – you’re not ready to quit writing!
- You can still distinguish between the voice of your writer ego and the voice of your writer soul. Your writer ego is the negative voice, setting unrealistic expectations, criticising every word that you write and making you feel terrible. Your writer soul is the quiet voice which reminds you that you write because you love storytelling, you write because it fills you with a special warmth and you write because it is hard-wired into your DNA. Your writing life will change once you start listening to your writer soul.
- You know you would miss the ‘good fight’. Writing is full of ups and downs. We have all experienced those dark days when it feels like the world doesn’t want to read our art and we consider going to quietly weep in a corner. There are days when a glowing comment from a reader can make us feel like we are on the top of the world. This is the good fight for a writer. If you think you would miss this – you’re not ready to quit. You just need to get your writer warrior spirit back and fight!
- Your emotional farewell to all the imaginary folk inside your head is…going on a bit. If after five days of a lengthy emotional farewell to all your characters, you are still saying ‘goodbye’ and hugging the life out of them (in your head) you are not ready to quit writing.
- You are struggling to think of something to fill the crater sized hole in your life that quitting will leave. Give it a couple of days and you will be rushing back into the arms of your writing.
- You still believe there is more hidden treasure deep inside of you. This comes from Elizabeth Gilbert’s book Big Magic. In her book Elizabeth Gilbert talks about how a creative life is about ‘bringing forth the hidden treasure buried deep inside of you.’ If you still believe that there are more hidden treasures inside of you – quitting writing is not the answer. You need to find them.
- You are still looking longingly at tweed writer jackets and tweed ‘onesies’. Listen to your writer fashion sense as it is trying to tell you something. You are still very much a writer. Tweed is the fabric of choice for writers.
If you are still displaying these signs, you’re not ready to quit writing.
Pick yourself up off the floor, dust yourself down and get back inside your writing arena!
Have a great day!
Lucy x
Photo by Alex Holyoake on Unsplash
you made 8 clear powerful facts and elements to stay determined. You reminded long time ago when I studying music, Very touching!
Thank you for reading my post and happy Monday 🙋🏼
Just gotta keep writing!
Yep Ritu – we can do this 👍🏻
Yes indeed! I’m making the most of being ill and in bed for 2 days writing posts… I’ll get to my manuscript soon!!!
Are you ill through partying? 😉
Lol! I wish that was the reason!!! I was driving that day…
No, alas the sickness bug caught me. I’ve dodged it all these years at school… and now it hit… 😷
Oh no! I had a sickness bug in the run up to Xmas and it was awful. Will send you positive get well vibes during my meditation tonight! 😎
Bless you Lucy! They’ll be much appreciated xxxx
Stand by Ritu! Brace yourself! Mitchell vibes are coming 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻
I’ll receive them with grateful arms wide open xxx
Reblogged this on O LADO ESCURO DA LUA.
Thank you & happy Monday 🙋🏼
Love it Lucy. Accurate as always! Happy Monday! ☺
Hey Simon – happy Monday!
I hope yours was good! ☺☺☺
Sigh. Indeed. Somedays you can’t stop even for a break; other days you’re ready to throw everything out your window.
Just have to keep writing.
Yep Tess – sigh! We have all just to keep writing. Happy Monday Tess 🙋🏼
Thank you for inspiring me.
Thank you for reading & happy Monday 🙋🏼
You’re welcome 😊 same to you
Reblogged this on When Angels Fly.
This is so true. I really wanted to quit writing after dealing with abusive writers on Wattpad, but I decided to keep going and found a wonderful writing website that works for me. When one door closes, another one opens =)
So true! Well done for carrying on. Thx for reading & happy Monday 🙋🏼
Good thoughts and so true. I’ve shared it on my own blog as well as Pinterest. It will be worth reading again in the future.
Thank you for reading & sharing! Happy Monday 🙋🏼
Reblogged this on Don Massenzio's Blog and commented:
This post resonates with those of us that wish book sells would get stronger. It’s a great post from the Blonde Write More blog.
Arrrrr thank you Don 🙋🏼 *waving madly*
Sorry for the grammar typo in my reblog message. It’s Monday.
Writing is hard but worth the rewards, even if we don’t get what we expect. I had moments where I wanted to give up. I went through it the most the time after I graduated from college. I thought I could pound out a novel without flinching. I never tried. I felt because I wasn’t writing that novel or writing something every day, I couldn’t call myself a writer. But the points you mentioned, I experienced throughout those years. I wasn’t ready to quit. At the same time, I didn’t know how to go about writing again. I lost the creative muscles because I wasn’t exercising them on a daily basis.
After moments where I had fits of rage and moments of not thinking clearly, my wife asked if I wanted to write. She asked if I loved writing. I said yes. Then she said I should just shut up and write. So I did. I wrote in my journal. I wrote about happy times, frustrating times, sad times. Anything that came to me. Somewhere along the way, I started getting ideas for stories. I used to think that I couldn’t write stories because I didn’t have the adventures or experiences to write something from the heart. But it turned out I was wrong. I wrote stories based on my experiences and experiences of others. I fell in love with writing again.
That was so many years ago. I went through similar times where I didn’t know if I could make this a career. I was writing stories, but did nothing with them. I questioned whether or not I wanted to continue. I Journaled about it. In doing so, I realized I wasn’t ready to put down the pen. I don’t think I’ll ever put it down. There’s too much I want to write about. There are too many ideas for stories floating around in my brain. I think God wanted me to be a writer. To tell stories. To make a difference through my art. At some point, I’ll write something that will answer His calling. For now, I’ll keep writing.
Thank you, Lucy.
Had to laugh. I have given up, seriously, on writing at least three times. Yet I’ve got this little blog-on-the-side … all my favourite blogs are about writing .. when will the suffering end!!
Hey thx for dropping by! Love your comment 🙋🏼
Reblogged this on Kim's Author Support Blog.
Well I wasn’t thinking of quitting, Lucy – but I am now!
Good luck with that! 🙋🏼😉
We can discuss it in detail at the LBF
LBF? *Lightbulb on* ah yes the book fair!
Well, there’s that as well, but I was thinking about the Lesbian Bungee-jumpers Foundation
Lol – will you be using a map at the book event? 😉
I was going to rely on you to show me round
😂😂 my map reading skills are not as good as yours
It’s good to know you recognise real talent when you see it
I’ve been wondering, thanks for the clarity. @sheilamgood at Cow Pasture Chronicles
Hey thx for this – happy Wednesday!
Numbers one and two and number five. Exactly. I could not say goodbye to my writing or my characters.
Thank you 🙋🏼
Great post! Can I reblog this on my site?
Yes go for it! Happy Sunday 🙋🏼