"I don't feel inspired to write" .... The truth about creative writing.

Do you feel unmotivated to write? Just totally drained of energy and inspiration? Maybe you even have some ideas or a sense of where the story is going, but you just don't feel like writing it.

In fact, the thought of sitting down at your desk and opening your laptop literally scares you because you're afraid that everything you write today will be terrible. If this sounds like you, don't worry; you're not a fraud and are not alone. Many, many writers feel this way, myself included sometimes.

The truth about any creative career is that it's not all fun and games. It takes a lot of self-discipline. So if you ever struggle to push through the hard, slow, and dull days, I get it - I've been there, and I have experienced that. And every writer does. What do you do when you don't feel like writing? when you're drained of inspiration and creativity and energy? Well ... When you don't feel like writing ... write anyway. When you sit down to write, even if you're just not feeling it and there's that little voice of self-doubt in the back of your head saying, "You're not going to be able to write today."

Write anyway. Overcome that instinctive flinch moment by conquering your fear before it conquers you. What you're feeling is an emotion. That's it. It's a momentary, fleeting feeling.

So you're going to let that feeling of discomfort and hesitation stop you from pursuing your dream career? Really? Think about it. What is the worst that could happen? I'll tell you.

You might write a few pages that have to be edited ... but who cares? Your whole book is going to have to be edited anyway! Editing is inevitable. But as the famous quote goes, you can't edit a blank page. So if you give into that feeling of self-doubt and you say, "Okay fear, I listened, and I will act accordingly. I'm going to back off, close my Scrivener project, close my laptop, walk away, and I'm not going to write today because I'm afraid what I write won't be great." When you do that, you are literally training your brain to listen to fear and obey it.

Creative writing doesn't just require inspiration and imagination. It also requires discipline, and a willingness to show up repeatedly, even when it's boring. Everything is tedious when you have to do it over and over and over again, whether that's writing a book, learning an instrument, teaching yourself a new skill etc... It can be tedious after a while, but that doesn't mean that you're not making progress -Just the opposite. It means that you are making progress because, with every step forward, you are getting better, and getting closer to your dream life. That means there is no bad writing. All your writing makes you a better writer.

And any time that you spend practising your art is time well-spent. It's good for you. You can't achieve that level of success that you're looking for without putting in the hours and hours and hours of practice.

Practice, practice, practice. Sometimes I show up to write, and I'll write one golden paragraph out of three pages. And for me, it was worth showing up that day to write just for that one golden paragraph.

So next time you feel like you're having a bad writing day, tell yourself this:

"There is no bad writing. My writing is great, or it is making me great."

Just stop taking this so seriously. It's supposed to be fun. Here's the truth ... you don't have to write it perfectly. Stop intimidating yourself. Every writer feels afraid sometimes. They feel scared and intimidated and even unqualified to do what they set out to do. The difference is whether you push through the fear or let it control you. If you want to be among the published successful authors you admire and look up to, then you must push through it. You have to get over it, push it aside and move on with your life.

Lots of Love,

Maegan Winters.