{"id":1725,"date":"2011-09-14T09:00:03","date_gmt":"2011-09-14T13:00:03","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.ChristyEnglish.com\/?p=1725"},"modified":"2011-09-14T09:06:58","modified_gmt":"2011-09-14T13:06:58","slug":"self-doubt-and-the-first-draft","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.ChristyEnglish.com\/?p=1725","title":{"rendered":"Self Doubt and the First Draft"},"content":{"rendered":"

The worst enemy to creativity is self-doubt.\u00c2\u00a0 ~Sylvia Plath<\/span><\/p>\n

I love this quote. I think it applies to every aspect of the work: the first time I get an idea, while I’m writing, while I’m trying to sell what I write. Self-doubt is one of the roads that can lead me away from the work I do. At worse, it is a distraction that makes me hesitate to take the next step with any project, and at worst it can plague a project with paralysis.<\/span><\/p>\n

During a first draft is one of the most dangerous times to harbor self-doubt. As I write my latest novel, I am vigilant to keep self-doubt at bay. If I let it in, I might become distracted to the point of questioning every word I put down on paper, every scene, each character’s motivations. All of these questions are extremely valid, and all need to be addressed in drafts two, three, four and so on. Each question, if answered well, will lead to a better book. But if I become consumed with doubting myself and my work during a first draft, I might freeze up and the flow of creativity that I depend on, my connection to the Muse, might dry up.\u00c2\u00a0 If I let it, self-doubt could freeze this project until it never thawed.<\/span><\/p>\n

So the trick is to turn my back on my doubts. Easier said than done, right? I think all artists have been there. I know all writers have. I find that the best and only solution to my doubts is to work through them. I acknowledge them as fellow travelers in the work of the book, I nod to them, and then I turn back to the work itself. I find that as long as I stay in the chair, I become engrossed step by step in the world my characters and I are creating together. And the more I work, the fewer doubts I have, until I am moving forward on schedule, watching as my characters and their world come to life.<\/span><\/p>\n

For though self-doubt is paralyzing, joy in the work is energizing. During a first draft, I have to remind myself that this time of the work is only for me, that no one else gets to read it yet. The first draft is the only time my characters and I create alone together, with no need for editing or criticism or fear. The editing comes later, as well as constructive criticism. Fear is part of the journey, as is self-doubt. But so is joy. I find as I dive deeper and deeper into the novel my characters and I are creating, that joy is there, waiting for me.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The worst enemy to creativity is self-doubt.\u00c2\u00a0 ~Sylvia Plath I love this quote. I think it applies to every aspect of the work: the first time I get an idea, while I’m writing, while I’m trying to sell what I write. Self-doubt is one of the roads that can lead me away from the work …<\/p>\n

Self Doubt and the First Draft<\/span> Read More »<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.ChristyEnglish.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1725"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.ChristyEnglish.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.ChristyEnglish.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.ChristyEnglish.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.ChristyEnglish.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1725"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"http:\/\/www.ChristyEnglish.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1725\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1737,"href":"http:\/\/www.ChristyEnglish.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1725\/revisions\/1737"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.ChristyEnglish.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1725"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.ChristyEnglish.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1725"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.ChristyEnglish.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1725"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}