“Karen, where have you been?”
Okay, my ego would like to think you’ve been asking that. It’s all right, though, if you haven’t. But, to answer anyway …
I’ve been writing.
I decided to tackle that “Be more fearless in my writing” goal head on. Actually, I tackled it, stood up and kicked it in its squishy parts.
Then I closed my eyes, plugged my nose, and jumped into the dark, swirling waters of the writing deep end, taking on the thing that most terrifies me: Articles which require an interview.
Last month, after reading everything I could find on writing profile articles, and picking the brain of a co-worker, I wrote up a profile piece on a local business owner and submitted it to a magazine. I’m kind of hoping that the wonderful woman I interviewed couldn’t tell I was half-way to throwing up during the entire interview. I was that terrified.
See, I’m shy. Like, cross the street so I won’t have to talk to someone shy. So, I chose that type of writing to get out of the way first. Shades of Masochism, maybe? I figured that if I could get my personal writing boogeyman stuffed in a sack and buried under my stinky running shoes in the back of my closet, anything that came after would be easier.
I was right. Getting through it (and having the magazine editor love it) was strangely empowering. Since then, I’ve taken on how-to articles, web content and sales letters for another local business.
Plus studying. I’ve dug out the old text books from my writing classes and I’m re-reading them. And any other writing books I can get my hands on.
There’s a whole world of writing things for me to try, learn, and master. Now that I’ve started down the road of writing fearlessly, I can’t wait to see where it leads!
What writing projects are you tackling and how do you kick your fears to the curb?
Hi there, good for you & enjoyed the read! I just did an article about conquering my own shyness – so I can relate, it can be a monster!
Hi Marla! Thank you for coming by and checking out this post. I’ve been horribly, horribly shy my whole life. I’d love to read your article and learn how you overcame your shyness!
Great post! Congratulations on taking the bull by the horns and coming out a huge winner! Looking forward to your next post!
Hi Sandra! Thank you. I’m going to try to make sure there’s not such a time gap between posts from now on. I think my time management skills need to be dusted off!
Shyness… yep I can relate to that, and how somehow I decided to become a teacher. Probably the best thing I could have done to help myself conquer it. I’ve been thinking about getting the book Quiet by Susan Cain. Shyness gets such a bad wrap, and yet so many of us creative people tend to be that way…
I’m just finished chapter 4 of my book and am trying to find a balance between writing literature and blogging. I try not to let blogging take over, but I’ve learned so much over the last year by starting a WordPress site.
Keep posting!
A teacher! That’s awesome! That’s my second biggest fear: Public speaking. It probably goes along with the whole shyness thing. I’m not quite ready to tackle that one yet though.
I may have to check out that book. (Quiet) And I hope your own novel writing is going well! In between everything else, I’m working on a middle grade fantasy novel. If you find that balance, let me know! lol I’d love some pointers!
Thank you for stopping by and commenting!
My biggest fear would be trying to earn a living with my pen. It’s what I do now, but on the corporate side I pretty much write what I’m told to write. If I had to source, research and ultimately make a buck with my own topics I think I’d be scared to death!! I applaud my freelance brethren who conquer this fear on a daily basis!!
Hi John! I write for my day job too. It is definitely a lot easier to write something when I’m told exactly what it is I need to write about. “Karen, we need some instructions for this SharePoint site.” Easy-peasy! But it’s kind of exciting trying to branch out on my own. Scary in that “Oh wait, this roller coaster is actually going to have to go downhill too!” sort of way. If you ever decide to give it a try, let me know! We can form a support group for us scaredy-cats!
Congratulations on facing your fear head on. I recently wrote an anonymous article about something painful that happened to me many years ago. Whenever I sat down to write about it, I would start writing about something else (I hide behind my comedy). I have felt very liberated at finally having written that article and even though nobody will ever know, I know.
Hi Vivian! Anonymous or not, putting a painful experience into words is incredibly brave and I admire you for doing so! Thank you so much for stopping by and sharing and congratulations for being able to face that experience and give it less power over you!
Wow! You think you’re the only one going through a case of the fears. I also wrote my very first post about Squashing Fears! I’m still a bit nervous and so my posting has been limited. However, oddly enough, I’m gaining courage and hopefully, skills. This was a VERY GOOD read! It’s an empowering post and I thank you for that!
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Hi Pam! It’s actually comforting to know I’m not alone! 🙂 I know everyone has fears to face, but seeing it in black and white, so to speak, makes me feel better! I think, too, that putting parts of ourselves out there for the entire world to see is going to always be a little nerve-wracking for most of us. I can’t wait to read your post (I read the one you wrote about reading. I love your blog!) and thank you so much for stopping by and reading mine!
Love the optimism and honesty here. Our writing is about as personal as it gets. It gives our readers a chance to unzip our heads and unbutton our hearts and tell us what they think. Very soul-baring.
I’m working on some fun stuff right now – a he said/she said column with a very talented writer on a parenting site. We’ve taken each other’s writing and mirrored it to fit the gender, and we’ve also just taken shots at each other about issues such as what makes a movie character attractive.
Reading your post makes me want to write – now!
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