That inner critic is quite the beast. It’ll take a glowing review and whisper doubt into your mind. “Maybe they were just being nice. Maybe they just wanted to give a good review to increase their blog ratings. Maybe…”
Like most writers, I too suffer from that inner critic. I’ve doubted my writing and wondered what the heck I was doing trying to complete a book, trying to compete with professionals, trying to compete with those who have editors, agents and a team of other professionals at their side.
One of the solutions for that nasty inner critic is to find intrinsic motivation. Easier said than done.
I read this post by Judy Mollen Walters and found not only a connection but solace.
“…even after you’ve “made it,” even after you’ve reached bestseller status or people clamor to have you speak at their events, you continue to have that pesky fragility. You still wonder: Is this book—my first or third or tenth—is it really, truly good enough? And sometimes you let it slip—like these authors did, the way they did—that you are really insecure, like everyone else.”
That made me feel better because if the ‘Greats’ can self-doubt, then I’m not that far off base.
And I’d like to echo Ms. Walters’ lovely parting message:
“So to all authors I say: Be kind to yourselves. Keep going. Ignore your writer fragile ego as best you can. Find people to validate you. Find happiness in the small moments when the writing seems on target. And believe.”
Taylor Grace 