Stop the Fraidy Cat from Blocking Your Writing

What stops many writers from completing their books?  Fear.

• Fear of having enough of a story to tell.
• Fear of being able to get it all out once they start.
• Fear of exposing their thoughts and secrets.
• Fear of exposing their knowledge or conversely, their lack of expertise.
• Fear of hurting someone.
• Fear of people not getting or liking their writing.
• Fear of nobody taking out $15 to buy it.
• Fear of exposing their grammar and writing skills.
• Not to mention the fear of the publishing world in general 

I can sense one or more of these things in nearly every writer. I tell my clients that it's very common to have these fears, but the most important piece of advice I can give them is to get the story out of themselves in some way.  If you can see that you have one of these fears, stop the Fraidy Cat, and get the book out of your head and on to paper, computer or recorded.

Writers Edit. Write. Edit your writing. Step away from your writing for a moment and edit some more. Writing is rewriting.

Writers Read. Read Stephen King's On Writing or Anne Lamott's Bird by Bird