April 2, 2025
#IWSG–Am I Brave Enough?
This post is for Alex Cavanaugh’s Insecure Writers Support Group (click the link for details on what that means and how to join. You will also find a list of bloggers signed up to the challenge that are worth checking out like Rebecca who inspired me to begin). The first Wednesday of every month, we all post our thoughts, fears or words of encouragement for fellow writers.
This month’s insecurity: Am I brave enough to be a good writer?
I’ll start by saying I’m not brave. What might be characterized to others around me as ‘brave’ is actually forced. I know what must be done and I do it. Or, often–this is how I became a writer–I don’t know how to stop. It’s easier to keep moving forward than come up with a plan for a new direction. On the outside, that might be mistaken for brave, gutsy, or confident, but those genes were left out of my genome.
The problem is that adage–all you have to do to write is cut a vein and bleed onto the page. Meaning: Open your soul to complete strangers. Share your inner-most secrets. Stand at the front of the room to be judged by people you don’t know. I can’t do that. Just can’t. I try, fail, try again, fail again. Repeat.
So I imitate bleeding passion onto a page, but I doubt that anyone’s fooled.
What do I do?
