Share Your Writing

Sharing our writing can be terrifying. By putting words to paper we are showing more fully who we are. The reader gains access to our thoughts and perspectives and knows more about us than we may want. We open ourselves up to judgment.

When I first began sharing my writing, what bothered me even more, was the idea of people knowing me. The idea of people seeing my picture on Instagram or Facebook when I had not even met them was uncomfortable for me.

One coping mechanism that helped was to focus on the craft of writing, treat it like a hobby when I needed to, and keep the hope that my writing might help someone in mind. That calmed me enough to keep going, but, if I am being honest, there were many days when I was at work at my day job or nights when I was going to sleep that the thought of people reading my blog made my stomach turn.

So, why do we do it to ourselves?

Writing can be a cathartic process. For the longest time, I wrote for myself and edited for myself, and I loved the process and the fact that there was zero pressure on me. And that was great. But there came a time where my story had sat in a file on my computer for long enough. And I thought, now what? I had put a lot of blood, sweat, and tears into that manuscript, and if it stayed on my computer, what was the point?

I asked myself, am I satisfied with this? I found that my answer was no. What was the point of all that work if I didn’t share it with others? If I didn’t share it, I would be giving in to my fears. My fear of failure, of being known, of people not liking it, of bad reviews, and of people just being plain old embarrassed for me.

So, instead, I invested in some training materials that showed me the path to self-publishing and finding a good editor. I decided it was time. I was ready to carefully move forward to the next steps of telling people—publicly, finding an editor, starting a website, and moving my hobby to a business, my self-view as a writer to an author. I challenged myself to keep moving forward to the finish line; a published book. 

So, how did I get past that fear?

It was difficult for me, but once I had found my voice and started sharing regularly, people were intrigued and happy for me.

But do you need to share it? No, you do not. That is your choice. But, if sharing your story with the world is your dream, then do not let your fears stop you. Take your time, you don't have to put your words out there right away, and you certainly do not need to do anything before you are ready. But keep it in the back of your mind, and now and then ask yourself, am I ready now? No? How about now?

Sometimes you need to take the time to process how you would like to tell people and find the words that feel right. For example, you could say that you have been enjoying writing lately. It calms you, and it slows you down. Tell them it is a hobby if you like or share your big dreams with them. Let them read a few pages of your work. Get excited, and they will get excited for you too.

—Cindy